how-to – Move Well with Amy Rizzotto

March 25, 2015

Yin Yoga – Why You Should and What to Do

Let’s start by defining just what this whole “Yin Yoga” thing is. Yin yoga targets the body’s connective tissues—i.e. our ligaments, tendons, fascia, bones, and even the joints—which are typically not the direct focus of more active styles of yoga. It is a slow and steady kind of practice during which fewer poses are held for longer periods of time than a more typical flow or form yoga class.

If fascia is a foreign word and anatomy isn’t your strong suit, you can think of Yin tissues as plastic versus our more elastic Yang tissues (muscles). When bent too rapidly or repetitively, a piece of plastic will snap. For this same reason, it’s important to apply gentle, constant, and patient pressure in Yin yoga poses. Otherwise, ouch.

So why is Yin yoga important?

As we age, our bodies lose mobility and increase in rigidity. It’s the natural curve of things. Yin is intended to help us reverse that bell curve and regain range of motion (ROM) in our connective tissues. Greater ROM in turn creates space for greater flexibility.

In order to get these physical benefits, however, it’s important to isolate the components of the body we want to be working. Yin yoga is most effective when the muscles are cool and therefore can’t take away from the work of our connective tissues. For this reason, it’s best to do Yin early in the morning before you’ve been moving around too much. This is most definitely not the practice to do right after a workout.

Arguably as important as the physical benefits of Yin are its mental and emotional benefits. Yin on its own forces us to be still. This is something take for granted these days. We’re always running around, focused on getting stuff done. When we pause and breath, we begin to notice what’s going on inside of us and discover what it is we truly need. If you can’t find the time to fit your Yin practice in before the school- or work-day starts, you can still reap the psychological benefits of this calming practice with a few poses before bed. It will help steady your mind, decompress your body, and lull you into most restful slumber.

Convinced it’s worth a try? Here is what you do:

Step one:

Find a small open space where you have room to stretch out. You don’t need more than that and you don’t even need a yoga mat. If you’d like, you can lay down a mat, towel, or blanket for comfort.

Step two:

Commit to following the three principles of Yin: (1) come into the pose to your first edge—where you first feel resistance and feedback from your body—without forcing yourself deeper; (2) come to complete stillness in the pose, primarily in the body but ideally in the mind as well; and (3) hold for the intended length of time. If you are just starting out, trying holding for two to three minutes. After a few sessions lengthen your holds to four to five minutes. Over time, in certain poses you can work up to eight, 10, or even 20 minute holds.

Step three:

Select five or six Yin poses to try based on the parts of your body that feel the most stiff, achy, or tight. A full list of Yin poses are available on this website. I also highly recommend Bernie Clark’s book, “The Complete Guide to Yin Yoga.”

Step four:

Close your practice with at least five minutes of savasana (dead man’s pose) or seated meditation. Basically, be still, with little to no physical effort, and breath.

Whether Yin works for you or not, take the time to take care of yourself. It is truly one of the most important and compassionate things you can do for yourself and everyone around you. Stress and tension are contagious. Don’t let yourself be a carrier!

August 12, 2014

How to Make Pickles

Everyone loves pickles. And if you are one of the few who don’t you’re really missing out. Pickles help fight disease (see below) and are shockingly easy to make. I don’t know why it took me so long to get on the homemade pickle bandwagon. Read on for how to make refrigerator pickles in a snap at home.

Pickling has become all the rage these days, as has canning, but both of these fads are methods of food preservation that go way back. In fact, pickles played an important role in Colombus’s discovery of America in 1492. You may recall that scurvy, a disease caused by lack of vitamin C, used to be a mighty big problem for sailors. Luckily, Colombus’s ship stocker had plenty of vitamin C-rich pickles on board to help prevent scurvy outbreaks on the historic voyage across the Atlantic. How’s that for a fun pickle fact?

There are hundreds of recipes you could follow, but here are some basic guidelines to get you started:

Use fresh produce, avoiding waxy produce found in many supermarkets.
Select the most uniform, unbruised produce for prettier pickles.
Scrub well and trim about 1/4 inch down from the blossom end of fresh cucumbers. Blossoms contain an enzyme that causes limp pickles–nobody likes a limp pickle.
Use salt with no additives. Iodized salt makes the brine cloudy and may change the color and texture of the vegetables.
Use white distilled or apple cider vinegars.
For crisper pickles, put the vegetables (whole or sliced) into a wide bowl and spread a layer of pickling salt on top. Cover and let sit overnight in a cool place. Discard the liquid, then rinse and dry the vegetables before pickling or canning as usual. This is the same idea behind prepping your eggplant before cooking.
For refridgerator pickles (like the ones in this post) wait at least 3 days before crunching. For canned pickles (using sterilized jars, a hot water bath, etc) wait at least 3 weeks before using to allow pickles to mellow.

