Tag Archive for "pilates" | The Organic Beauty

Exercise for a Perfect Period

By: Natasha Uspensky, CHHC Friday, October 18, 2013 Exercise, Holistic Health, Lifestyle, Organic Beauty, Wellness boot camp, Exercise, exercise and PMS, exercise for menstrual cycle, Follicular phase Permalink 0

By: Natasha Uspensky, CHHC

If you’re like most women, you reach a natural slump every month where it is just grueling to stick to your typical workout routine. You drag yourself to boot camp, feel drained afterwards, and wonder what you’re doing wrong. Or you feel just too tired to stick to your routine, and end up skipping your workouts altogether for a week. This is because your body’s needs in terms of exercise vary pretty dramatically throughout your cycle. In this installment of our Perfect Period Series we’ll be delving into the best forms of exercise to keep you in alignment with your natural hormonal patterns, which will decrease PMS symptoms, boost weight loss, balance your hormones, and help you feeling amazing and energized all month long.

No-Cost Holistic Living

By: Natasha Uspensky, CHHC Wednesday, June 12, 2013 Diet and Foods, Exercise, Healthy Eating, Holistic Health, Lifestyle, Organic Beauty, Wellness brooklyn, budget, cheap, CSA, food Permalink 0

By: Callie McBride

If a fear of costliness is preventing you from delving into the wonders of a holistic lifestyle, you are not alone. But, you may also be confused. Its no secret that organic meals and bi-weekly yoga classes can burn through your pocket quite quickly, but there are ways around those bright green dollar signs that offer you the same incredible benefits of living naturally and healthfully. The trick is to simply open your eyes! Scour the web, check out coffeehouse postings, and chat with your fellow yogis to learn about free deals; you will be amazed with what you will find.

Yoga, etc.

Often times yoga and pilates studios, as well as fitness centers, will offer complimentary classes to new customers. Core Power Yoga , Lulu Lemon retail stores, and YoGoer all offer free trials, just to name a few. Let Google be your friend and check out what studios in your areas do the same. Take advantage of those introductory classes to both try out different locations around your city and possibly discover a new favorite spot. I recently browsed the Internet for a martial arts class in Manhattan, and in about ten minutes I was registered for a free one-on-one lesson for the following week, that easy!

There are also studios that generously run classes by donation; if $5 is all you’ve got, they will gladly take it. Both Yoga To The People and Brooklyn Yoga School in New York boast this deal.

During the summer, outdoor yoga skyrockets and prices dip lower than ever. In fact, they disappear. Well and Good NYC puts together an annual Summer Fitness Guide for New Yorkers filled with free yoga, pilates, and bootcamps around all 5 boroughs. Classes include Bryant Park Yoga, Sixth Street Pilates, Washington Square Park Yoga, and much more.

Let’s not forget the wonderful online world of Youtube, home to plenty of fantastic fitness instructors that post free videos to do at home-my favorites are Tara Stiles and Cassey Ho of Pop Pilates. These women are consistent with uploading new videos and have mastered the art of training through the camera.

Meditation

Another important aspect of a holistic lifestyle is meditation, which can always be free. This summer, grab a blanket and pick a park to visit during your free time. Of course, chanting is optional, but ultimate relaxation and peace of mind is garaunteed. My NYC picks are Central Park, Prospect Park in Brooklyn, and Riverside Park on the Upper West Side. With no shortage of parks wherever you live, meditation can be a quick and effective way to check in with your body and maintain a focus on your goals of healthy living. If you need some guidance on how to start meditating, keep your eye out for guided meditation challenges from Deepak Chopra and other wellness experts! There are also tons of free guided meditation apps available for your phone or iPad.

Organic Produce

Organic and healthy foods generally aren’t free–though if you know of a place, shout it out. That doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy the bounty of organic food made available to us. For those of you who like to stock up on organic fruits and veggies, consider shopping wholesale. In New York, the Wholesale Greenmarket is your best bet. The vendors there grow their own produce, and “straight from the farm each morning, their products travel a very short distance ensuring premium quality, and greater food safety and traceability”. (grownyc.org/wholesale) By purchasing your fresh produce in bulk, or least in larger quantities, you’ll save both money and daily trips to the grocery store. The San Francisco Wholesale Produce Market is another example that looks great and includes a huge list of merchants who deliver fresh produce each morning (www.sfproduce.org). A local CSA can also be a super affordable option to eat organic. NextDoorganics is an amazing CSA delivery that sends a huge bag of local organic produce and other goodies to your door for as little as $35 a week!

To sum up, cheap healthy living is entirely possible with a little determination and research. Once you find your collection of free and/or cheap spots, spread the word and get others in on the wonders of holistic living on a budget. Enjoy your mission to locate deals and steals throughout your city, and share what you find in the comments below!

Love Yoga? Find a Wanderlust Festival Near You (news.health.com)

A More Sensual You: Eating Your Way to Your Sexiest Self!

By: Natasha Uspensky, CHHC Tuesday, January 24, 2012 Diet and Foods, Exercise Diet and Foods, Exercise, flavia bruni, movement, natasha uspensky Permalink 0

As we gear up for the romance of Valentine’s Day, I thought it would be a great time to delve into the concept of sensuality, and the amazing benefits of living a sensual life. Don’t worry, this isn’t going anywhere kinky… Sensuality is simply defined as indulging in one’s senses, which is a wonderful way to boost confidence, beauty, promote weight loss, and be an overall sexier version of yourself!

