Wendy's Pantry

I am not a professional cook or a trained nutritionist, but do have a great enthusiasm for food and nutrition, and a very healthy appetite! What follows are a mixture of my own concoctions and recipes I have collected over the years. They all work, (I promise!) and are mostly quick, easy and very tasty, and I am happy to share them with you.

I think that half the battle of being able to stick to a healthy way of eating is to be prepared, and never allow yourself to get so hungry that your brain won't allow you to make good food choices!

I believe in healthy snacking to keep the blood sugar levels stable. I will be adding to these recipes over the weeks so keep logging on to www.derbyshirepilates.co.uk

Enjoy!

Welcome to 'Well Being'

Relax and unwind

Help to reduce tension and anxiety by listening to this audio relaxation. Learning to relax can help reduce symptoms of muscular tension, anxiety, insomnia, depression, fatigue, irritable bowel, muscles spasms, neck and back pain, high blood pressure and help to keep stress levels in check.

Now sit back, or even better lie down and place a cushion under your head and under your knees and take some time for yourself to unwind from a stressful day and listen to the audio.

Restore Body and Mind

Becoming more aware of your breathing can be invaluable to improving your health and well being. All too often we sit for long hours at the computer and our breathing becomes shallow. This encourages tight muscles in the neck, a lack of flexibility in the muscles between the ribs and tightness in the upper back. Shallow breathing is often associated with stress and anxiety and learning to breath correctly can reduce these symptoms allowing the body to relax.

Here is a simple method to help you gain a correct breathing pattern.

Place your right hand on your abdomen at the waist line, left hand on your chest in the centre. Notice your breathing pattern. As you breathe in your tummy should rise and as you breathe out your tummy should fall. Notice if your shoulders are rising as you breathe, taking the air more so into your upper chest. This could be an indication you are shallow breathing.

Now breathe normally in through you nose and out through your nose, allow your tummy to make contact with your right hand on your abdomen. This will help you to engage the diaphragm and lower ribs drawing air deep into your lower lunges where oxygen absorption is most efficient. Take a few moments to experience this breathing pattern, relax your neck and shoulders.

Now to deepen the experience of relaxation remind yourself of an aroma, sound or colour that gives you pleasure. As you exhale turn your attention to the weight of your body and surrender your body weight to gravity. If you are holding anxiety and tension you may feel a rise in your emotions. Do not stifle them. Acknowledge them. When a thought comes into your mind, acknowledge the thought and then let it go. Again do not block the thoughts. Maintain the practice for as long as is comfortable. Short spells to begin with is fine.

Practicing little and often helps to calm your mind restoring equilibrium to mind and body.

A superb reference to help you learn and understand the importance of breathing for good health and vitality is ‘The Breathing Book’ by Donna Farhi.

Read, practice and enjoy! Bridgette.

'The core stability myth'

In 'The Times' Newspaper (Tues Aug 10th 2010) the article 'The core stability myth' was published in the Health and Families section.

The following article is in response to this. It is here on the well being page in order for you to read and to have an opportunity to respond to 'The Times' if you wish.

Many health professionals work hard at their own continuing personal development in order to provide the general public with safe, functional and progressive exercise programmes to help with low back pain issues. Poor research such as this should not be left unchallenged.

Read full article

Pain management and Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis can be caused by aging, heredity, disease and injury from a trauma. Most commonly, Primary Osteoarthritis is related to the aging process and from the repetitive use of joints over many years. The articular cartilage becomes irritated and inflamed causing joint pain and swelling. Over time the cartilage degenerates reducing it’s cushioning effect between the bones of the joints, causing friction between the bones. This leads to pain, stiffness and restriction of joint mobility. The inflammation of the cartilage can stimulate new bone outgrowths called ‘spurs’ and these form around the joints.

Secondary arthritis is caused by disease or conditions such as congenital abnormalities, diabetes, obesity causing mechanical stress on the joint, or trauma such as a fall or severe blow to some part of the skeletal system.

It is important to stay mobile and exercise regularly as pain and stiffness of the joints is often felt after long periods of inactivity. Maintaining your correct weight and reducing your weight if necessary, and avoiding high impact activities that place stress on the joints, helps with pain management.

There are various treatments for osteoarthrits from mild pain relievers and non- steroidal ant-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to help reduce inflammation in the joints.

Exercise is important to help manage pain and reduce stiffness. Keeping the joints mobile is important. However, some people will experience a ‘flare up’ in their symptoms from time to time. This can be associated with increased frequency and intensity of activity, so learning to exercise at a moderate level is important.

Pilates exercises can be modified for people with Osteoarthritis and have proven to be very beneficial. The gentle, slow, controlled movements within the Pilates practice helps to maintain good range of movement in the joints. Stretching and lengthening the muscles helps to reduce stiffness and allow more space at the joints. Pilates allows for a functional integrated exercise plan that helps to keep the body supple and reduce fatigue allowing for a better quality of life.

