The goal of this project was to come up with a very concrete plan for myself to stay healthy, active, and well in college. After five weeks of intense new learning experiences, extensive research, and deep reflection, I feel more than prepared to present it to you now.
The Samantha Plan
Nutrition
Nutritionally, it is all about balance and being whole.
On my meal plan, I have about 12 meals per week. The rest are dollars that can be spent at the food stores around campus.
I plan to wake up with one of my special cups of coffee that I posted a recipe for a while back. Mind you, this is not Starbucks. There is no artificial flavors, added sugar, heavy cream, or syrups. This coffee has all natural ingredients with real health benefits. To that, I can also add stevia, an all natural sweetener made from the leaves of the stevia plant, if I find the coffee lacks a sweet taste. Just so I have it on file and readily available, the recipe is posted at the end of this entry.
Following the coffee, it is extremely important to eat breakfast every day. Protein is the most important thing in the morning, and because I have limited meals, I will need to purchase protein bars, peanut butter, fruit, and milk on a weekly basis to keep in a mini-fridge in my dorm room. Usually eating about 400-500 good, whole calories in the morning is what it takes to get me through to lunch time without any problems.
Also, the issue of consuming enough liquid will be ever important in my college life. I need to carry a large water bottle and have packets of Propel, Emergen-C, G-2, or Crystal Light readily available in my room, so that I can avoid urges to drink soda throughout the day.
For lunch and dinner, it is going to be very important that before I eat anything else, I make sure to get in two servings of fruit, two serving of vegetables, and two servings of whole protein. This would be like chicken breast, fish, beef, etc. As long as I meet those requirements first, having a little something like ice cream or a soft pretzel will be completely fine. By getting the "good food" in my system first, I will be much less likely to fill up on junk.
With that being said, part of living holistically is balance, and it will be important not to be too regimented with my eating routine. Going out to dinner or craving french fries every once in a while is totally normal, and I should never deprive myself. One thing that I have learned over the course of this project is deprivation comes back to bite me in the end.
I am not going to put a calorie count on what I should be consuming on a daily basis because that is not how it should work. What I eat every day should be based on how my body is feeling and what it is telling me. If I do a super ton of activity one day, my body will undoubtedly ask for more fuel than on a day where I lounge around and study. I need to be accepting of that and not fight it.
Finally, the issue of alcohol. First of all, alcohol throws everything off balance--it makes me feel sick, badly about my body, and lose control of my thoughts and actions. This is the opposite of living holistically, and therefore should not be involved in my college life at all. Beyond that, I made a promise to someone I care about very deeply that I wouldn't drink at all unless they were present. My consumption of alcohol would be a breach in trust in that relationship and it is not something I am willing to sacrifice. So when someone hands me a beer, I need to just think about those things and hand it right back.
Fitness
I plan to work out 5 times per week in college. I need to look and see if Cincinnati offers group fitness as an option for its students, because if so, I will surely sign up there. If they don't however, there are several Urban Active locations in the city of Cincinnati, and because of my membership in Cleveland, I am eligible to participate in the classes down there. I need to make sure to get in three sessions of cardio and three sessions of weight training per week. This means that on one day, I will do cardio and weight training together.
On days when I don't go to class, I will do yoga and ball work in the room, or in a quiet space where I can be alone. This will involve me going through my yoga DVDs as well as going through the ball and weight training routine that AnnMarie laid out for me. You will find that regimen posted again at the end of this entry.
Mind
I plan to practice 10 to 20 minutes of Mindfulness Meditation per day. I will focus on breathing, clearing my mind, and making sure the signals I emit are positive. This will be very important in making sure that i don't fall into depression or sadness from being far away from home and the people I love. Taking time to myself to remember what id important and elevate my mind and spirit will be key to my success at UC.
Listening to the Signals
Perhaps the most important thing for me to remember will be to listen to the signals from my body. My body talks to me constantly, and when I don't listen and am unaware and out of touch with my inner workings, I fall off the wagon. As long as I listen to what it tells me--from when I am hungry, to when I need a day off, to when I need time to myself, to when I am sad and need to take time to get my mind back on track, I will be happy and successful in college.
Thank you to everyone who has followed me on my journey to health and wellness. I couldn't have asked for a better project. I have learned so much, and I hope you have too.
Love,
Sam
Coffee Done Right
1. Add coconut oil
What it does: coconut oil contains polyphenols that improve insulin sensitivity, thyroid function, decreases belly fat and kill pathogens thusly aiding digestion and the immune system (Research).
