Bikram Yoga - A Low Impact Exercise Idea

Image courtesy of prevention.com

Bikram yoga is - as far as I am concerned - the most challenging form of yoga, and in turn provides the highest level of benefits for your body. A standard 90 minute session involves 26 poses bookended by two breathing exercises, all in a room heated to at least 105 degrees Fahrenheit with a humidity of approximately 40%.

The heat and humidity increase the body's need for oxygen, causing the lungs to expand to up to 50% of their total capacity. The cardiovascular system needs to work at a higher level of performance. More blood needs to be pumped to the muscles and other organs in the body during a session of Bikram Yoga than many other cardio activities, thus making Bikram a more strenuous exercise than most.

The upside is that the 26 poses - each of which is held on both sides of the body, in a series of two sets - are generally very low impact and simple when compared to some of the poses in Vinyasa and other forms of yoga. A beautiful principe is practiced by all practitioners of Bikram - you receive 100% of the benefits from every pose if you do at least 1% of it 100% right. Thus, the focus is on learning each pose from the ground up and building your practice and improving knowing that you receive 100% of the benefits from the practice as long as you follow the instructions to the extent of your body's ability. Simply standing or lying in shavasana in the heated room will improve your body.

Bikram yoga offers an incredible breadth of benefits ranging from improving your skeletal and muscular system to improving overall health and balance and decreasing the chance of many disorders and ailments:

Practicing yoga in a heated room loosens your muscles and lessens the chance of injury. The circulatory system will benefit from Bikram Yoga as well - improved blood flow will increase the amount of oxygen that passes through your system. Exercising in a heated room promotes healthy sweating which converts toxins in your body into soluble products, which leave the body in the process of sweating.

Working through the 26 poses greatly improves the skeletal and muscular system - promoting healthy joints and building strong, lean muscles. The series of stretching and balancing poses makes use of all of the major muscles in your body, and in turn, tones all of them improving strength and balance.

The heat increases your metabolism and heart rate, promoting weight loss. During the course of a 90 minute course, the 170 pound Jane can burn up to 1150 calories. Imagine the effect this kind of exercise can have on your body when practiced at least 4 times per week.

I can personally recommend Bikram Yoga as an exercise because it is the first program I turned to when I decided that dieting alone was not enough. Although, initially, acclimating to the extreme heat proved to be a challenge, the relative ease of the poses and the option to only push yourself as much as you can in each pose became a saving grace for my under-exercised limbs. Practicing yoga has proved to give incredible benefits to my body and mind - yoga is, after all, no just an exercise program but a way of life.

Give it a solid try and tell me what you think.

Here's to our health!

Effectively Using Calories: Building an Exercise Regimen

As you progress with your diet you will find that your body will slowly become more willing and able to perform aerobic activity - take advantage of this moment to introduce exercise into your daily routine. Until this point, we have focused mainly on carbohydrates as a measuring system; today I would like to begin a slow transition into the calorie intake.

It may be rather obvious and need not be mentioned, but let us look at calories as a measurement of fuel used and collected. As a vehicle, we only need to collect enough fuel to compensate our use during our daily activities. Like every vehicle, the size of our fuel tank should be comparable to our mass and level of activity. A compact car uses a lot less fuel than a truck or an airplane, thus it's storage is much smaller. Likewise, a smaller built person needs to consume significantly fewer calories to propel their bodies into the world than a larger body would. In a sedentary lifestyle, our body's calorie usage is approximately 10x our weight. Thus, a 170 pound figure needs to consume 1700 calories to maintain their weight.

To continue our metaphor, let us visualize the gas tank of a plane sitting on a compact car. There is no way that a car can use all of the gas in an airplanes tank in one day. It will sit on top of the engine, weighing the vehicle down and slowly breaking down its strength until it finally falls apart. Likewise, a figure that consumes more than it uses up per day, begins to slowly add on to its mass until the bones and muscles in their body can no longer bear the load. Inadvertently, the body becomes more and more lethargic, since every step and every movement becomes more strenuous, decreasing the body's calorie usage and causing chronic overeating to become an increasingly dangerous habit.

