Doing yoga has been linked with reduced feelings of stress, anxiety, depression and even post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). But what about a practice that also relieves allergies, asthma, sleep problems, psoriasis and overall well-being?
5 FOOD GROUPS TO HELP FEND OFF ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE During "salty" yoga, participants aim to do just that with the holistic healing properties of dry salt therapy and those aforementioned benefits of yoga. "The salt room is really great for detoxifying your respiratory system and your skin, so, to me, it's a no-brainer to marry both together," Kayla Kleinman, founder of events company Holistic Happening in New York City, told Fox News. Kleinman serves as a salty yoga guest instructor at Breathe Salt Rooms, which has four New York loations. A 30-minute salty yoga class involves being surrounded by pink Himalayan salt, which is naturally anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal. HOW TO WORK OUT -- WITHOUT EVER LEAVING YOUR LIVING ROOM Leslie restorative yoga near me McDonald, a student, said in the winter, she suffers from dry, red and patchy skin. But doing salty yoga has cleared her symptoms, leading her skin to feel soft and smooth. "It's like a day at the beach," McDonald told Fox News. Another student, Theodora Blanchfield, said she had limited success in relieving sinus congestion until she tried salty yoga. "I was willing to try anything to help them," Blanchfield told Fox News. FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS Because salt is aerated during class, participants not only feel the benefits but inhale them as well. "It acts like a toothbrush for your lungs, so to speak," Kleinman said. For more information, visit BreatheSaltRooms.com. http://www.foxnews.com/health/2017/03/08/breathing-skin-or-sleep-problems-consider-salty-yoga.html
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Old-time workouts from step aerobics to spinning are getting a new bounce with a system of aerial bungee cords called Spiderbands, fitness experts say.
Spiderbands look like TRX, a system of suspension cables that leverage body weight. While it may not suit every venue, fitness experts say it spins a web of resistance and assistance with enough variety to snare even the most restless exerciser. Fitness trainer Franci Cohen, owner of Fuel Fitness in Brooklyn, New York, developed Spiderbands, which can be used in gyms where they are rigged to the ceiling and attached flow yoga to the hands and feet. At her gym the Spiderbands are used with a soft matted floor. "It's basically a pliable inner tubing covered by a bungee outer sheath," said Cohen of the weight-bearing bands, on which, depending on the workout, handles, bars andboxing gloves are attached. Cohen, who holds a master's in exercise physiology, took seven years to develop 19 Spiderband workouts, which range from step aerobics to yoga. She plans to expands the enterprise next year. The aerial component gives a total-body cardio resistance workout that leverages gravity and body weight. "Doing bicep curl on the ground, the rest of body is standing still, but with the bands, the body needs to balance," she explained. Body weight training, such as lunges, push-ups and squats, for which the Spiderbands can be used, are among the top fitness trends forecast for 2015 by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), which polled 3,400 health and fitness professionals worldwide. Cohen said the bands allow exercisers to access challenging, otherwise unavailable, moves. Chin-ups that are out of reach for many women, are suddenly doable due to the buoyancy of the bungees. "It's as if you have a spotter working with you," she said. Exercise physiologist Neal Pire, an ACSM expert from New Jersey, calls the Spiderbands an "interesting little gizmo" that combines resistance with assistance. "If you're doing squats using those bands, it's assistance on coming up; if you're pulling down, it's giving resistance," he said. "It looks useful. So long as the exercises are assisted or resisted appropriately you have a good tool with a lot of variety." He also notes that the workout room requires construction appropriate to accommodate the bands. "It's a matter of constructing the room properly," he said. Editing by Patricia Reaney, Bernard Orr http://www.reuters.com/article/us-fitness-spiderbands-idUSKCN0JF1NU20141201 Anderson Cooper dove headfirst into the world of mindfulness in a segment on Sunday night's "60 Minutes".