Swimming can also be beneficial, allowing the body to be supported in the water reduces the effects of gravity. It can be a good way to improve cardiovascular fitness without excessive impact on the joints.

For more information please contact ‘Arthritis Care’ www.arthritiscare.co.uk

They have a very useful and informative booklet for you to download called, ‘Exercise and Arthritis’. They also offer support and treatment guidance. Bridgette Bradley Derbyshire Pilates.

You may find this article on how Ainsley Harriott copes with his arthiritis interesting.

How Ainsley Harriott copes with his arthritis

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I hope you are finding the information on this page informative, fun and helpful. None of the people who contribute to the Wellbeing page receive payment. They are all passionate about the work they do and are happy to share their skills and knowledge with you. If you would like to contact them, ask a question, learn more about what they do, and/or say 'thanks for the info', go to the contacts page and leave a message in the 'feedback box'. This will then be forwarded to them. In particular, if you have tried one of Wendy's recipes, let others know how easy and delicious the recipes are!

Be kind to your body and relax your mind, Wishing you good health.

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Kindling Your Inner Fire

'Trust yourself. Create the kind of life you will be happy to live with all your life. Make the most of yourself by fanning the tiny, inner sparks of possibility into the flames of achievement'. Foster C. McClellan

This mystical fable is from a book 'The monk who sold his Ferrari' by Robin S. Sharma. If you are feeling that your life is not how you would like it to be, or you've 'hit the buffers' and feel you are directionless in life, or caught up in a net full of materialistic stuff that once made you happy, but now doesn't quite hit the spot, then this book is for you. It's delighful to read with some useful bits of wisdom for our Western minds!

Enjoy, Bridgette

3 Part Breath - Breathing awareness

Hello, my name is Jo Gibbons and I would like to share with you the importance of learning to breathe correctly, to help release tension in your body.

I have practiced yoga for ten years, with many different teachers from a variety of traditions, i.e Hatha, Iyengar, Jivamukti. I have been teaching now for three years, and completed the British Wheel of Yoga Diploma Course last year. With my own personal practice and teaching regular classes, I enjoy the experience of improved mind/body harmony that yoga brings. I have a keen interest in many ancient traditions such as Ayurveda, Reiki, and Crystals and apply them to contemporary western situations.

Breathing is the most vital thing we have to do in life. However as obvious as it may seem people in these more hectic times have fallen into bad breathing habits. Because of the fast pace of life and stressful situations they very often tend to hold their breath or breathe rapidly and shallowly using only the upper chest; a fraction of their lung capacity which can lead to further physical and mental anxiety. Becoming familiar with the air entering and leaving the body is very beneficial. In yoga it is considered the simplest form of meditation.

The three part yogic breath is a simple pranayama (breath control) practice. It is best practiced in a lying position with the hands placed on the chest and abdomen. Firstly breathe into the lower abdomen feeling it rise slightly, the hand on the chest remaining still. Next breathe to feel the ribs swelling against the upper arms. Lastly breathe into the collarbone area. This completes the inhalation. The exhalation is from the collarbone area, chest, then abdomen. Continue with the practice for as long as you need. This practice uses the diaphragm, thoracic and clavicle parts of the chest and lungs.

Once you have mastered this technique you will find you can do it anywhere. It will help in a stressful situation, if you are stuck in traffic jams, or finding difficulty sleeping. So breathe easy and relax, it's your passport to a healthier you!

Joanna Gibbons B.W.Y. Dip. Cert

Pilates and Aromatherapy - the use of essential oils.

I have been using essential oils in my work for many years and would like to share the following information with you. I have a book 'Aromatherapy for Healing the Spirit' by Gabriel Mojay. It is a wonderful resource and is a "guide to restoring emotional and mental balance through essentail oils". I use essential oils in my burner to create a calm and relaxing environment for my clients to practice their Pilates with me. I have a few blends that you may find useful for your Pilates practice or to enhance your relaxation time.

Red Mandarin or Sweet Orange 3 drops, Grapefruit 3 drops and Cardamon 2 drops. This is a lovely blend for those days in Winter when it's chilly outside and you are wanting a pick me up. It's an uplifting citrus blend to help restore balance and comfort at the same time.

Clary Sage 2 drops, Cypress 3 drops, Lavender 3 drops. If you are feeling tense and exhausted, then this is the blend for you. It will comfort and nurture your senses.

Frankincense 2 drops, Lavender or Cedarwood 3 drops, Bergamot 3 drops. A comforting blend and especially nice on cold rainy days.

Lavender Try just 5 drops. It's a classic, calming and soothing. It's one for bedtime to help encourage restful sleep. Try also Lemon 3 drops, Cypress 3 drops, Lavender 3 drops, it's a calming blend and one my husband really likes.

Marjoram 3 drops, Rosemary 3 drops, Lime or Lemon 2 drops. It's a good all rounder.