Adapted from The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

Refrigerator Dill Pickles

{Makes 2 pint jars}

What You’ll Need:

1 1/2 lbs baby cucumbers (about 8-10 of the small guys)
1 cup water
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 Tbs kosher or pickling salt
2 tsp sugar
1 fresh sprig of dill for each jar
1 Tbs mustard seed, whole
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
4 cloves of garlic, smashed

Equipment:

Chefs knife
Cutting board
2 wide-mouth pint jars with lids
Funnel
Large lidded pot

How to Make Them:

Wash and dry the cucumbers. Trim away the blossom end of the cucumber, which contains enzymes that can lead to limp pickles. Leave the pickles whole, cut them into spears, or slice them into coins.
Divide spices and herbs (dill, mustard seed, garlic, turmeric and red pepper flakes) evenly between both jars.
Pack the pickles into the jars. Trim the ends if they stand more than 1/2 inch below the top of the jar. Pack them in as tightly as you can without smashing the cucumbers.
Combine the vinegar, water, lemon juice, salt and sugar in a small sauce pan over high heat. Bring to a rolling boil. Pour the brine over the pickles, filling each jar until 1/2-inch from the top.
Gently tap the jars against the counter to settle their contents and remove all air bubbles. Top off with more pickling brine if need be.
Tightly close your jars with their lids.
Wait at least one, but ideally 3 days before eating. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.

For long-term storage, follow the hot water bath canning method.

June 3, 2014

Gluten-Free Pie Crust

Whether you are one of the estimated 3 million Americans living with Celiac Disease, have a known allergy or sensitivity, or are just curious to see how you might feel, making the switch to a gluten-free diet isn’t easy. Gluten hides in sneaky places like salad dressings, soups and even cosmetics. Beyond deciphering which food and beauty products are truly gluten-free, we all still want and need to enjoy life, and a big part of that big picture happiness is eating. That’s why one of my main nutrition counseling aims is to help those that want or need to be gluten-free learn how to shop and cook without sacrificing on flavor and enjoyment.

Let’s face it, life without bread, pancakes, pasta and most desserts would be pretty devastating for me and most people. Luckily, there is so much culinary creativity out there these days that you can have your gluten-free cake and eat it too. While I’m not tackling an actual cake in this post, I am bringing you the foundation of endless sweet treats: Gluten Free Pie Crust. This crust is light and flaky and can be made vegan by swapping coconut oil for butter. Fill it with your favorite seasonal fruit, a hint of healthy sugar (coconut palm sugar, agave, real maple syrup), a squeeze of lemon and some fresh herbs for a surprising and yummy twist and you’ll forget you’re eating something considered “alternative.”

Gluten Free Pie Crust

What You’ll Need:

1 cup spelt flour (or your preferred gluten-free flour)
1/2 cup almond meal
1/2 cup organic butter or coconut oil
1-2 tsp coconut palm sugar or cane sugar
1/2 tsp sea salt

How to Make It:

Soften butter or coconut oil in microwave until just melted.
Mix all dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Add your liquid and mix again.
Form into a ball and refrigerate for at least a half hour (you can also freeze this for up to 3 months).
When ready to bake, remove from refrigerator and place between two pieces of parchment paper. Roll it to desired thickness with a rolling pin. Drape the flattened dough over your preferred pie dish or tart pan. Don’t worry if the dough falls apart a bit, just press it into all corners and all the way up to the rim and make sure it’s distributed evenly so it cooks through.
Bake at 400 F for 10 min on its own then reduce to 350 for another 35-40 min with your desired filling inside.

October 9, 2013

Get the MOARfit for iPhone App

In just 3 easy steps, download MOARfit to your home screen for one-click access to my advice on optimal nutrition, yoga, functional fitness, and overall mind/body wellness. Grab your iPhone and follow along with the directions below.

STEP 1: Go to www.moar-fit.com in your browser (typically Safari for iPhones) and click on the arrow icon at the bottom center of your screen.