"This is just the next generation of exercise, we've got the physical, you know, exercise components down, and now it's about working out how can we actually train our minds," Dr. Judson Brewer told Cooper of mindfulness. Dr. Brewer is a psychiatrist and neuroscientist at the University of Massachusetts. Cooper attended a mindfulness retreat and learned about the benefits of meditation, then met with Dr. Brewer and saw that the benefits of meditation are clearly visible via neurological measurements. After thinking of something anxiety-provoking, Cooper begins meditating and on-screen instruments show brain cells instantly reacting to the mindfulness technique. As Cooper explains, "Dr. Brewer believes everyone can yoga workout train their brains to reach that blue mindfulness zone. But he says all the technology we're surrounded by makes it difficult." Watch the clip from "60 Minutes" above (via CBS) ETC: Sugira uma correo http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/14/60-minutes-mindfulness_n_6324184.html A Word or Two About Body Building Routine
Bodybuilding is a sport involving strenuous physical exercise in order to strengthen and enlarge the muscles of the body (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/ ). Muscle workout routines using different workout techniques like uni-set, multi-set, pyramid routines, super breathing sets and much more will simply enhance the strengthening process. Choose an effective workout that suits your lifestyle. Who am I? I am a retired US Army veteran, a professional bodybuilder with more than 23 years of experience in building muscle, a health enthusiast, and a long-time cross-trainer. Learn about building muscles using different workout techniques like uni-set, multi-set, pyramid routines, super and breathing sets, as well as how to choose an effective workout routine and 4 workout tips. Let me help you achieve your perfect bodybuilding workout routine goal. List of Contents Ok, enough of the introduction. Let's look at what you'll learn today. Abstract List of Workout Techniques How to Choose an Effective Body Building Workouts 4 Body Building Workout Tips to Increase Your Training Results Conclusion Building muscles is an art and not a thing which can happen forcibly. Just like any other art, patience is the name of the game. It is extremely important to get the correct proportion of everything to have the right end result. In this context, we hear a lot about working out. However, we must note that there is no fixed method of working out. There are numerous techniques to choose from and this is the part where one has to be really careful. Writing from experience, choosing the correct method of building muscle is as good as getting the correct result. The decision should solely be based on the body structure, current condition, height, weight, mental composure and the desired result. Hint! When you are in a position to go for even more intense training routines, it is not a good idea to stress your body to an extent which it can't handle. Bodybuilding Workout Techniques The routine sets mentioned below are from my arsenal of years of personal training. This is my gift to you. Uni-set Routines This set is generally meant to be for starters. However, it is also effective in the case of experts. It comprises of a single set for every exercise. It is fast and is extremely effective. It aims to concentrate on a singular muscle at a time. Multi-set Routines This set is normally meant for people who have been exercising for quite some time. Multi-set, as the name suggests comprises of several sets for every exercise. This routine is normally accompanied with the lifting of medium and light weights. The main idea of this routine is to keep the muscle guessing. The ability for the muscle to multitask is what really helps to develop the tissues. It helps a lot in the context of gaining muscles. This is NOT the same as cross-training. Pyramid Routines In this routine, you're expected to start with lighter weights and easier exercises and slowly but steadily increases the intensity. It is the technique which is most widely used and easily adapted by professional bodybuilders around the world. How do I know? I've been there :) This training enables the body to train at different levels and thus enables the body to gain maximum muscles. It is a compact training schedule in which the intensity factor is punched with the element of surprise for the body. Proper utilization of this technique can give great results. Code word: Slowly but steady - Don't push it! Supersets This bodybuilding workout technique deals with doing two exercises without leaving any time gap between them. It stresses and exhausts the required muscles a lot more. It is a good fundamental technique for the professionals and can be used as filler technique as well. Breathing sets This technique includes the art of breathing along with exercising. It sandwiches a breathing set between two exercises. It realizes the importance of breathing yoga in exercising and trains both together to get a perfect result. It energizes the body a lot more than the other techniques not mentioned in this article and decreases the fatigue factor. Above are some of the many techniques available. It is extremely important for you to size up your capability and get hold of the perfect routine that would suit