How much: add 1-3 tablespoons to your cup of coffee
What type: organic is best
Where from: supermarkets health food sections
Tastes like: the same as a normal cup of coffee though can be slightly greasy
2. Add a cinnamon stick or two
What it does: cinnamon mimics insulin (the discovery was initially made by accident, by Richard Anderson at the US Department of Agriculture's Human Nutrition Research Center in Beltsville, Maryland) thusly decreasing the need for the beta cells of the pancreas to secrete insulin; in fact, Charles Poliquin, a world renowned strength coach, says addingcinnamon to your water is one of the best ways to sensitize your body to insulin. Other possible benefits include, decreased inflammatory markers, increased satiety, lowered tryglyrides, lowered total cholesterol, lowered LDL's (bad cholesterol) and increased HDL's (good cholesterol).
How much: 1-2 sticks
What kind: any, but organic is the best
Where from: health food section of a supermarket and Asian markets
How does it taste: a slight hint of cinnamon
3. Add cocoa
What it does: cocoa contains polyphenols, alkaloids and flavonoids that can increase insulin sensitivity, increase slightly nervous system activity, improve cognitive (brain) function and decrease markers for cardiovascular disease.
Cocoa flavonoids are thought to have a protective effect on cardiovascular health through their ability to alter a number of pathological processes involved in the development of Cardio Vascular Disease. These include:
* Inhibiting the oxidation of LDL-cholesterol ('bad' cholesterol) by free radicals, an important initial step in the formation of atherosclerotic plaque.
* Suppressing the tendency for small blood cells, called platelets, to clump together and form blood clots. This is often described as an 'aspirin-like' effect.
* Regulating inflammatory and immune responses in blood vessel walls, which may be abnormal in CVD.
* Regulating vascular tone, or degree of constriction of small blood vessels, which contributes to high blood pressure.
In producing these beneficial effects, cocoa flavonoids appear to act through a range of mechanisms, some of which are not thought to be linked to antioxidant activity.
* Ariefdjohan MW, Savaiano DA. (2005) Chocolate and cardiovascular health: is it too good to be true? Nutrition Reviews, Dec; 63(12Pt 1):427-30.
** Ding E.L., Hutfless S.M., Ding X., Girotra S. (2006) Chocolate and Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease: A Systematic Review. Nutrition Metabolism (Lond) 3;3:2.
How much: 1-3 tablespoons
What kind: organic with no added sugar or preservatives
Where from: supermarkets, health food stores and the internet
How does it taste: great, coffee with a slight hint of cocoa
4. Add Chicory coffee
What it does: chicory coffee exhibits a mild excitory action, is a chlorogenic herb just like coffee so can help with detoxification, contains inulin, a non digestible fibre that may slow absorption of glucose from the gut, decrease colon carcinogens, increase friendly bacteria and lower LDL's (bad cholesterol).
According to Chicory.co.za:
"LOWERS CHOLESTEROL:
A new study* reports that chicory reduces cholesterol levels and increases the ratio of HDL (the good one) to LDL (the bad one) in the blood of tested animals.
* Journal of Nutrition, vol. 128, pgs. 1731-a6, by Drs. Meehye Kim & hyun Kyong Shin, Korea Food & Drug Administration and the Department of Food Science and Nutrition, Hallym U., Chunchon, Korea.
LOWERS BLOOD SUGAR: Laboratory research undertaken in Europe shows chicory root extracts to be anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory and slightly sedative. It slows the pulse and lowers blood sugar.
THERAPEUTIC FOR DIABETES: A study** done in 1984 demonstrated that daily intake by diabetics of a large amount of the fructo-oligosaccharides and inulin contained in chicory: Reduces the glucose rate in blood.
Decreases serum LDL cholesterol levels.
Does not change the levels of triglycerides or HDL cholesterol.
This lessens the disturbances in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism found in diabetes.
** Effect of fructo oligosaccharides on blood glucose and serum lipids in diabetic subjects, Nutrition Research, 1984, vol. 4, pp. 961-66, , by Yamashita Y, Kawai K and Itakura M.
