Positively Positive
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Is your glass half full or half empty?
According to the Mayo Clinic optimism and pessimism — can affect many areas of your health and well-being.
So what does this all mean? Being strong and healthy mentally is our very best defense against sickness and our strongest ally when it comes to healing. It’s not magic. It’s really quite simple. Heal your mind heal your body!
So how do you do this?
Start by paying attention to your thought patterns. Are they filled with I CAN or I can’t. Once you notice what and how you think the next step is to understand that you alone control your thoughts. Are you with me so far, as the last step is entirely up to you. Be careful what you think and what you say. Never criticize yourself, instead replace those thoughts with positive self-nurturing ones. The difference between your success & failure is the difference in the way you think.
Need help? You can learn how to change your thinking. Change negative thoughts to ones that are positive.
Always remember ~~~ What YOU think about yourself is most important!
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor specializing in those 50+ in NYC 10023
Pilates Plate 5
By · CommentsHow I keep my Pilates Body other than through exercise!
Today it’s the chickpea.
Very good. Very easy. Very inexpensive. Let’s not forget Very healthy. This is a great dish to make as it has everything you need and has nothing you don’t. It’s a keeper in our house make it a keeper in yours. As with all my recipes be creative and make it your own!
Moroccan Chickpea Soup by Dave Lieberman
Ingredients
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
1 large onion, medium diced
6 to 8 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 heaping teaspoon sweet paprika
1 (14.5-ounce) can chopped tomatoes (I use whole tomatoes and let them break up as they cook)
3 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed well (I use 2 cans)
1 quart vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon sugar (I don’t use)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 (5-ounce) package pre-washed baby spinach (I’ve used all different kinds of greens) Use what you have!
Procedure
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until the onions begin to turn translucent; lower heat if browning starts to occur. Add spices and saute a minute or so. Add tomatoes, chickpeas, broth, and sugar. Season with a couple pinches of salt and 10 grinds fresh pepper. Stir well. Chickpeas should be just covered with liquid. If level is shy, add some water so the chickpeas are just covered.
Bring to a simmer, then lower heat to low and gently simmer for 45 minutes.
Remove soup from heat. Use a potato masher to mash up some of the chickpeas right in the pot. Stir in the spinach and let heat through until wilted, just a couple minutes.
Season again, to taste, with salt and pepper.
Serve soup, drizzled lightly with extra-virgin olive oil, if desired.
* This is a great soup to do ahead & have on the ready. I add the greens when I reheat the soup. However, it does taste great the next day, wilted greens and all. I also like to grate Parmesan cheese on my bowl of soup, perhaps you will too.
Enjoy!
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor specializing in those 50+ in NYC
Midlife Magic
By · CommentsLife is a wonderful journey. It’s important to savour each segment as we travel along. Right? Todays segment up for discussion is that dreaded ‘Midlife’. “Well it doesn’t have to be” says Jayne Cox, The Body Image Expert. Say hi to Jayne from across the pond. She will show us how you can enjoy a fulfilling, meaningful life as you move toward and through mid-life. She says it can even be magical! Sounds good to me.
Body Image at Midlife!
by Jayne Cox
It’s a fact that women struggle with how they look and it seems, for many, insecurities about body image increase with age. For some women it’s a battle to conform to social and personal expectations to be a certain size, shape or weight and for others it’s the visual signs of age that cause torment. Advertisements, features on TV and in glossy magazines apply steady and constant pressure for us to join the anti age revolution and put our hands in our pockets and try products and radical procedures that guarantee we’ll be more beautiful, successful and loved BUT only if we keep it up!
The truth is it can seem as if we are caught between a rock and hard place but I believe there’s far more to our marvellous midlife than weight, age and looks!
So what’s the alternative?
How about stepping back and really giving some thought to your life and how you really feel about yourself. There are some simple things you can do to love your years, your body and your life!
Midlife can be magical – let me prove it!
My Top 10 Tips…
1. Ditch the diet for life! It’s simple, feed yourself a varied diet, keep active and find professional support to STOP using food and start living.
2. Find a sensible and manageable beauty routine that specifically targets any problem areas.
3. Monitor your TV viewing, how much influence does TV have over your feelings about your body?
4. Do a life audit and check who your friends are. Negative friends encourage negative thinking and drain your positive reserves. Is it time to look at the company you keep?