If a body has reached this lethargic state, as mine once did, it may be difficult or impossible to instantaneously implement exercise regimen, since the body has too much weight to operate at full capacity. At this point, we need to limit the energy consumed, either through limiting calorie or carbohydrate intake. However, now that we have prepared our bodies with dieting, we can begin to consider increasing aerobic activity.

Thus, while a 170 pound figure - let us call her Jane - consumes 1700 calories a day to maintain weight, she may chose to either increase activity or lower calorie intake to lose weight. A pound equates to approximately 3500 calories, so by that figure, in order to lose 1 pound per week, Jane needs to either increase activity or decrease consumption by 500 calories a day.

We all know it is tough to eat 1200 calories a day, so the best solution for Jane is to add on approximately 500 calories of activity per day. It will not only mathematically increase her calorie intake, but improve her circulation, respiratory system and energy level. MyFitnessPal is an incredible resource at this point, since it calculates a program for you based on your weight, level of physical activity and goals. You can log your physical activity and calorie intake for a good estimate of your energy usage.

Beginning an exercise regimen is difficult, especially after years of not being active. Your body is not used to it, and will fight you every step of the way - but it is a very important aspect of attaining your new healthy lifestyle. We have to burn off all of the extra fuel sitting on top of our gas tanks before we damage our motors.

This week I will focus on some entries about the different exercise programs I have tried and the benefits thereof. Check back tomorrow for my first attempt at exercise - Bikram yoga!

Here's to our health my friends!

Borscht - Russia's Traditional Beet Soup

I have found myself jumping from continent to continent sampling soups from all around the world, and in this installment, I bring you the soup that I grew up on, Borscht. This soup has an incredible history, and thousands of varieties, in fact, everyone I have met seems to have a different recipe for the soup. Some call for sausage or veal, others stick with chunks of beef and potato, but we all can agree on three ingredients: beets, cabbage and sour cream!

This soup has a tremendous number of memories for me: from evenings sitting in a sunflower themed kitchen with my chin barely reaching over the kitchen table to high school days coming home from school and frantically putting out soup pot fires, where a lonely blackened beet rested at the bottom of a dried out pot.

I used to spend the summers with my younger brother and my grandmother Ada in a little cottage in the woods. She would make us amazing, fresh soups with ingredients plundered from the forest and watch us shovel them down before she would sit down to eat. It took me over a decade to realize that we were poor and she wanted to make sure we were full before she would eat our leftovers. Borscht is a noble and filling dish, and particularly inexpensive to make.

I dedicate this entry to my grandmother who spent her life loving and caring for her obnoxious, ungrateful grandchildren. You will never be forgotten.

Borscht

Russia's Traditional Beet Soup

2 lbs beef, small chunks
3 beets, diced
2 carrots, chopped
4 shoots celery, chopped
1 onion, diced
3 tbsp, veggie oil
18 oz diced tomato
1/2 head of cabbage, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic
3/4 cup dill
18-20 cups beef broth, or water
salt and pepper
sour cream - to serve

In a large pot add onions to veggie oil and brown. Add beef, brown. Add Carrots, celery and beets and cook for 5 minutes. Add cabbage. At this point you may find that you want to separate your soup fillings into two different pots, at least I did, Add 2 cups broth to each, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add garlic, tomato and the remainder of the broth (as well as salt and pepper to taste) and allow to boil for about 40 minutes to one hour until your broth has turned beety red and the beef is soft and tender.

To serve, add a generous scoop full of sour cream and a tablespoon of dill.

Enjoy and share with friends and family.

