Stress Management
The Stress, Eating and Exercise Equation
Did you know that researchers are keenly interested in how stress influences eating behaviors and leads to obesity? In fact, a substantial amount of scientific research has been committed to unraveling this complex question. What does it say, and how can it help you stay healthy?
Unraveling the Stress- Eating-Obesity Knot
Elevated stress is a risk factor for cancer, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease (Block et al. 2009). How stress influences eating behaviors and leads to obesity is a key topic of interest to researchers and exercise professionals.
walnuts: the new stress buster
It’s 2:00 pm and you’ve been going nonstop since your own workout at 5:30 this morning. You still have two clients to go and a big presentation to get ready…
Can Relaxation Help Patients With Anorexia Nervosa?
For patients with anorexia nervosa [AN], the idea of regaining weight can be terrifying. In a small study published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders (2008; 41, 728-33), researchers from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill sought to determine whether relaxation therapy might help.
Exercise Eases Anger in Kids
Although research continues to emerge regarding the many mental and emotional benefits of exercise, much of it focuses only on adults. A study published Pediatric Exercise Science (2008; 20[4], 390–401) has determined that structured exercise may help reduce anger expression in healthy, overweight children.
Mind-Body Research Update
Recently, as co-chair of a medical conference on the metabolic syndrome and dyslipidemia, I seized the chance to slip a short discussion of yoga-based lifestyle research into a long day of clinical trial expositions that mostly focused on lipid-lowering drug studies. I felt somewhat meek describing a number of relatively small studies, all done on small budgets, while most clinical trials being discussed were 50- to 200-million-dollar studies sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry or the National Institutes of Health [NIH].
Stress and Skin Disorders
In the emotional rollercoaster of life, sometimes the “down” periods have long-lasting effects on more than just our mood. In fact, numerous studies link factors that impact our emotional well-being, such as stress, depression and anxiety, to an increase in skin, hair or nail problems.
Meditating to Reduce Stress
Who has time to worry about stress? After all, if we had time to manage our stress, we would not be stressed in the first place! This retort, unfortunately, is often our first response to the subject of stress. Yet no matter how busy we become in our daily routines, we cannot afford to ignore our reactions to stressful circumstances.
Stress has been linked to cardiovas…
Meditation Lowers Blood Cortisol Levels
Stress triggers many physiological changes in the body through the “fight or flight” response. When stress levels are high, levels of the hormone cortisol released into the bloodstream are also high. Studies confirm that chronic stress is associated with increased fat in the abdominal area, higher concentrations of blood sugar and insulin, higher blood pressure and higher levels of cho…
Walking the Labyrinth
On the messy road of life, it is often challenging to determine what your next step will be, what direction you will take and which way you will turn. Perhaps that is one reason why walking a labyrinth as a meditation is so appealing: the journey is clearly marked, unobstructed and in full view. Although it twists and winds its way to the center, there are no tricks, wrong choices or dead ends. To reach your destination, all you have to do is follow the path.
Walking the Labyrinth
On the messy road of life, it is often
challenging to determine what your next step will be, what direction you will
take and which way you will turn. Perhaps that is one reason why walking a
labyrinth as a meditation is so appealing: the journey is clearly marked,
unobstructed and in full view. Although it twists and winds its way to the
center, there are no tricks…
Win Members With a Wellness Approach
Adopting a holistic approach to health can attract and retain members. How can you expand your wellness offerings to address the physical, emotional/spiritual, intellectual and social aspects of health? You’ve probably got the physical aspect well covered, so here are some ways to incorporate the other dimensions.
Emotional/Spiritual
Stress is common in today’s s…
Labyrinth: Walking the Path of the Heart
On the messy road of life, it is often challenging to determine what your next step will be, what direction you will take, which way you will turn. Perhaps that is one reason why walking a labyrinth as a meditation is so appealing: the journey is clearly marked, unobstructed and in full view. Although it twists and winds its way to the center (you do have to pay attention if you don’t …
Stress and Neurodegenerative Diseases
Offering body-mind techniques to help cope with stress may be particularly beneficial for clients who have chronic neurodegenerative diseases. Unmanaged stress is detrimental to the health of all people. However, new research suggests that for those with neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), stress may have an even greater negative impact, causing their disease to worsen.
Cuing for Calm
Despite our yoga-filled classes, people are still stressed out. We live in a society that rewards people for being go-getters, taking on extra work and being the best in all the ways that the American competitive edge manifests itself. Balance is hard to find, but find it, we must.
Body-Mind Meditation Boosts Performance
A team of researchers from China and the University of Oregon have developed an approach for neuroscientists to study how meditation might provide improvements in a person’s attention and response to stress. The study, done in China, randomly assigned college undergraduate students to 40-person experimental or
Enjoying the Holiday Season
For some people, the time between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day is the highlight of their year. They look forward to cooking turkeys, buying presents, singing carols and spreading the spirit of the holidays to everyone they meet.Then there are the rest of us. We’re not exactly Scrooges, but for us, celebrating the holidays can be a monumental effort often filled with stress. If the hol…
Body-Mind Benefits of “Green Exercise”
The trend toward environmentally friendly—or “green”—activities is impacting exercise. The term green exercise refers to physical activities that give participants the benefits not only of exercise but also of direct exposure to nature. A growing body of research shows that interacting with nature can positively impact our health and well-being; relieve stress; an…
Four Methods to Mitigate Stress
There’s no way to avoid stress altogether—pressures and tensions are a normal part of everyday existence. But repeated and prolonged stress can do damage to your mind and body. Learning to protect yourself from the effects of chronic stress may help you live a longer, healthier life, according to the Benson-Henry Institute (BHI) for Mind Body Medicine of Massachusetts General Hospital in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.