you. Your style of routine may not match your friend's. Don't copy. Follow your own body as your body does not match that of our friend's style. We are unique in our own right and must realize that only the correct routine which suits us is capable of giving us the result at which we want so desperately ..or not! Therefore, learn to be patient and well researched before starting to train in search of muscles. Remember, muscle building is art and must be treated as such. Our metabolic rate, respiratory rate, and body balances should be taken into serious consideration before we pinpoint on the routine which we want to follow. After the conscious decision is taken, a dedicated effort from your end would surely take you to the target to which you so much desire. Summer is around the corner. Make the move :) How to Choose Effective Body Building Workouts So you're ready to get your beach body? Let's hit it! Are you tired of trying all sorts of bodybuilding workouts that are "guaranteed" to help you gain muscle mass only to find yourself making no progress? Do you keep trying every new supplement and body building product that comes out only to get no results? If that's you and you're tired of wasting your money, time, and energy on empty promises, then read on for some simple tips that should help you get results - FREE! In order for body building workouts to give you the desired results, the basics need to be understood. This may sound obvious but there are many people who do not grasp the basic concepts of a good workout routine, in turn, this means they fail to get adequate results. The first basic principle which should always be carefully planned out is the nutritional plan that goes along with body building workouts. Around 80% of results rely on nutrition. This means that you can lift weights for hours, but if your diet is not planned out correctly you will only see 20% muscle gain. Solution: Plan your diet with respect to your body. Another basic fact to keep in mind is that following professional workouts will not get you good results. This is due to the fact that most of us are not gifted with their muscle building genetics, or their limitless quantities of muscle enhancing drugs. Quite simply put, it is nearly impossible for the average guy to get even close to the same results as a professional bodybuilder with their workouts. You need to listen to your own body. Solution: Follow your body's request. It is best to just stay away from those types of workouts, there are better alternatives that I mentioned above. Lastly when looking for a workout routine or when creating your own, keep it in the forty-five to the sixty-minute range. Testosterone levels which greatly help with muscle gains start to decrease after an hour meaning the benefits of longer bodybuilding workouts are minimal. Solution: Workout for 45 mins to 1 hour, then stop and take a long break. 4 Body Building Workout Tips to Increase Your Training Results If there's a harrowing experience in life it must be getting into muscle building. There are a lot of concepts you have to know if you would like to achieve success in iron pumping and if you make the mistake of ignoring even one concept then I am terribly scared you will not achieve success in bodybuilding. The 1st and most vital factor you want to grasp is the sort of body you have. You need to understand your body chemistry and structure as it will determine whether or not you will achieve success in transforming your body. When you're selecting the kind of coaching regimen you're going to use, the type of body structure you have will identify the precise training program you're going to use. If your body structure is ectomorphic then this means you have problems in gaining weight. Go ahead and do the following after knowing your body structure. 1. Get a private trainer - An individual trainer will help you select a proper coaching program that will help you transform your body the way you desire. You do not need to hire an individual trainer for the whole year after the initial console; you can simply use the information you gathered from the personal trainer in your first three or four paid sessions to go on for a while and get results. Getting an individual trainer is useful for two reasons: They will help you reduce gym wounds and also help you drop some unpleasant habits which would have stopped you from succeeding in bodybuilding. 2. Ensure you use all the acceptable techniques such as compound movements and weight lifting. 3. Eat accurately balanced meal. This can help you change your body and also maintain sound health. 