5. Ask yourself ‘Do I feel fulfilled?’ if not what’s missing? There’s never been a better time to find something that really interests you, stimulates you and makes you feel fabulous! Boredom is a perfect breeding ground for body dissatisfaction.
6. Magazines can influence your thoughts about yourself, so how about picking a new magazine OR just walking on by!
7. Clear out the dated make up and clothes, invest in a few key seasonal pieces and take a make-up lesson or try a wardrobe detox.
8. Get outdoors and get active. If you love the gym great, if you don’t getting active outdoors is fantastic. Use a pedometer to chart your success. Bounce on a trampoline, help mind body and spirit with Yoga or Pilates perhaps find a walking buddy!
9. Throw a Beauty Brunch for your friends, pamper yourself with some beauty product samples or trial sizes and how about finding time to spend 30 minutes telling each other what is really fab about each other, you’ll all feel terrific!
TEN!
How about looking at your career and your life, is it stale and are you ready for a change? Focus on what you can do, what is within your control and do it! Think outside the box, look beyond your numbers and fill your life with what you deserve and settle for nothing but the best for you and your life!
YOU can Love your Years, Your Body and Your Life!
Bio:
Jayne has been in Private Practice for over a decade as an Eating Disorder Therapist and a Professional Coach and she has become known as The Body Image Expert, both in the UK and Worldwide. Her specialities include over coming midlife eating disorders and diet addiction, creating midlife balance at home and in the workplace, finding spiritual fulfilment and discovering the fabulous you!. She is passionate and driven, motivating and inspiring midlife women to overcome their insecurities and to love their years, their bodies and their lives!
She is available for Specialist one to one Coaching face to face in the UK and Worldwide using Telephone, ichat or Skype
www.jaynecox.co.uk You can also follow Jayne on Twitter @Loving_My-Years
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor specializing in those 50+ in NYC
Pilates Plate 4
By · CommentsHow I keep my Pilates Body other than through exercise!
Todays recipe was sent to me by my healthy foodie sister in Paris. Thank you Deborah! It’s a rainy day in NYC, perfect for a warming bowl of soup. What do you say we all give this one a try?! Remember what I always say let’s be creative and make this recipe our own!
Savoy Cabbage and White Bean Soup
Lucas Hollweg
This is one of those thick, meal-in-a-bowl-type soups that winter is made for.
Serves 2-3
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
A decent handful of unsmoked streaky bacon
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 sticks of celery, finely chopped
3 plump cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
2 small sprigs of fresh rosemary
1 bay leaf
1 can cannellini or other white beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups chicken stock
Freshly ground sea salt and black pepper
savoy cabbage leaves, roughly sliced
Extra-virgin olive oil, for sprinkling
Parmesan cheese or grana padano
Procedure
Heat the oil and fry the bacon until just golden. Then add the onion, celery and garlic and sweat until soft. Add one sprig of rosemary and the bay leaf, then the drained beans and chicken stock. Stir well, then bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for 25 minutes.
Take out the bay leaf, rosemary sprig season the soup and lightly mash with a potato masher or fork, so that about half the beans are reduced to mush and half remain whole.
Add the cabbage, stir well, then return to the boil and cook for a further 6-7 minutes until the leaves are soft. Strip the leaves from the remaining sprig of rosemary. Chop as finely as you can and stir into the soup.
Check the seasoning, then ladle into bowls, adding a splash of olive oil and a generous grating of cheese before serving.
Enjoy!
Btw if you find that you are ‘Food Confused’ Lucas Hollweg can help! Hope you enjoy his style of writing as much as I did! HELP AND LAUGH
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor specializing in Baby Boomers in NYC
All About You
By · CommentsSo you decided to start exercising. Something got you motivated. Whether it was your Dr’s warning, a vacation where you will be on the beach and you must wear that dreaded bathing suit or an upcoming high school reunion, you’ve taken step one a decision to start. Now what? How do you set yourself up for success? Remember this is for YOU. YOU have to like what you’re doing not anyone else. Therefore may I suggest a good place to start is selecting an appropriate exercise regime that is suited specifically for you.
• Do you prefer the solitude of exercising alone, or is companionship more motivating?
• Are you more attracted to activities which require greater mental alertness and quick bursts of energy? Or are you more attracted to workouts that promote tranquility?
• Do you thrive on competition? Team sports?
• Would you rather be indoors or outside? This can also be a seasonal question.
