Spring is in the air and summer is right around the corner! It is the time to start planting flowers, veggies, and fruit. Planting and digging in your garden require you to be on the ground and mostly on your knees. Simply using a knee cushion will help take the hard tension off your knees and legs and keep the strain off your back. Always try to take breaks and stand up to give your back a stretch. This will straighten up your spine and prevent your body from being sore and tight the next day. Most importantly, enjoy the sun!
Community News
Local Spotlight: Peony Wolf
At Peony Wolf I offer reiki, reflexology & Thai massage as well as yin/restorative energy healing classes. You can find me at my studio, at The Yoga Barre in Charleswood, or alternatively, I can visit you in your home at your convenience. I work with different modalities of energy healing to align your lifeforce and keep your body and spirit in balance. I utilize an integrative and holistic approach to therapy with an emphasis on identifying and addressing current stressors, exploring past experiences and family dynamics, and developing positive life patterns. Healing body, mind, and spirit as one is crucial to personal wellness.
Spring Into Action!
Spring is the season of renewal! It’s the perfect time to try a new fitness program to help look and feel your best all summer long. The 30 Minute Hit circuit is an effective cardiovascular and muscle conditioning program for women of all ages. Each 2-minute round based on boxing, kickboxing, general self-defense, and core stability training, will challenge you to improve your fitness and reward you with amazing results. Be part of a fun community and get fit doing it! Get out of winter hibernation and come clear your mind and transform your body faster than you could ever imagine!
Live With No Regrets
Living without regrets means stepping out of your comfort zone. Accessing your bold braveness, taking a chance and trying something new, not letting fear hold you back. The 5 main regrets people have when reviewing their lives are: 1) Wishing they hadn’t worked so hard. 2) Having the courage to live a life truer to themselves, instead of what other’s expected of them. 3) Expressing their true feelings more often. 4) Staying in touch with friends. 5) Doing the things and decisions that would have made them happier. Which areas in your life are you ready to liberate and live for more fully?
Avoid Recurrent Ankle Sprains
You might often hear that if you sprain your ankle once, you are more likely to injure it again. Every time you sprain your ankle, the ligaments are overstretched, and even torn, which disrupts the receptors that send info to your nervous system about ankle positioning. Proprioception, your body’s awareness of joint and limb position in space, is crucial in preventing injuries. The reduced input your nervous system receives is what leads to those recurrent sprains. Focusing on exercises that improve balance and stability is key to regaining proprioception. Working on balancing exercises and adding progressions (eyes closed, unstable surfaces) is a great way to prevent recurrent ankle sprains.
Say Hello to Allergy Season
It’s important to know the difference between seasonal allergies easily treatable with a simple OTC antihistamine and more serious symptoms that may require more attention. Seasonal allergies typically cause a runny nose, itchy or teary eyes, sneezing and sometimes itchy skin or a mild rash, and are caused by pollen or other airborne particles. If more serious symptoms like hives, difficulty breathing, a rapid heartbeat or feeling faint appear suddenly it may be the result of a more serious allergic reaction and immediate medical attention should be sought. Your local pharmacy is always happy to provide you with the medication suitable for your symptoms if appropriate!
Smell The Roses!
Spring is in the air! Wouldn’t it be great if you could smell it? Studies show that smokers lose some of their ability to smell. That can make life a lot less pleasurable. If you lose your sense of smell, you can’t appreciate the scent of spring flowers or freshly mowed lawn. Eating becomes a lot less rewarding too, since aroma contributes a great deal to the flavor of food. Life could even become more dangerous, since you may be less able to detect the odor of a gas leak or a house fire. There is some good news, however: Quit smoking and your sense of smell quickly returns.
Blooms to Celebrate Easter
Beautiful flowers are always an important part of Easter, as they represent the renewal and rebirth that happens in the spring. Some of the most-loved flowers associated with Easter include: 1) Tulips – colourful and egg-shaped, these fun blooms also represent rebirth. 2) Easter Lily – beautiful white blooms that signify purity and resurrection. 3) Daffodils – often some of the first flowers blooming in spring, they signify the change in season. 4) Easter Cactus – comes in many colours and blooms right around Easter. 5) Crocus – another early bloomer, crocuses are great for joyful celebrations since they symbolize happiness and youth.
Your Child’s First Eye Exams
Optometrists recommend that babies have their first eye examination between six and nine months of age to ensure their eyes are healthy, eye alignment and eye muscle movements are developing properly, and the eyes are focusing together. A number of serious eye conditions exist that can be identified during their first eye exam. If left uncorrected, these conditions can result in serious vision problems. Vision development continues into the preschool years – depth perception, eye-hand coordination, and visualization skills. Doctors of Optometry recommend children have at least one eye exam between the ages of two and five, and yearly after starting school.
Blooms to Celebrate Easter
Beautiful flowers are always an important part of Easter, as they represent the renewal and rebirth that happens in the spring. Some of the most-loved flowers associated with Easter include: 1) Tulips – colourful and egg-shaped, these fun blooms also represent rebirth. 2) Easter Lily – beautiful white blooms that signify purity and resurrection. 3) Daffodils – often some of the first flowers blooming in spring, they signify the change in season. 4) Easter Cactus – comes in many colours and blooms right around Easter. 5) Crocus – another early bloomer, crocuses are great for joyful celebrations since they symbolize happiness and youth.
Ask Your Eye Doctor
Q. What is Astigmatism?
A. Astigmatism is a common eye condition that causes blurry vision, due to an imperfection where the eye isn’t completely round. Ideally, a perfectly round eyeball should distribute light evenly throughout your cornea for clear vision. If your eye is shaped more like an egg, the light entering your eye will bend more in one direction. An eye with a bend will cause you to see only part of an object in focus, or things at a distance will appear blurry. Astigmatism is often accompanied by nearsightedness or farsightedness. If you’re having trouble seeing clearly or focusing, arrange an eye exam.