4. Rest! Rest! Rest!!! You need to remember to rest. Train your body to rest. Conclusion Let's recap Building muscles is an art and not a thing which can happen forcibly. Just like any other art, patience is the name of the game. Plan your diet with respect to your body Follow your body's request. It is best to just stay away from those types of workouts, there are better alternatives that I mentioned above. Workout for 45 mins to 1 hour, then stop and take a long break. Get a private trainer Use all the acceptable techniques Eat accurately balanced meal Rest! Rest! Rest!!! Rest is crucial because it is the only way by which the body is able to recover. When you undertake intense resistance training your muscles get positively damaged in the act and they have to recover in order that they can grow. If you don't rest correctly between workouts and at night when sleeping then you will not be able to help the recovery process. Use caution and talk with your health care provider before you start building your body to gain strength or muscle size. Any exercise that increases your heart rate helps you burn calories and melt away unwanted pounds. Strength training is very important for your muscles and bones. Go now and start your workout routine and don't forget to give this hub thumbs up. Push all the social buttons as much as you can. A little push exercise would not hurt :) Till I have the time to write more about body building tips, it's bye for now. Strength training is very important for your muscles and bones. Go now, grab a copy of Myatt Murphys "The body you want in the time you have", and start your workout routine. Don't forget to give this hub thumbs up. Push all the social buttons as much as you can. A little push exercise would not hurt :) Till I have the time to write more about body building tips, it's bye for now. Don't forget to give this hub thumbs up. Push all the social buttons to share with your workout partner as well as your friends. Let's call that a mouse clicking exercise. A little mouse clicking exercise would not hurt :) Till I have the time to write more about body building tips, it's bye for now. Stay strong! https://hubpages.com/health/Body-Building-Workouts For the millions of individuals suffering from chronic pain, opioid painkillers seem like the only option. But a new study from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center found that mindfulness mediation may provide drug-free pain relief.
In research published Tuesday in the Journal of Neuroscience, scientists found that mindfulness meditation does not work through the body's opioid system to reduce pain-- meaning there's no risk of drug addiction or concern for those with a high tolerance to opiate-based drugs. "We've now shown across multiple studies using neuroimaging and pharmacologic intervention with opiate blocking that meditation reduces pain through very unique pathways," study leader Fadel Zeidan, Ph.D., an assistant professor of neurobiology and anatomy at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, told FoxNews.com. "We're able to find a way to cure yoga chronic pain; not necessarily taking pain away, but by diminishing the aspect of chronic pain that really promotes suffering, which is the catastrophizing of pain, the anxiety, depression, and quality of life issues." Whenever there is pain, the body employs its endogenous opioid system to release opioids that act as potent painkillers. Cognitive-based therapies-- which includes hypnosis, acupuncture and distraction-- have been shown to relieve pain through use of the opioid system. By bypassing the opioid system, mindfulness meditation could be attractive to those who have built up a tolerance to opioid-based drugs and those looking for non-addictive solutions to their pain. "All the anesthesiologists we're working with were blown away," Zeidan said. "For thousands of years, Buddhist monks have said that meditation reduces pain in a unique fashion. With the advent of neuroimaging and pharmacologic studies, only recently have we been able to examine and potentially verify what they're saying." The study comes on the heels of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s release of voluntary guidelines instructing primary care doctors to sharply deter use of medicines for chronic pain. The new guidelines recommend non-opioids, such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen, as preferred therapy. Opioids are to be prescribed in the lowest possible dose and patients should be closely monitored, Reuters reported. In 2014, nearly two million Americans aged 12 or older either abused or were dependent on prescription opioids, which include heroin, according to the CDC. "Our medication society is set up to just give somebody pain pills and now we're seeing problems with that," Zeidan said. "Doctors are getting more stringent so individuals are going to the street for drugs that make them feel better and are cheaper. It's a snowball effect." For the double-blind, randomized study, Wake Forest researchers worked with a group of 78 healthy, pain-free participants who were divided in four groups for the four-day trial: meditation plus naloxone, non-meditation control plus naloxone, meditation plus saline placebo; or non-meditation control plus saline placebo. Participants were first tested for baseline pain rating through placement of a hot thermal probe on the skin to 120.2 degrees Fahrenheit, a level of heat most people find very painful. The meditation group came in for 20 minutes a day and was taught how to practice mindful meditation, which included sitting with a straight posture, closing the eyes and focusing in the changing sensation of breath. If they became distracted, they were taught to acknowledge the distraction, without judgement, and re-focus on their breathing. The control group listened to a book on tape. All participants then went into the clinic where they were again exposed to the thermal probe and researchers collected their pain ratings. They were given either naloxone-- which blocks the effects of opioids-- or the placebo via IV and told to either begin