• Would your previous experiences with exercise programs lead you to believe that you will like or dislike the activities you’re considering?
Your responses should offer you some insight to your exercise personality. Finding your exercise personality will greatly increase your odds of success. Remember you want to succeed!
Tip! Take time for you. While many people make time to take care of others (kids, spouse, other family, co-workers, boss), they don’t often make time to take care of themselves. Instead, make your “you” time a priority, and don’t miss that exercise appointment. Your health is your life.
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor specializing in those 50+ in NYC
Pilates Plate 3
By · CommentsHow I keep my Pilates Body other than through exercise!
Yes, NYC has a Green Market! In fact they have quite a few. The nearest one to me is the 77th Street Greenmarket which is located on Columbus Avenue, between 77th & 80th Streets.
Open Sunday, Year-Round. Yay!
“Greenmarket was founded in 1976 with a two-fold mission: to promote regional agriculture by providing small family farms the opportunity to sell their locally grown, caught, foraged and baked products directly to consumers, and to ensure that ALL New Yorkers have access to the freshest, most nutritious locally grown food the region has to offer.” grownyc.org
This week along with all my other goodies I brought home light purple eggplants and zucchini. I have the perfect dish to share with you today. Over the summer I made this dish several times as it was perfect for company and it quickly became a favorite. As with most of my recipes it’s easy to be creative. So don’t forget to make it your own!
Layered Eggpland and Tomato Casserole by Marcia Kiesel
Ingredients
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing and brushing
3 medium zucchini (1 1/2 pounds), sliced lengthwise 1/4 inch thick
2 long, narrow eggplants (1 1/2 pounds), peeled and sliced lengthwise 1/3 inch thick
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 large shallot, minced
1 pound plum tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice
3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (3/4 cup)
1/4 cup chopped basil
1/3 cup panko or coarse dry bread crumbs
Procedure
Preheat the oven to 425°. Oil 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Put the zucchini slices on one sheet and the eggplant on the other. Brush the slices all over with oil and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the slices on each sheet in a slightly overlapping layer. Bake for 15 minutes, until tender.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the shallot and cook over moderate heat until softened, 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook over high heat until slightly softened and bubbling, 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.
Oil a large, shallow baking dish (about 10 by 15 inches). Lay half of the eggplant in the dish and spread one-fourth of the tomatoes on top. Scatter with half of the feta and basil. Layer half of the zucchini on top, followed by another one-fourth of the tomato and the remaining basil, eggplant and zucchini. Top with the remaining tomato and feta. Mix the panko with the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and sprinkle over the casserole. Bake in the upper third of the oven for 20 minutes, until bubbling and crisp. Let stand for 5 minutes, then serve hot or warm.
Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
Eggplant is:
Low in Saturated Fat, Sodium, and Cholesterol
High in Dietary Fiber, Folate, Potassium, Manganese, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Thiamin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Pantothenic Acid, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Copper
Zucchini is
Low in Saturated Fat and Sodium, and very low in Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Protein, Vitamin A, Thiamin, Niacin, Phosphorus and Copper, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Magnesium, Potassium and Manganesem
Tomato
Contains compounds that have been proven to help prevent cancer, heart disease cataracts and so much more. There are so many health benefits to eating tomatoes that I’ve included a link for you. Benefits of tomatoes.
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor specializing in those 50+ in NYC
The Core of the Matter
By · CommentsI am very happy to introduce you to my Guest Blogger Renee Ludwigs. Renee has exceptional people skills and possesses a natural compassion and caring for the needs of others. Today Renee is going to show us how developing our Core can lead us to a more tranquil and peaceful life. We understand The Core as it relates to Pilates. Now let’s take the journey with Renee and learn how developing our core can also bring us tranquility. It’s all part of having an Island Perspective!
So let’s get to The Core of the matter….
How Strengthening Your Core Can Lead to Peace and Tranquility by Renee Ludwigs
Inner peace and tranquility – it’s all we really want. It feels so good, so right because it’s our natural, inherent state of mind. But in the go-go culture of today, it’s often hard to find.
We get caught up in thinking we should do this, should do that. All these shoulds wear us out and can even keep us from finding our best self. Sound familiar? Yeah, me too. And this not only hurts us, but those around us.
But luckily we can invite tranquility back into our lives – by finding our core.
You probably know that core strength is the foundation of Pilates, but you may be wondering what it has to do with inner peace . . .