STEP 2: Click on the “Add to Home Screen” icon with my Roaring Down Dog Lion logo.

STEP 3: Voilà! You now have MOARfit on your home screen for easy, one-click access to moves + meals + motivation.

As always, thanks for getting your moves + meals + motivation with MOARfit!

August 15, 2013

Find Freedom with Backbends this Summer

Though it feels like spring here in DC, the summer is still upon us. Summer is the perfect time for backbending postures like full wheel (Urdhva Dhanurasana) which require warm muscles and an open mind. Backbends are intended to broaden and expand the chest and rib cage to enhance the body’s ability to perform breathwork (pranayama). Backbends can be exciting and empowering. They can also, however, be intimidating and scary. If backbends are not a freeing experience for you, your approach—both mentally and physically—may need some fine tuning.

Flipped Dog — Photo Credit: Leo Matsuo / Wardrobe Provide by Endless Summer Design

When performed correctly, backbends increase your range of motion. Many of us spend hours upon hours sitting—and let’s be honest, most of us don’t have the best posture when doing so. As a result, we lose a few degrees of the normal curve in our lumbar (lower) spine. That curve is part of our natural architecture as bipeds, distinctly purposed to provide us humans with the ability to carry our own body weight without damaging our joints and overall health. When we lose that gentle arch in the lower back we increase our likelihood of lower back, hip and knee pain because we aren’t properly stacked to handle our body’s mass as it moves through space.

Backbends help counter our daily damage by increasing extension and restoring that lumbar curve. They have also been linked to arthritis prevention, increased stamina and energy, depression relief, and improved lung capacity, circulation and digestion. On a more emotional level, many practitioners believe that backbends help them let go of the past and focus on the present, and open their heart when fear has taken it hostage.

Whether you’re looking to improve your emotional or physical health—or both for that matter!—look no further than yoga backbends. From the milder baby cobra and sphinx poses to the more intense camel and king pigeon poses, there is a backbend for every level.

Check out my Favorite Eight:

Sphinx Pose
Upward Facing Dog (Urdhva Mukha Svanasana)
Bow (Dhanurasana)
King Pigeon (Kapotasana)
Camel (Ustrasana)
Wild Thing (Camatkarasana )
Full Wheel (Urdhva Dhanurasana)
Dancer (Natarajasana)

If you fall into that “intimidated/scared” category when it comes to attempting backbends, here are a few helpful hints to do them the right way:

Warm up your body! A few Sun As and Bs should do the trick. The key is to move the body in ways that open the chest, hip flexors, quads and hips.
Focus on maintaining length in the front body. True, backbends increase extension in the lower back but people have a tendency to collapse in these poses, crunching the lumbar spine. To avoid back pain, focus on keeping a broad chest and long front body, and bending from the middle and upper back instead of hinging from your sacrum.
Don’t squeeze your booty. Squeezing the muscles of your rear end counteracts internal rotation of the hips which is essential in all backbends to avoid compression of the spine. When you activate your gluteus maximus, your hips externally rotate causing your knees to splay wide. To develop the muscle memory needed to encourage internal rotation of the hips, squeeze a block between your thighs when practicing full wheel, camel, and other belly-up backbends.
Breathe. Fear can be paralyzing in a backbend and the more you resist the more likely you are to tense the muscles that lead to compression and ultimately discomfort. When going into backbends, focus on your breath and allow your mind to calm down and enjoy all the goodness a backbend can bring.

Just a quick note of caution (safety first!): If you have any back issues, please consult with your yoga instructor and doctor before performing any backbends.

July 13, 2013

MOAR’s Daily Dozen: DAY 12 – Reclining Shoelace

Step-by-Step:

Lay flat on your back, legs long with head resting heavy on the mat.
Draw your knees in toward your chest, bent, and cross your right leg over left. Reach for your ankles or feet with each hand (right hand grabs left foot, left hand grabs right foot). Gently pull the feet toward your hips as you lower the legs – still stacked in this pretzel-like set up – to the mat.
Holding the left foot with your right hand just outside the right hip, rotate your pelvis toward the left side, coming to rest on the left hip. Your left hand is still gripping the right foot as you twist. Keep your shoulders glued to the mat and turn your head to the right.
Stay here, or deepen the pose by extending the right leg. Kicking your right foot into the left hand and working to straighten out that right knee will bring an intense IT band stretch into this contralateral twist.
Hold for 10 deep breaths, then slowly come back to center and hug your knees into your chest. Plant your feet on the mat, hips width apart. Windshield wiper the knees from side to side.
Repeat steps 1 through 5, this time crossing left leg over right, twisting to the right as you look to the left.