meditation or relax. While they were doing so, the researchers exposed them to the heat once more, then took pain ratings. If meditation worked through the body's opioids, researchers expected to see the pain relief produced by meditation go away for the group using naloxone. They used the highest dose of naloxone possible to completely block opiate receptors. "The data was clear as day that meditation does not use this powerful opioid system to reduce pain," Zeidan said. They observed that the meditation group who used naloxone had a 24 percent reduction of pain from the baseline measurement. The mediation group with saline showed a 21 percent reduction. By comparison, both non-meditation groups reported increases in pain. Another benefit of meditation that the study found is that the pain-relieving effect kicked in quickly, which may be attractive for chronic pain patients. "If they experience the benefits of meditation immediately, they will continue to practice and [the benefits] will be more stabilized and long-lasting," Zeidan said. The team's next step is to work with chronic pain patients with a variety of conditions to study which may benefit and how long the pain relief lasts. They hope to use what they learn to specifically target each pain condition with a personalized intervention. "We're getting more and more evidence that [mindfulness meditation] seems to have a profound impact on pain physiology, pain psychology and the subjective experience of pain," Zeidan said. "What we think is happening is that meditators are looking at pain from a different perspective, seeing the pain as momentary, fleeting and using skills to learn to be non-judgmental about the pain." As for the challenges of teaching meditation, the team wants to make the intervention readily available to anyone who's interested. They're developing web-based interventions, those that use video chatting and an app-based program. "The first thing's first is to give a person confidence that they can trust themselves to take on pain," Zeidan said. "The most important thing is that you don't have to be a monk. You don't have to wear a robe and live in a cave. You can stay at home," Zeidan said. "It's markedly consistent with why chronic pain patients suffer-- because they don't know how to deal with it. We think meditators are changing their mindset about [pain.]" http://www.foxnews.com/health/2016/03/16/mindfulness-meditation-provides-opioid-free-pain-relief-study-says.html Your smartphone has become a powerful workout motivator as there are so many fitness applications on the market nowadays. However, it's really hard for you to find the one that keeps you motivated and works best for you. Here are 5 best fitness apps that you can consider. Let'c check out now.
1. MyFitnessPal MyFitnessPal is free and available on Android, iOS, Windows Phone, BlackBerry and Web. This application will help you meet your health and fitness goals as it will encourage you to work out in addition to monitoring your daily diet. By using this app, you can seamlessly access key calorie, weight and workout information to give an accurate readout of how your diet shapes up every day. Besides, MyFitnessPal has an expansive database of foods, including international cuisines, brands and menu items at popular restaurants. There are also more than 350 forms of cardio and strength-training exercise existing in the app's database. Therefore, using MyFitnessPal will make you more aware of your diet and exercise choices as well as helps hold you accountable for the goals you have set. 2. Runkeeper If you a runner, Runkeeper is just for you. This app is not only free but also one of the most popular fitness tools online. It tracks how long, how fast and how much you're hitting the streets through GPS, and allows your friends to send you messages while you run. You can also use Runkeeper to keep track of outdoor activities like skiing, swimming or mountain biking. 3. Livestrong.com - Calorie Tracker (a.k.a. MyPlate) Livestrong's Myplate calorie tracker is a calorie and exercise logging tool, available for $2.99. This mobile app gives you an estimated daily calorie intake that works to help you reach your diet, weight loss and meet your fitness goals. However, it will not advise you when to exercise or how to eat or anything more than how many calories you should net in a day. 4. Nike Training Club Nike Training Club, whose slogan is "get your own personal trainer, anytime, anywhere," is a big database filled with bodyweight exercise routines to help you move quickly. The app flow yoga includes detailed instructions and audio guidance from top Nike trainers, with over 100 custom workouts for you to choose. You can even sync your own music to your workout and enjoy your favorite songs while perfecting your body. 5. Fitocracy Fitocracy is free and available on iPhone and Android. This application challenges you with missions to fulfill and turns your workouts into a game by gaining points when you burn calories. Besides, you can post your workout stats to twitter or facebook and share your progress so that your friends can motivate you. Related articles: Health Benefits Of Cycling Top 5 Apps For Better Sleep 6 Tips For Safer Exercise http://technology.ezinemark.com/5-best-fitness-apps-to-keep-you-motivated-773a57074364.html Their solution: create more kindness and compassion.