ASSISTS IN WEIGHT LOSS & STIMULATES THE IMMUNE SYSTEM: Chicory contains two ingredients that can contribute to a weight loss programme. A report in the July 1999 Journal of Nutrition*** reveals that these ingredients (inulin and oligofructose) are not digestible by our bodies, and thus have no calories. Nevertheless, the inulin and oligofructose in chicory are digested by beneficial microbes in the colon and aid "in the treatment of, prevention or alleviation of symptoms of intestinal diseases." These ingredients also participate in the feeding of beneficial bacteria (similar to yoghurt) and allow them to compete with and defeat harmful bacteria, stimulate our immune system and indirectly help promote our own production of B vitamins.
***(supplement) Journal of Nutrition, July 1999, by Dr. Marcel B. Roberfroid and associates, Catholic U. of Lovain, Dept. of Pharmaceutical Science, Brussels, Belgium.."
How much: 2 -3 teaspoons
What kind: organic preferably
Where from: health food sections of supermarkets and health food shops
How does it taste: like cheap coffee by itself and undetectable with coffee
Fitness Plan A La AnnMarie
First, she gave me a list of basic equipment that I should keep in my dorm room for time like these. Hopefully my roommate won't try to kill me for taking up valuable space with my equipment...
1) "Magic Ball"- 65 centimeters worked best for me
2) Tube- medium heavy (basically a giant rubber band rolled up like a rigatoni noodle with handles on both ends)
3) Band- heavy (a basic strip of thin rubber with a high resistance)
4) Weights- 8,10,12, potentially 15 (lighter weights are easier to transport and best for performing exercises on the ball. one thing this project has taught me is weights that are too heavy are unnecessary and they only existed in my life to prove a point.)
5) Yoga DVDs- from www.viniyoga.com- this is the kind of yoga that I practiced with AnnMarie and I responded really well to it. at least three times per week I will try to pop it into my computer and take a half hour to relax and do the workout.
AnnMarie went on to present me with a detailed exercise routine that could be performed right in my dorm room using only the equipment listed above, along with other things, like my bed, or simply the floor.
Chest- to be performed with mid to upper back on the ball
1) Chest Press (weights)
2) Fly (weights)
3) Close grip fly (weights)
Triceps- mid to upper back on the ball
1) Headbanger- 2 arms, 1 arms, 2 arms 1 weight (weights)
2) Overhead (weights)
Triceps- sitting on ball, leaning forward to 45 degrees
1) Kickbacks (weights or band)
Biceps- standing or sitting on ball with back straight
1) Straight Curls (weights or band)
2) Hammer Curls (weights or band)
3) Rotation Curls- start in hammer end in straight, start in straight end in hammer (weights or band)
4) 7's- straight curls- start down end halfway for 7, start halfway end up for 7, full straight curls for 7
Shoulders- standing or sitting on ball with back straight
1) Lateral Raise- start in "sphinx", end with arms flat in line with shoulders at a 90 degree angle to body (weights)
2) Military Press- start in "field goal post" position, end with arms fully extended above head (weights)
3) Reverse Fly (weights or band)
4) Goal Raise- start with arms flat in line with shoulders at a 90 degree angle to body, end in "field goal post" position (weights)
5) Rear Delt- lying on side, weight starts on floor with arm at full extension, end with weight directly above head with arm at full extension (very light weights- 3 pounds)
6) Modified Rear Delt- lying on side, arm bent, elbow rests on hip, weight at floor, end elbow on hip, arm bent, weight directly over hip (light weights- 5 pounds)
Legs- standing
1) Plie Squat- legs beyond shoulder width apart, toes angled outward, push through heels making sure that knees do not cross over toes when bending
2) Straight Squat- legs shoulder width apart or a bit less, push through heels, knees don't extend over toes
**With my particular body, because I am both tall and extremely flexible, I feel squat more when I don't go down as far. It is more effective for me to pulse in a medium squat than it is for me to repeat deep squats.
Legs- back on floor, lower calves and heels on ball
1) Pevlic Lifts (key move in pilates)- breathe in on the lift, breathe out on the release- raise and lower slowly, hold the lift
Legs- Side Leg- lying on side, body straight and long like a pencil
1) Top Leg Lift- raise and lower slowly, hold the lift
2) Meet- raise top leg, hold, raise bottom leg to meet top leg, hold, lower bottom leg, hold, lower top leg
3) Double- both legs at same time
Legs/Glutes- draped over ball
1) Super Girl- lift right leg and left hand/squeeze glutes, lift left leg and right hand/squeeze glutes, lift both legs, squeeze glutes
Legs/Glutes- kneeling, tube wrapped around bedpost, with other handle on ball of foot
1) Push Back- extend attached leg directly backwards, make sure the resistance is heavy enough
2) Lift- lift extended leg to hip level and squeeze
Push Ups- drape over ball, and roll forward until in plank. roll as far forward as is manageable.