It’s about focusing on your whole self – body, mind and spirit. And your whole self will benefit from regular core building exercises. By attending to your inner self, both physically and mentally, you’ll soon be on the path to enjoying sustainable tranquility in your life.
Here’s how to get started:
• Focus on your core.
Be quiet and still. Listen to your inner voice and internal knowing. Connect with your deep and true desires. Trust your ability to make wise choices about what’s best for you.
• Train your muscles.
Be patient and loving with yourself. Growth will come from conquering tough challenges, one at a time. Believe in the possibilities and your unique ability to bounce back when the going gets tough.
• Use proper form.
Eat healthy. Exercise most days. Get enough sleep. Make nurturing yourself a top priority. Surround yourself with positive energy and people who are full of hope and enthusiasm.
• Build balance and stability.
Take time to explore what makes you happy. Stay the course as you find your center, your equilibrium, your purpose. Little by little, with diligent practice, shore up a firm and stable foundation.
• Remember to breath deeply.
Put your whole heart into your own self care. Accept life events and people that you can’t control. Stop to breathe when it gets hard. Let go and flow through your daily activities with grace and ease.
Your body is a beautiful machine, a gift really. To remember your core, you can think of yourself as a majestic palm tree – confident, steadfast, beautiful and resilient. And what makes palm trees so flexible? Strong, pliable trunks.
Make good health the focus of your attention by empowering yourself – from the inside out. Create the time and space to nourish and strengthen both your outer and your inner self.
By living from the sturdy core of your being – you will naturally find more peace and tranquility.
Renee Ludwigs is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Tranquility Coach who inspires people to develop their own unique path to inner peace and tranquility by living with An Island Perspective. Discover powerful, fun ways of looking at life that will help you find balance and perspective by visiting Renee’s blog at islandperspective .com. And you can be a part of the “island tribe’ at Facebook.com/IslandPerspective and follow her on Twitter @ReneeLudwigs. Inspiration with a tropical flavor!
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor in NYC specializing in those 50+
Pilates Plate 2
By · CommentsHow I keep my Pilates Body other than through exercise!
This one pot meal is a favorite in my house. Make it a favorite in yours. It’s easy & quick to prepare. My idea of ‘Fast Food’
White Bean Stew
by Joanne Smart
Who said Italian night has to include pasta? This quick-cooking stew has onions, garlic, and spicy Italian sausage—classic flavors you expect in an Italian meal—and it’s warming and comforting, too.
Serves three to four
Ingredients
1 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3/4 lb. hot Italian sausage, casings removed
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
2 15-oz. cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 small head escarole, chopped into 1- to 2-inch pieces, washed, and lightly dried
1 cup low-salt canned chicken broth
1-1/2 tsp. red-wine vinegar; more to taste
Kosher salt
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Procedure
Heat the oil in a heavy 5- to 6-qt. Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the sausage, raise the heat to medium high, and cook, stirring and breaking up the sausage with a wooden spoon or spatula until lightly browned and broken into small (1-inch) pieces, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, then stir in the beans. Add the escarole to the pot in batches; using tongs, toss with the sausage mixture to wilt the escarole and make room for more.
When all the escarole is in, add the chicken broth, cover the pot, and cook until the beans are heated through and the escarole is tender, about 8 minutes. Season to taste with the vinegar and salt. Transfer to bowls and sprinkle each portion with some of the Parmigiano.
Enjoy!
**Creative Notes** If you don’t like spicy sausage use sweet. If you don’t eat pork substitute chicken or turkey sausage. Lot’s of terrific sausage on the market many of which are organic. As for the vinegar, I put it on the table to add as you like. Don’t forget you can make this recipe your own!
Nutrition Facts
Cannellini Beans are an excellent source of iron, magnesium, and folate, a single serving of cannellini beans provides more than 20 percent of the recommended daily values of these nutrients. They are also a good source of protein, providing more than 15 grams per serving. Other nutritional benefits include their low fat content and calorie count. Each serving contains only 225 calories and less than one gram of fat.
Escarole is fat-free, low in sodium, cholesterol-free, low in calories and high in folate.
It contains only 20 calories and has 65% of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin A.
Do you have a favorite white bean or escarole recipe? Please share!