In other words, to create peace, find inner peace. "Change in humanity must start from individuals," the Dalai Lama told the mayors. "We created this violence, so we can reduce this violence." "We are unified in our humanity, and the only thing that we all know and we all appreciate in one another is kindness, and this has to come before all things," Lady Gaga said. To get to that kindness, His Holiness and pop star Gaga both engage in a practice that's become popular with celebrities including Oprah, Paul McCartney and Kobe Bryant as well as corporate titans and industry leaders, too. It's called mindfulness. Mindfulness is a concept rooted in Eastern spiritual practice that, in the West, has morphed into a secular one. It essentially means not letting your emotions hijack your brain. It is a form of meditation, and it is a mindset. Jon Kabat-Zinn, a professor of medicine emeritus who started the Center for Mindfulness at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and is often considered one of the founders of this Western approach, defines it as paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally. Most people take a class or two to get started, but a simple mindfulness exercise could involve only 10 minutes of your day. Eliminate distractions like your phone, quieting your mind and focusing on your breathing: how it goes into and out of your body. If your mind starts to wander, bring your focus back to your breathing. Focusing gets easier the more you do it. Paying attention to the matters at hand may sound simple, but most Americans aren't doing it, studies show. Though the experts say there's a lot more research to be done, the number of scientific studies has grown exponentially over the past decade. They show that mindfulness is more than a passing fad; there's early evidence it can help your health. What are you thinking about right now? Technology frequently fractures our attention. The boss can message us anywhere, at any time, and even the bathroom isn't safe. We are one distracted bunch. Scientists have proved it, ironically, by using smartphones. Researchers set up an experiment showing that human beings "spend a lot of time thinking about what is not going on around them." In their 2010 study, they created a computer program that sent questions at random moments to people by iPhone. The program asked, "How are you feeling right now?" "What are you doing right now?" and "Are you thinking about something other than what you're currently doing?" Of the 2,250 adults who answered the pings, 46.9% were not thinking about the task they were doing at the moment. This was the case for 30% of their activities, with one exception: during sex. That, apparently, had their full attention. Otherwise, what they were doing had little impact on their depth of focus. You may be thinking, what's wrong with autopilot? Multitasking may be your jam, but those in the study who reported regular mind-wandering were unhappier in that state than those with laser-like focus. That may be one reason why the mindfulness movement -- or "revolution," as a Time magazine cover story named it -- is so popular. Making mindfulness great again To remain mindful, the Dalai Lama said, he sleeps a lot: about nine hours a night. He also gets up at 3 a.m. to meditate. He has another session in the afternoon and one more right before bed. In total, His Holiness spends about five hours meditating each day. "These meditations not just chanting or something," the Dalai Lama told CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. He engages in "analytical meditation: thinking, analyze, analyze." He finds it "very, very helpful to maintain sharpness of mind." That sharpness is real, science has found. Change your brain Monks who've spent thousands of hours meditating show changes in their brains, studies show. Scientists had Buddhist monks meditate while being scanned by an MRI machine. While strapped to a board and put in the huge, noisy machine, the monks calmed their minds, reduced distractions and paid attention to life moment-by-moment. While they were being mindful, scientists noticed signs of neuroplasticity, meaning the monks' brains were reshaping to become more resilient. The part of their brains connected to the body's overall well-being and immune systems activated, and the scans showed that these master meditators reached a deeper level of consciousness. But you don't have to become a monk to experience beneficial brain changes. Scientists studied meditation newbies enrolled in mindful attention training for eight weeks and found improvement in the region of the brain that regulates emotion."One