How It Will Heal You:

Hip Pain – The best way to prevent and treat hip pain is to increase your ROM (range of motion) in all directions. If you play a sport like soccer, which involves a lot of explosive movement and running, you are particularly susceptible to hip pain. As you work into this hip-helping posture, chances are high that you’ll notice that one hip will be tighter than the other. To bring balance to the body, be sure to hold postures for 10 extra deep breaths on the side that’s talking to you. Use your breath to calm your nervous system and let the body open.

Hamstring Pulls – The vast majority of the time, hamstring pulls are a direct result of inflexible hamstrings. This big muscle group requires patience and daily attention to open up and can be really frustrating in their resistance to change. You are not going to go from barely touching your toes to Jordyn Wieber overnight. Commit to working on this posture every day and slowly but surely you’ll get the results you want and your body needs.

Knee Injuries – We all know someone that has torn their meniscus, had a knee replacement, or had some sort of debilitating knee injury. Our knees take a serious beating from all of the physical stuff we do day in and day out—not to mention the high heels some of us ladies rock to look lovely but brutalize our bodies from the tippy toes on up. The best way to prevent pain and avoid trouble is to keep the hips, IT band and hamstrings strong and flexible. Hips, IT band and hamstring mobility keeps the work in your bigger muscle groups (hamstrings and quadriceps) rather than the body’s default of looking to the place of least resistance–which is almost always the knee joint–for speed, power and agility. If you give the body freedom to move using your large muscle groups and stabilizers it will learn not to rely upon vulnerable and complex joints.

Lower Back Pain – How many of you have experienced lower back pain? I’d venture to say that anyone who sits in a chair all day has suffered through their fair share. This is also a big one for athletes. Why is that? Most often, lower back pain in athletes stems from tight hamstrings. For my fellow anatomy nerds out there, the hamstrings originate on the sitz bone–aka those little nobs deep in the flesh of your booty that us yogis balance on when doing boat core work (my favorite!). , If your hamstrings are tight they will pull down on the pelvis from the insertion point (the sitz bone) tilting it out of proper alignment and forcing your body to compensate using your lower back to remain upright. Another common reason for low back pain is underdeveloped abdominal muscles. I’m not talking just the six-pack abs (rectus abdominis) but also the deeper corset abs (transverse abdominis) that are critical for balance and stability. The simply solution to preventing and treating lower back pain is to stretch out your hammies and workout your core every day.

Foot and Ankle Issues – I can’t tell you have many times I wrenched my ankle playing soccer and field hockey as a kid, or more recently while hiking and running. Ankle sprains, Achilles tendonitis and plantar fasciitis are three very common foot and ankle injuries. These injuries are no fun because let’s face it, when our foundation is out of whack everything else is thrown off and dysfunctional. The answer to avoiding these frustrating beasts of burden is to strengthen the ankle, increase the flexibility of the ankle and toes and work on your balance. Not only does this require concerted effort to increase the openness in these areas but it also means more core work. Core is your key to stability, meaning you’ll be less likely to get thrown off balance and tweak something if your abdominal and back muscles are strong.

July 12, 2013

MOAR’s Daily Dozen: DAY 11 – Reclining Thread the Needle

Step-by-Step:

Lay flat on your back, legs long. Head is heavy, face is relaxed.
Plant your left foot flat on the mat, knee bent. Make sure you can just barely reach your left heel with your left fingertips.
Bend your right leg, placing right ankle on top of left knee. Flex the right foot.
Reach your right hand through your legs and your left hand around the outside of the left leg. Interlace your fingers behind the left thigh and pull the left leg in toward your torso, flexing the left foot strongly as it lifts off the mat. Press your right elbow into your right thigh to open up the hip and take this deeper into the psoas and IT band.
If you want to deepen the stretch, reach your hands to the front of the left shin (left calf and hamstrings muscles squeeze together) and interlace your hands.
Take 10 deep breaths, using your arm strength to pull the left leg closer and press the right leg further out with each inhale and exhale.
Return to laying flat on your back, legs long.
Repeat steps 1 through 7, this time bending the right leg first and taking the left leg across.