The Facts
This recipe serves 16

178 calories per serving
8 grams of net carbohydrates (10 grams carbs less 2 grams of fiber)
8 grams of fat

Simple Roast Lamb with Sauteed Haricots Vert

Meat is core of a low carbohydrate diet, and I generally recommend lean proteins like chicken and fish, but on occasion, we all need to indulge. One of my favorite meats is lamb, and I wanted to share this simple recipe with you today.

Simple Lamb Roast with Sauteed Haricots Vert

Lamb

Leg of lamb - preferably boneless
1 head of garlic - each clove sliced in half, lengthwise
rosemary sprig or two - coarsely chopped
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons of olive oil

Haricots Vert

36 ounces haricots vert (approximately 5-6 cups)
3 cloves garlic - thinly sliced
4 tablespoons of butter 
salt and pepper

Lamb

Preheat oven to 425. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Take a sharp knife and pierce the meat at intervals -large enough to fit a piece of garlic into the holes. Insert garlic cloves into the holes. Place in a baking dish sprinkle with olive oil and rosemary.

The standard boneless leg of lamb will be between 4 to 7 pounds. Cook your meat at 425 for approximately 20 minutes before turning the oven down to 300. Cook for an additional 30-40 minutes. Remove when the thermometer reads 145 degrees for a perfect medium rare. Let the meat rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Haricots Vert

While the meat is resting, heat up butter in a skillet. Add garlic and let it brown. Add the beans and sautée them until you see little bits of browning and the haricots turn a brighter green color. Season with salt and pepper. The beans will be crunchy and delicious.

The Facts

This recipe serves 6-10

416 calories per serving (1/8 of beans and 8 ounces of lamb)*

*please note that the weight is measured before roasting, that probably means about a 6 oz serving

6 grams of net carbohydrates (9 grams carbs less 3 grams fiber)

21 grams of fat

Cream of Cauliflower Soup

My parents brought me a beautiful head of cauliflower over Thanksgiving a few years ago, and it has been sitting in its lonely plastic bag for a week after the holiday. I felt sorry for the poor guy and figured a cauliflower soup would be just the answer, I loved the recipe that came out of it and make it a couple of times every year.

Cauliflower is high in fiber and thus fairly low in net carbohydrates, but the magic of cauliflower is its innate ability to absorb flavors. Unlike so many ingredients that lose flavor the more you meddle with them, this simple plant improves with every dollop of cream or spoonful of butter.

Below is a light and flavorful, yet creamy recipe that I have been working on. I hope you enjoy it. :)

Cream of Cauliflower

1 large head of cauliflower, chopped
1 stick butter
1/2 onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 celery stick, diced
2 tbsp cilantro
2 quarts chicken broth
3 cups milk
1 cup sour cream
salt and pepper

In a large pot, melt butter and add onion. Cook until lightly browned. Add carrots and celery and continue cooking for five minutes. Add cauliflower and cilantro. Lower heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Add chicken broth and bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. At this point you can add milk and continue to simmer for another fifteen minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Move pot to a cool burner, add sour cream. Serve immediately!

The Facts
This recipe serves 10

200 calories per serving
8 grams net carbohydrates (11 grams carbs less 3 grams of fiber)
11 grams of fat

Tom Kha Gai with Chicken

Perhaps the middle of summer is not the time to think about soup, but soups were one of my favorite fall low carbohydrate options, I wanted to share them in case you have good air conditioning and are in the mood for a hot soup.

Soup is amazing! Full of incredibly diverse aromas and flavors that can be achieved by altering just a few simple ingredients and spices. It is truly inspirational.

Looking forward to the fall and the chilly temperatures that I will experience during my residency in Utica, my mind turned to creaming vegetables and boiling chickens and I have decided to indulge myself with a few weeks full of soups, some of which I would love to share with you.

When I first developed this recipe in 2010, I had been feeling a deficit in Thai food, in the wake of my new low carbohydrate diet. I missed the coconut soup, Tom Kha Gai, with some fervour. Looking into the recipes, I discovered that it wasn't a deal breaker after all, so I have formatted a really yummy recipe that is pretty low in carbs. I hope you enjoy!