shouldn't be too surprised. If you learn to juggle or learn another language, anything acquiring a skill changes brain pathways long-term," Tom Insel, former director of the federal National Institute of Mental Health, told a crowd of bigwigs at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, a couple years ago. "The evidence is pretty terrific." Mindful Marines The data may be strongest to support the idea that mindfulness helps people manage the negative consequences of stress. One study looked at the impact of mindfulness on Marines going through basic training. Scientists split them into two groups: One got about eight weeks of mindfulness training; the other got none. The participants were then subjected to a stressful day-long training exercise. Both groups had similar spikes in blood pressure and breathing rates during the test, but when it was over, the mindfully trained Marines' heart rate and breathing recovered much faster, as did their nervous systems. "The data on stress reduction is pretty good," said Richard J. Davidson, founder of the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has published hundreds of scientific papers about the impact of emotion on the brain and did some of the first MRIs of meditating Buddhist monks. He started looking at the practice of mindfulness after the Dalai Lama challenged him to use the modern tools of neuroscience to study kindness and compassion in the 1990s. When it comes to stress, his experiments have showed that the body has both physical and emotional reactions to mindfulness practice. "People typically feel calmer and less anxious. There's a modest reduction in stress hormone, as well," Davidson said. Focus People There's good evidence to suggest that mindfulness improves your attention span, too. It might not help you resist looking at those cute cat videos your co-worker sends, but there are areas of basic research where the "findings clearly show that practicing mindfulness can result in improvement of objective measures," Davidson said. Evidence suggests that mindfulness training can improve students' standardized test scores, attendance and discipline. But it also works for adults. Several workplace studies found that employees who get mindfulness training become more productive and stable. They demonstrate more self-control and efficiency. Employees with mindfulness training also seem to pick up on things faster and can read group dynamics better. One study even showed that mindfulness practitioners recognize facial expressions better, making them more emotionally intelligent and helping them to be more empathetic. Depression and addiction helped, kind of Mindfulness also seems to help people who struggle with mental health issues such as depression. Learning to live in the moment can't cure depression, but it can alleviate problems associated fitness with it. It can reduce your anxiety, the feelings of hopelessness and the stresses that come from constantly worrying about the future or ruminating on the past. Mindfulness puts this kind of mental anguish in perspective and can prevent relapses. It can also help you break bad habits, studies show: It can prevent you from eating your feelings, it can help if you drink too much, and it can help you quit smoking.Davidson suggests that the data are "much weaker and less convincing" as mindfulness relates to curing a specific disease.It can't cure cancer or chronic pain, but the practice can help manage some of the symptoms. For instance, if you have chronic lower back pain, mindfulness may be as helpful as medication at easing that pain. The future of mindfulness There's a lot more research needed to determine the full impact mindfulness can have on your health. Several additional studies funded by the National Institutes of Health are underway. The demand for mindfulness programs has gotten so huge, the number of trainers cannot keep up, according to Davidson. That's why he and several other scientists have been working on mindfulness-related video games, apps, podcasts, wearables and websites. Davidson doesn't think the interest in the practice will go away anytime soon. "Suffering is becoming increasingly recognized as a serious problem," he said. "There is also a real kind of divisiveness in our country and a kind of general distress too, especially lately. People are realizing if they can learn something from these simple tools they'll be calmer, less anxious and much more supportive of the others around them." http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/15/health/mindfulness-meditation-techniques/index.html |
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