Health And Wellness Blogs

As summer arrives, I'm taking a short break to slow down, recharge, and enjoy the season.  
This time of year offers a wonderful opportunity to practice mindfulness in simple, meaningful ways.  Step outside and feel the sun on your face.  Dig your hands into the dirt while tending a garden.  Listen to the birds on an early morning walk.  Watch a sunset without reaching for your phone.

Mindfulness doesn't have to be complicated.  Often, it's found in the everyday moments when we choose to be fully present.

Summer also reminds us to make space for the people we love.  Share a meal on the patio, gather around a campfire, take a walk with a friend or simply sit together and enjoy each other's company.  These moments of connection are where some of life's greatest joys are found.

As I step away for the summer, I encourage you to embrace the season, savor the simple things, and create space for what matters most.

Wishing you a summer filled with sunshine, presence and happiness.

​Join us for  a transformative experience May 3 & 4, 2025 with Awaken & Align A Spring Renewal Retreat. Set in a peaceful, natural setting, 45 minutes north of St. Albert, this retreat is designed to help you Awaken your inner vitality and Align your body, mind, and spirit.  The practices will help you align physically by enhancing flexibility and strength through yoga, mentally by cultivating clarity and mindfulness through meditation, and energetically through the joy and flow of Nia. Ayurveda will offer personalized insights to help you align with your body’s unique needs and natural rhythms.
Whether you are looking to deepen your practice or simply escape the hustle and bustle of daily life, this retreat offers the perfect space to slow down, rejuvenate, and discover a sense of peace and vitality.  With a carefully curated schedule, you’ll experience a harmonious blend of gentle movement, grounding meditations, and ample time for self reflection and relaxation.
As you immerse yourself in this nurturing environment, you’ll leave feeling refreshed, inspired and aligned-ready to step back into your life with a sense of clarity, balance, and joy. 
​Watch for more details coming soon!

Spring is a season of rejuvenation and renewal, a time when nature awakens from  its winter slumber, bursting forth in a vibrant display of color and life.  As the days grow longer and the temperatures rise, the world around us transforms, offering a fresh start and a sense of hope.  This season reminds us of the cyclical nature, where endings pave the way for new beginnings.  It's a time to embrace change, to let go of the old and embrace the new opportunities that lie ahead.  Just as the flowers bloom and the trees bud, spring encourages us to grow, evolve, and flourish in our own lives. 

"Dance is your pulse,  your heartbeat, your breathing. It's the rhythm of your life. It's the expression in time and movement, in happiness, in joy, sadness and envy." Jacques d'Amboise-American dancer and choreographer.   For me, dance is the expression of emotion in movement.  It is a very powerful communication activity.  Join us in the fall and find your unique way of expressing yourself. 

The good life is not always just out of reach.  It is not waiting in the distant future after a dreamy career of success.  it's not set to kick in after you acquire some massive amount of money.  The GOOD LIFE is right in front of you, sometimes only an arm's length away.   And it starts NOW.

A Korean study found that older women walking through forests versus urban areas enjoyed healthier blood pressure, artery elasticity, and lung capacity.  This study points to a beautifully simple prescription: spend time in the forest!  

Feeling anxious? There are natural remedies that can help us feel less anxious, which in turn can lesson our irrational thinking.  Next time your monkey mind gets out of the cage, try these methods to tame it.

• A mug of green tea can decrease our heart rate and stress levels.
• Lavender can reduce feelings of anxiety and is sometimes referred to as an emotional anti-inflammatory.
• Lemon balm has been used for centuries as a calming herb and may improve mood and sleep quality.  You can even grow it in your garden!
• Work up a good sweat!  Either by movement or by sitting in a steam room, sauna or hot bath.  Working up a good sweat can alter neural circuits in the brain that control cognitive function and mood, helping to decrease anxiety and negative emotions. 

Feeling tense this time of year?  Muscle tension is not only a symptom of stress but a major energy suck.  The fix?  Yoga poses that lengthen overactive, tight muscles in the back, sides and chest.  The next time you feel stressed, assuming you aren't driving, in the grocery isle or in the middle of a meeting, lie down.  While flat on your back bring your knees to your chest one knee at a time.  When your knee is at your chest, gently take the opposite hand and pull it to towards that side.  Hold for three breaths and repeat with the other knee.  This pose will alleviate the tension in your back and in doing so release a bit of stress. This is also a good pose to do before bed to help ease your mind before slipping under the covers. 

Rather than go to a gym and lift things that don't need to be lifted, give us one hour a week to move in a way that is meaningful and purposeful!  Nia is a whole body workout based on 52 moves that your body is meant to do.  New classes start in Devon January 12 and Beaumont January 17.  Registration information is on the Nia page of this web site.  Start the year off by inviting movement and joy into your life.  Move with us for one hour and enjoy the benefits all week!

It's FASCIA!  Muscles get blamed for pain but in fact it is the mesh that surrounds the muscles that are sending the pain signal.  Fascia is the interconnected fibrous collagen tissue that surrounds every part of our body and it has nerves that register the imbalance or the pain.  Healthy fascia slides, glides and is moist.  Unhealthy fascia is stringy, stuck and stiff.  Chronic dehydration is just one factor that makes fascia unhappy.  Lack of movement is another.  What can you do to prevent the drying out of your fascia? Hydrate often with water infused with fibrous vegetables like cucumber.  Move all your joints every day.  Nia, Qi-gong, walking, belly dancing and playing with kids are all great forms of movement that help your fascia stay lubricated.  Motion is lotion!  See you on the dance floor!