All of us at Second Wind Pilates Plus are delighted to welcome you to our blog! We update monthly, with news articles, links to medical journals, exercises, recipes, nutrition notes, and more.

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An alarming statistic indeed:  in Canada, one stroke occurs every ten minutes – that’s 50,000 per year.  Globe and Mail nutrition writer Leslie Beck reveals the links between stroke and soft drinks – even diet soft drinks – in her April article. 

As always, Ms Beck covers legitimate medical studies, and provides the necessary background for the lay reader.  In this article, we learn that “(R)isk factors for stroke include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, excess alcohol, stress and being overweight. After age 55 the risk of stroke doubles every 10 years.”

The study, which was published in the May issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, followed men and women for up to 28 years.  The findings?  Higher intakes of both sugar-sweetened and low-calorie soft drinks increased the risk of stroke.

Although this article does not refer to Pilates, there’s no harm in ‘mixing it up’ when it comes to your healthy-living regimen.  And the authors of this article are practically in our backyard!  Researchers at McMaster University  in Ontario and the Karolinska Institute and other institutions in Sweden recently recruited volunteers to test the idea that one receives more physiological benefit from performing only one type of exercise per day. 

Happily, it turned out that combining weight training, a non-aerobic activity, with aerobic exercise caused no interference with the benefits of either.  Even better, it seems that you can potentially do less of each form of exercise when you combine them, and still gain considerable benefits.  Read more about the study here.  Thanks to Second Wind instructor Marlene Storey-Hope for bringing this article to our attention!

Another “plus” for Pilates:  researchers Alves de Araújo et al. conducted a study to evaluate the effectiveness of Pilates with regard to the degree of scoliosis, flexibility and pain.  Thirty-one female students were divided into two groups: a control group (CG = 11), which had no therapeutic intervention, and an experimental group (EG = 20), which underwent Pilates-based therapy.  Their findings?  The Pilates method showed a reduction in the degree of non-structural scoliosis, increased flexibility and decreased pain.  To read the full article, click here.

Pilates is a suitable exercise for seniors.  In fact, Second Wind Pilates Plus has a number of over-65′s among its student population, and they’re hard to keep up with!  As Pilates writer Marguerite Ogle explains, “The ability to modify exercises to meet differing needs, along with the many benefits of the Pilates method, such as increased levels of strength, balance, flexibility, muscle tone, stamina, and well being, make Pilates an inviting senior exercise program. After all, Joseph Pilates  practiced his method into his eighties.”

Enjoy Marguerite’s article here.

The Globe and Mail’s nutrition writer, Leslie Beck, shines again as she encourages us to “Try this lineup of nutrition all-stars“.  Leslie opens the envelope and reveals the best green vegetable, best fruit, best snack, best protein, best starch and best cereal grain.  Even better, they’re all easily found, easily eaten and always delicious!

We’ve come a long way since the carcinogenic days of saccharine, and the appeal of low-calorie, sugar-free artificial sweeteners continues to grow.  But what do we really know about the safety of the sugar substitutes out there?  And if we’re really getting the best version of the natural ones?  In her article, “What you should know about artificial sweeteners”, writer Carly Weeks reports that:

“Health Canada has approved stevia for use in some natural health products. Dr. (David) Ludwig said there’s a difference between the traditional stevia leaf and the extracts many companies are using as food additives. Just because it’s natural doesn’t mean it’s safer, and rigorous studies may be needed to assess the long-term safety of stevia extracts as well.”

As always, it’s best to stay informed about what you and your family might be ingesting.  Here’s a link to the full article.

About.com’s Marguerite Ogle explains how and why Pilates helps heal back pain.  Read her article here.  (About.com Health’s Disease and Condition content is reviewed by their Medical Review Board.)  

If you’re a student at Second Wind Pilates Plus, you are already familiar with the concept of neutral spine, and can ‘find’ it without difficulty.  In the words of Director Danielle Belec-Van Zeyl:

“Neutral Spine requires that the natural, alternating curves of the spine be maintained and muscularly supported during movement whenever the spine is vertical – that is, not in flexion or extension.  Attaining this alignment requires the presence of Neutral Pelvis, as the pelvis is part of the spine, but as stated above, the entire spine must be in proper alignment for a client to achieve true Neutral Spine or Neutral Pelvis.

Each section of the spine (cervical, thoracic and lumbar), must relate to one another with the appropriate musculature acting separately but in co-ordination with adjacent parts of the spine.”

While “The Five Jewels” – Forward Pelvic Shift, Thigh Lift, Arm Reaches, Abdominal Curl and Knee Drop – help you to set yourself up as accurately as possible for Pilates work, you may not yet be sufficiently familiar with the exercises to perform them accurately on your own.  Turn, then, to a simple five minute series of intentional steps that will help you achieve Neutral Spine easily.  Pilates writer Marguerite Ogle explains here.

Self-medicating for stress by using herbal remedies?  Take extra care to ensure that the herb-based ingredients in your pill or liquid of choice aren’t interfering with other medications, or causing health related side-effects such as hypertension or vaginal bleeding.

Writer Adriana Barton provides insight into some of the issues associated with attempting to ‘medicate’ your stress away.  And as many health and fitness researchers attest, taking a walk is probably the better stress relief method anyway.  Read Ms Barton’s article here.

Second Wind instructor Marlene Storey-Hope is well known for her innovative teaching style and delightfully demanding classes.  This photo of the sunrise over Lake Ontario was taken shortly before the start of Marlene’s Saturday morning class on January 7, 2011.  Truly a mild winter, indeed!

In case you think that the participants objected in any way, enjoy this   unsolicited comment from one of them:

“Gorgeous!  Can’t say enough about the amazing workout by the lake.  Thanks again.  See you Saturday.
Nella A.”

Thanks, Nella.  We’re so glad you enjoyed it!