health

On Death & Mourning: A Little Comfort

Not our typical blog, but if it helps you feel better, it helps you move better.

I went to a funeral the other day. The role of the priest, minister or rabbi is always a tough one when someone dies. They have to console the inconsolable. The priest at this funeral wasn’t great. He kept insisting that the dead person was just sleeping, and that it would be accurate to tell kids the dead are merely sleeping. As a child that would have terrified me. I’d never go to bed again.

But then he said something that filled me with happiness. Ultimately, his words were not overly profound, but I’d never had someone put death quite this way. Full disclosure: I’m not religious or spiritual—a fact people are often surprised to learn. I don’t have that gene. But like Mark Twain, I appreciate people who do. There are moments I wish I could believe in something to experience a glimpse of comfort when tormented by grief, but more often than not I’m happy believing in the fallibility of science.

I’ve heard many people say we should be comforted to know that when we die we will be reunited with the person whose life […]

On Death & Mourning: A Little ComfortMaggie Downie2017-10-25T14:26:32-04:00

Why I Move

My Grandma at 88 on a Stability Ball.

There are lots of reasons I move. It makes me feel better physically, mentally and emotionally, and there are a lot of physical activities I think are fun that I want the freedom to do. I’m also really antsy, and I use movement to burn off extra, jittery energy.

But if I’m going to overanalyze it and step back into the reaches of my brain for why I move and believe it’s so important to creating a better life, I have to, at least in part, attribute it to my Grandparents. My Grandpa Downie was antsy too. I never saw him sit without a foot tapping, and he was really active until he hit about 80. But it was more my Grandma. When I was born she’d been wheelchair bound and bedridden for thirty years.

Why I MoveMaggie Downie2017-10-25T15:49:51-04:00

Meditative Gongs

Last week some of the PE staff went to a meditative gong concert at the Conduit Center in East Hartford. I’d been wanting to try it for months, but all day, I kind of felt like it was going to be lame and that I really didn’t want to meditate for 90-minutes. How was the girl whose record meditation is 45-seconds going to lie there for 5,400-seconds? That’s a lot more seconds.

Then I walked into the building, went up the stairs and immediately felt good. I saw the familiar faces of our staff and was hit with the feeling of warmth and comfort. Granted it was 30-degrees outside and they had the heat cranking, but they had the heat cranking and it warmed the cockles of my heart. They had me at heat.

The room had an option for chairs or lying down with blankets. I went for the floor and colorful […]

Meditative GongsMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:34:29-04:00

Giving Up Dairy

So I have a tough decision to make. I’ve been gluten free since February and now my doctor would like me to go dairy free. My heart almost sank when she said it, but I tested positive for a gluten and dairy intolerance. I’m into health and wellness, but I’m not well-versed on the intolerance vs. the allergy issue when it comes to food. Still, since I’ve been gluten free my blood work has gotten better each quarter.

That makes me feel like the answer should be obvious. Something in my body is saying dairy doesn’t agree with it so I should just give it up. I’m still allowed goat’s milk, goat’s cheese and buffalo mozzarella. This change would be good for my body. On some level it should be a no brainer; so why is the decision so hard?

Food is such a part of our social world.

Giving Up DairyMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:28-04:00

Final Word On the Maggie Downie Challenge

So it’s been a full year since I started my challenge to get in the best shape of my life. And I have to admit I don’t feel like I was successful. Technically I only completed three out of four original challenges and I didn’t really change the way I eat, which I think will be key in my ultimate goal of getting into the best shape of my life. (I may not have been successful, but I’m not giving up.)

If you asked me in the fall if I had succeeded my answer would have been yes. I felt strong, my body felt good. I was five pounds lighter than I am now. I wasn’t eating great, but I was willing to excuse it because I was exercising so much, doing a lot of cross training and felt good about my health.

Final Word On the Maggie Downie ChallengeMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:33-04:00