How It Will Heal You:

July 11, 2013

MOAR’s Daily Dozen: DAY 10 – Seated Spinal Twist

Step-by-Step:

Start in a seated position, legs long, tall spine.
Bend your left leg, bringing left knee to mat, left heel to outside of right hip.
Bend your right leg up and over the left leg, right ankle hooks outside left knee (sole of right foot presses into the floor).
Bring your right hand behind your back. Press right palm into mat and sit up tall as you inhale. Exhale and twist to the right, hooking left elbow outside right knee.
Use your breath to twist deeper. Sit tall and straighten out the back on the inhales and use the leverage of your left elbow on your right knee to twist deeper into the middle back on the exhales. Relax the abdominal muscles to go even deeper into the twist. (Imagine you’re a washcloth and you’re working to wring out all the water).
Take 10 deep breaths then switch sides Follow steps 1 through 5, twisting to the left.

How It Will Heal You:

July 10, 2013

MOAR’s Daily Dozen: DAY 9 – Half Pigeon

Step-by-Step:

From Downward Facing Dog, start by sending your right leg up and back. Shift forward, stacking shoulders over wrists and bring the right knee to the floor behind the right wrist. Work to bring the right foot as close to the left wrist as it will go.
Pressing into the mat, distribute your weight evenly between both hips. On the right side, those with tight hips/IT band will have a tendency to put more weight on their right hip. If this is you, grab a block or blanket and shove it under the right hip for a little support and lift.
Flex the right foot strongly to protect the knee joint.
With balanced weight, slowly walk your hands out. If you can, bring your forearms to the mat or perhaps to two blocks or a pillow.
Keep a nice long spine, reaching out through the crown of your head and breath into the hip for 10 deep breaths.
If you’re on the more flexible side and want to take this deeper you can walk your hands all the way out, bringing forehead to mat.
Slowly walk your hands back, torso upright. Press your hands into the mat, tuck your left toes under and send your right leg up and back into one-legged down dog (your starting position).
Take three big hip circles to gently release the hip.
Repeat steps 1 through 8, this time leading with the left leg.

How It Will Heal You:

July 9, 2013

MOAR’s Daily Dozen: DAY 8 – Plow

Step-by-Step:

From laying on your back, exhale and use your core to send your legs up and over head with control. Slowly lower your feet toward the floor behind and beyond your head. Keep your chin to your chest, neck straight, and do not look from side to side.
If your toes touch the ground, your hands can stay long by your side. Work to keep your torso as close to perpendicular with the floor as possible, legs fully extended and engaged.
If your toes don’t touch, bring your hands to your lower back, fingertips facing up. Rock your shoulders underneath you so the shoulder-blades draw closer together, creating a little air pocket for your C7 vertebra (that little knobby bone at the base of your neck). Again, work to keep your torso as close to perpendicular with the ground as possible, legs fully extended and engaged.
Hold for 10 deep breaths then slowly roll down one vertebra at a time, using your core to decelerate, until your legs extend long.
Hug your knees into your chest and rock a little from side to side for a quick release of the lower back before moving on to other postures.

How It Will Heal You:

Lower Back Pain – How many of you have experienced lower back pain? I’d venture to say that anyone who sits in a chair all day has suffered through their fair share. This is also a big one for athletes. Why is that? Most often, lower back pain in athletes stems from tight hamstrings. For my fellow anatomy nerds out there, the hamstrings originate on the sitz bone–aka those little nobs deep in the flesh of your booty that us yogis balance on when doing boat core work (my favorite!). If your hamstrings are tight they will pull down on the pelvis from the insertion point (the sitz bone) tilting it out of proper alignment and forcing your body to compensate using your lower back to remain upright. Another common reason for low back pain is underdeveloped abdominal muscles. I’m not talking just the six-pack abs (rectus abdominis) but also the deeper corset abs (transverse abdominis) that are critical for balance and stability. The simply solution to preventing and treating lower back pain is to stretch out your hammies and workout your core every day.

Neck Pain – From foundational issues in the ankles and feet to the top of the tower, the neck is a critical player in athletic endeavors and requires great care. Having had two of the most important people in my life suffer debilitating neck breaks, I really can’t stress this one enough. Full rotation of the neck makes all the difference in any sport you play. How else are you going to see your opponent coming up behind you to try and steal the ball away? And with a fastball speeding toward you, you want to be able to turn your neck and see that baby coming! Unfortunately, like the feet and ankles, the neck is often neglected when it comes to stretching and strength training. Avoid that pitfall with the postures in this post.