A More Sensual You Eating Your Way to Your Sexiest Self! 5 | The Organic Beauty Blog

Indulging in our senses in regards to food is an amazing way to enjoy eating more, while not over-eating. This promotes a much healthier relationship to food, and is a wonderful way to manage weight as well. Rushing through meals, eating while on the go, or while distracted by TV, computers, or even reading doesn’t allow our bodies and minds to really connect with the food we are eating. It takes more food to get the mind to register fullness, and often times, we don’t feel satiated or fulfilled after a meal. What a waste of eating!!

Next time you sit down to a meal, engage all of your senses to make the experience fulfilling, meaningful, and even sexy:

Sight: If you are eating a home-cooked meal (or even if you get take out), take the time to artfully arrange and plate your food so it is visually appealing. This can be a bit of a food ritual that prepares your mind and body for the meal that is about to come, and elevates eating to a more meaningful experience. Food is delicious, beautiful, and so fun to consume! Re-engage with the visual pleasure of eating before you dig in every day, and whether you are sharing a romantic dinner with a loved one, or eating a delicious lunch solo, your meal becomes that much more special and healthy.
- Obviously, using and consuming the highest quality food is also a big part of sight. Aim for many different bright colors, and a variety of foods on your plate. Sitting down to a dinner of fried, white foods devoid of nutrients isn’t nearly as satisfying as a beautiful plate of bright vegetables, whole grains, herbs and spices!
- Create a delicious little combination of foods, flavors and colors in every bite, and take time to appreciate the beauty of the food before it goes into your mouth! This literally helps your body get primed for digesting and enjoying every last bit.
- Set the table, light a candle, make every meal special, and the effects on your mood, mind, and waistline will be undeniable! And the romance of sharing a meal with your special someone, looking at their face as well as the beautiful food you’re eating, creates an air of sensuality that can even be a part of foreplay.

Sound: Create a romantic environment for every meal. Eating should always be done in a relaxed, calm state. The TV blaring, while on the phone with your mom, and your roommate clicking away on her computer does not equal calm and relaxed! Turn off the TV and computer, silence your phone, maybe even put on some beautiful background music. Eating in this environment allows your body to focus on the sights, smells, and taste of your food, promotes healthy digestion, and helps you feel more full, which counteracts over eating!
- This is also a great way to elevate an average, every day meal into a romantic special occasion! Try it, pick a few nights this week and just sit down to a quiet, calm, distraction-free meal with your loved ones or just by yourself.

Touch: Were you told as a child to stop playing with your food? Well forget all of that. Many cultures believe that one cannot fully enjoy or experience their food without touching it. Eating with one’s hands can be a very sensual, spiritual, fulfilling, and connected experience!
- If you’re eating with a loved one, try feeding one another, touching the food, and placing it in the other’s mouth. The focus of this becomes indulging in the flavors and senses, instead of mindlessly gorging yourself on food. And admit it, a sexy lady eating with her hands is a pretty hot image… Use it as a way to feel confident and sexy in front of your partner!
- If you’re eating alone, well in that case there is no one watching! Go ahead and eat with your hands, savor the feeling of the food in your hands. Feeding yourself this way is an ultimate act of self-love.

Smell: Well this one is a no-brainer when it comes to eating, yet it is so often neglected. Smelling your delicious and well-prepared food before you eat it has both practical and sensual benefits. First of all, it starts to prepare your body for food… You begin to salivate and your digestive enzymes get ready to secrete. This aids enormously in your digestive process, and can help combat over-eating, and make a meal so much for satisfying. It’s also very beneficial psychologically. The smell of delicious food is warming, comforting, and can be a huge boost to serotonin levels… It can literally make you feel happier!
- Obviously, a home-cooked meal is the best way to engage your sense of smell before and during eating. But even if you are eating out or ordering in, take a moment to observe and smell your food before eating it. If it doesn’t smell mouth-watering, you shouldn’t be eating it!! This is a great way to put more thought into what you put in your body!

Taste: Clearly, this sense is the most obvious when it comes to eating, but also, one we often neglect when we are rushing through a meal or eating something blah just to eat. Every single thing we eat should taste vibrant and amazing. And we need to take the time to taste it at every meal. This means slowing down, chewing your food, and, again, putting care into what you are eating.
- Opt to chew every mouthful until the consistency of the food in your mouth is soupy. I know that doesn’t sound very appetizing, but when you’re eating delicious food, taking the time to enjoy every bite, letting the flavors meld together is a wonderfully sensual process. It is also incredibly good for your health, and super beneficial to looking your slimmest. Chewing your food takes the strain off your digestive system and breaks down everything you are eating, speeding up the process of extracting all the nutrients and getting it out of you.
- Secondly, and just as importantly, taking the time to really taste and enjoy each bite of your food allows you to indulge in those forbidden treats every once in a while and really make it count! Having a small slice of chocolate cake and really taking the time to slowly indulge and enjoy it makes the whole endeavor so much more meaningful, and helps you feel more satisfied… therefore allowing you to need those indulgences less often!

To go even further in the work of using our senses to achieve maximum health, beauty, and sexiness, I am teaming up with pilates instructor and movement coach, Flavia Bruni of Tools for Grace, so create a dynamic workshop focusing on eating, movement, grace, and sensuality… Just in time for Valentine’s Day! RSVP today to reserve your spot!