health

A Healthy Fourth

Here are some tips for a healthy Fourth of July:

Play volleyball with friends and family (kids are usually up for this)
If you have multiple picnics, only eat one dessert during the whole day
Drink lots of water
Wear sunscreen (or a hat)
Get friends together and go for a walk or a run
Take five minutes to breathe
Make time to do something you really want with the long weekend
Start each day with 20 minutes of your favorite Pilates exercises
Stop eating before you feel full
Laugh

A Healthy FourthMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:13-04:00

I am one of those people that likes to feel sore after a workout. I’ve read the research and I know that you don’t have to feel sore to have gotten a good workout–and I believe that. Still, I actually enjoy the feeling of my muscles aching (a little) when I move.

Since I joined a Dragon Boat team in Hartford, Connecticut, I’m getting plenty sore. I’m using muscles I’ve always used, but in a totally different way. It would be easier for me to list what doesn’t hurt in my body (my toes), but I’m so impressed by feeling every muscle that I’m […]

SoreMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:13-04:00

Grandparents Teach Kids

I was very lucky growing up. I knew all my grandparents and two of my great-grandparents. My Dad’s parents lived less than a mile away and were my day care providers before and after school. I could write multiple blog about what I learned from them, but what they didn’t realize they were teaching me was my concept of age.

My grandparents (excluding one who suffered from rheumatoid arthritis) were all healthy active, adults. My 95-year-old great grandma was still bowling six months before she died. My grandpa and dad took us skiing and sailing when we were kids. Two months ago my grandparents (89 and 83 years old) flew to New Orleans to take a cruise. A few years ago they went to England and Ireland.

Sure, some of this is clearly good genes, but they also made choices that kept them mobile. They enjoy life and take advantage of fun opportunities.

I think seeing this was important to my upbringing because I never thought of as sixty as old–my grandparents just didn’t seem like old people. I wasn’t the kind of kid that thought […]

Grandparents Teach KidsMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:13-04:00

Dragon Boat Obsessed

So, is it sad that on Thursdays at 7:30am I’m totally bummed that I have to wait five whole days until I get to go on the Dragon Boat again? Tuesdays aren’t as hard as Thursdays–it’s just two whole days that separate practice, but from Thursday morning to Tuesday morning seems like an eternity!

Luckily it’s the weekend.

I guess I should be grateful. What I’ve learned from paddling so far is that I’m a lot more sore on Thursdays than I am on Tuesdays. It’s a reminder that sometimes a little rest for exhausted muscles is a good thing.

Paddling is so much fun and the team is great. If you’re interested, I can’t recommend it enough.

Dragon Boat ObsessedMaggie Downie2014-08-04T18:04:19-04:00

Dragon Boat

On Tuesday I joined a Dragon Boat team in Hartford. You can visit the team’s site on Facebook, if you’re interested. Over the past few years I’ve had two clients recommend joining a Dragon Boat team. It actually fits into my schedule since I’m an early riser, and since I teach in the evenings I can’t join most team sports.

And quite frankly lately I’ve been really missing being part of a team. When I was in college I played field hockey and did theater. In both there is a team and a group of people working together to achieve the same goal. I miss that. Plus, it’s a fun excuse to get a workout with a group of people.

So Tuesday, I set the alarm clock a little earlier (we meet at 6:30am–really, not that bad) and went to my first practice. Now, I had no clue what I was getting into and I wasn’t that good. I couldn’t even keep time with the rest of the boat, let alone do the exercises properly. Being a […]

Dragon BoatMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:14-04:00