Tom Kha Gai with Chicken

Broth

2 13.5 oz cans of coconut milk
4 cups chicken broth
3 stalks lemongrass
3 shallots
handful of fresh cilantro
2 limes juice and zest
1/4 cup soy sauce
salt and pepper

Chunkage

1 package of chopped mushrooms
1 green pepper, chopped
1 full roasted chicken, deboned

Bring coconut milk, soy sauce and chicken broth to a boil. Add chopped shallots and lemon grass. Add juice and zest of lime as well as cilantro. Lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Drain the flavoring ingredients out, and return your broth to the pot. Add chicken, mushrooms and green pepper. Allow to boil for another 15 minutes.

Serve immediately.

The Facts
This recipe serves 6

408 calories per serving
7 grams net carbohydrates (8 gram carbs less 1 gram fiber)
19 grams of fat

Let Us Inspire Instead of Shaming

Obesity is a huge issue in America, and we are all aware of it. There is an immense problem with bullying and shaming that goes along with being an overweight child, teenager and adult in this country.

Growing up overweight myself, I have experienced the shame of being morbidly obese and the bullying that accompanies it  - whether malicious or unintentional, the biting effects of feeling shamed for the way you look build endless barriers between you and your health. Many have said it before me, but I will talk about it again, having processed these feelings myself.

Every overweight person knows they are overweight. Everyday, we feel the difficulties in purchasing clothes, performing daily aerobic activities, looking at ourselves in the mirror.  We go to work and feel awkward eating our lunch, we want to date, but feel like no one could ever love us for the way we are, kids stare at us across the street, and all through middle school we never passed a day without nicknames. Our relatives worry about us and bring up these issues to us, wishing to make us realize that we have a problem. These people that love us and care about us want to help, but they are not helping us solve the issue - every time we hear how obese and ugly we seem to the world, our primary instinct is to give up and to drown yourself in another pint of ice cream.

I have always believed that the route to losing weight and improving your health is through motivation and inspiration instead of shaming. It is through example and the small wins that we can reach our big goals. That is why I suggest starting with a low carbohydrate diet, it achieves quick results which inspire you to lose more weight and keep trying. After all, the goal of losing weight is not to lose weight, but to improve your life and to improve your self esteem. My constant goal in helping those around me lose weight is to improve their self esteem and self worth through inspiration and support.

Today, I read an article about a study done in 2006 and 2010, led by psychologist Angelina Sutin at the Florida State University College of Medicine in Tallahassee, Florida. Sutin collected the bmi of 6,157 Americans - either normal weight, overweight or obese. In 2006, Sutin noted whether the subjects were experiencing bullying about their weight, and upon reassessing each participant in 2010 discovered that patients who were overweight and experienced shaming about their bodies were twice as likely to become obese by 2010 as those that were not. Patients who were already obese at the beginning of the study and experienced shaming were three times as likely to remain obese when compared to patients who were not discriminated against. Thus, Sutin concludes that shaming a person about their weight actually encourages obesity.

It is really important to realize that you have a problem and to do something about it to improve your health, but rarely does shaming a person actually help them improve. Denial is a common instinct upon being attacked. I remember listing off all of the people that were fatter than I was when someone would insult me about my weight. You have to encourage a person to build up the strength to try to lose weight, give them realistic results to work for - maybe like my parents who offered me something I wanted in exchange for losing weight. Once you get started and your self esteem improves, you become inspired and everything becomes easier.

I am not sure where I am going with this entry anymore, but I hope that somewhere out there, I can help inspire someone the way that I was inspired to become a healthier me, and perhaps some recipe ideas will help someone gain hope for being able to eat well and become healthy.

So if you are insecure and sad right now, know that I love you and believe in you!