Susan Sommers is a Personal Pilates Instructor specializing in those 50+ on the Upper West Side, NYC
Pilates Plate
By · CommentsHow I keep my Pilates Body other than through exercise
I am passionate about cooking! Healthy cooking, of course. I especially love to cook this time of year, peasant style one pot meals. Stews and Soups. So easy to take a recipe and make it your own. Easy to freeze and have a meal in the ready.
What a perfect time to share some recipes with you!
Just yesterday I made a big pot of Stewed Lentils & Tomatoes
You can eat this as a side dish or it’s a meal in itself.
Loaded with fiber, iron, protein, and other vitamins and minerals, lentils are a nutritional fountain of youth. Researchers who studied the elderly found that eating these earthy-tasting seeds (and other legumes) is the single most important dietary factor in longevity.
When it comes to fiber, a mere half cup of lentils provides around a third of your daily requirements. While lentils share many health benefits with their legume cousins, they gain a distinct edge when it comes to preparation: Lentils need no presoaking, and they cook in less than an hour.
So let’s bring on the lentils…
Ingredients
2t olive oil
2 lg sweet onions diced
3-4 carrots chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1 (28 oz can whole plum tomatoes)
1 cup French green lentils
2 cups water or stock
2t curry powder (mild or hot)
1t cumin
2t kosher salt
Black pepper freshly ground
Procedure
Heat the oil in a large heavy bottomed pan. Add the onions and carrots and cook over medium low heat for about 8-10 minutes or until softened. Stir occasionally. Add garlic stir for 1 minute
Add curry powder, cumin stir until fragrant at least 1 minute.
Add the rest of the ingredients. (Tomatoes can be pureed first or like I do broken up with a fork while in the pot) I like my tomatoes chunky in this dish..
Raise the heat. Bring to a boil, Lower heat cover pan and simmer until lentils are consistency you like. Approx 45-60 min.
**Be creative** If you don’t like the taste of Curry not to worry perhaps you like a more Mexican feel than use Chili Powders or perhaps you’re in the mood for Italian, how about some Rosemary? Feeling very Greek, lets use some Oregano. The flavoring is up to you! Do you like fennel? I do. Chop some up and add it.
Make it your own. Most of all….Enjoy!
Do you have a favorite lentil recipe? Please share.
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor specializing in those 50+ in NYC, NY
Pilates Props
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Why I love Pilates props!
Boys have ‘boy toys’ Pilates has ‘Pilates toys’ better known as props. I love my Pilates toys!
From exercise bands to magic circles to my newest piece of equipment a portable Pilates Arc, props can add challenges, assistance or spice up a regular Pilates workout. The right prop can make a hard exercise easier and a simple exercise more challenging.
What is the main and most important reason that I use props with my clients? Props can help them facilitate the proper execution of an exercise. Modifications! Props help my client to build the strength or awareness necessary to perform the “real” exercise properly. They help build confidence that they can do the exercise! Although, the original Pilates exercises are effective on their own, some people just can’t do them right, yet! Props can be the stepping stone a client needs to succeed with a particular exercise. As an instructor I believe it is not only my job to teach an exercise but to inspire and motivate my client as well. Results are an important factor in motivation.
Another good reason for the use of props is because they introduce muscle confusion training. The muscle confusion training principle states that muscles adapt to a specific type of stress and need to be challenged in varied ways in order to continue experiencing results. Muscles improve from being subjected to new and different stresses and challenges which is exactly what props can provide. Muscles performing the same action day after day “get bored” just as clients get bored with the same workout. Variety is the spice of life.
Has your client mastered an exercise or are they finding an exercise too easy? Use of a prop can also be used to challenge them. Try the hundreds a classic Pilates exercise with a Magic Circle between their ankles. May be just the challenge they need!
As an instructor it is important to know which prop to use and why you are using that particular prop. What is your goal in using a particular prop? Challenge your client? Do an exercise correctly? Target their core? Facilitate better alignment? Knowing the merits of each prop and which ones best suit your client’s need or objectives is the first step to integrating props successfully into your clients or even your own Pilates workouts.
Last but not least……..What do I love most of all about props? Props are portable! I teach Pilates in the comfort of my client’s home or building’s gym. All they need do is supply their body, I supply the rest.
Would love your comments about the use of props! Do you have a favorite?
Marguerite Ogle, About.com has an excellent guide to small Pilates equipment. Props Guide
Susan Sommers is a Pilates instructor specializing in those 50+ in NYC, NY