Abs- mid to lower back on ball
*Must go slowly
1) Basic Crunch
2) Twist- lift center, side, center, back
3) Dive- basic crunch with arms fully extended above head in "dive position"
Abs- back on floor, legs bent
*Must go slowly, can be modified by holding a weight in your hands, or by using straight legs versus bent
1) Jack Hammer- crunch, lift legs to meet head (or a s close as you can get), lower legs, lower head
Thursday, June 3, 2010
"The Plan"- Mental and Spiritual
A large aspect of this experience that I never really expected to matter at all has been my mental and spiritual well being.
Honestly, I went into Senior Project with the expectation that I would spend 5 weeks learning how to work out correctly, and walk away with a better body after getting out of shape with my injury. I expected to make a plan as to show to stay in shape and eat right in college. There was nothing very concrete. That, I believe, was a complete blessing because it allowed my project to really take on a life of its own and lead me down a path that I never foresaw. This new path focused in on listening to my body--not just the physical aspect, but the emotional as well. When I felt stressed or upset, instead of wallowing in it or falling deeper into a hole, I examined why I was experiencing those feelings. Most of the time it was because of the energy that I was putting out. I am the master of my own being. If I focus on being happy, I will be. Over the course of this project, I have developed the skill of confronting problems head on rather than letting them fester. This has really done wonders to improve my relationships with friends and family which is a great blessing in these last few months that I am around my house.
The idea of living holistically is especially appealing to me because it acknowledges how much being emotionally out of balance can affect other areas of my life. When I go to college, it will be an extremely high stress environment, and I will be surrounded by a lot of people making poor choices. It will be up to me to make sure that I stay true to myself and don't fall into that bad decision making.
In order to help me stay calm and centered, one major thing I plan to practice in college is Yogic breathing. To better explain this, I looked to http://www.abc-of-yoga.com/pranayama/. It said:
"Pranayama - The Art of Yoga Breathing
When the Breath wanders, the mind is unsteady, but when the Breath is still, so is the mind still." - Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Breathing is life. It is one of our most vital functions. One of the Five Principles of Yoga is Pranayama or Breathing Exercise which promotes proper breathing. In a Yogic point of view, proper breathing is to bring more oxygen to the blood and to the brain, and to control Prana or the vital life energy. Pranayama Yoga also goes hand in hand with the Asanas. The union of these two Yogic Principles is considered as the highest form of purification and self-discipline, covering both mind and body.
High Breathing
The Complete Breath High Breathing refers to what takes place primarily in the upper part of the chest and lungs. This has been called "Clavicular Breathing" or "Collarbone Breathing" and involves raising the ribs, collarbone and shoulders. Persons with Asthma, a tight belt, a full stomach or who otherwise become short of breath tend to resort to high breathing. One may deliberately draw in his abdomen and force its contents upward against the diaphragm and into the chest cavity in order to cause High Breathing. High Breathing is naturally shallow and a larger percentage of it fails to reach the alveoli and enter into usable gaseous exchange.
This is the least desirable form of breathing since the upper lobes of the lungs are used and these have only a small air capacity. Also the upper rib cage is fairly rigid, so not much expansion of the ribs can take place. A great deal of Muscular energy is expended in pressing against the diaphragm and in keeping the ribs and shoulders raised abnormally high. This form of breathing is quite common, especially among Women, probably because they often wear tight clothes around the waist which prevents the far superior abdominal breathing. It's a common cause of digestive, stomach, constipation and gynecological problems.
Low Breathing
Low breathing refers to what takes place primarily in the lower part of the chest and lungs. It is far more effective than high or mid breathing. It consists mainly in moving the abdomen in and out and in changing the position of the diaphragm through such movements. Because of this, it is sometimes called "Abdominal Breathing" and "Diaphragmic Breathing." Sedentary persons who habitually bend forward while they read or write tend to slump into low breathing. Whenever one slouches or slackens his shoulder and chest muscles, he normally adopts low breathing. We often use low breathing when sleeping. But whenever we become physically active, as in walking, running or lifting, we are likely to find abdominal breathing inadequate for our needs. To do low breathing, when you inhale you push the stomach gently forwards with no strain. When exhaling you allow the stomach to return to its normal position.
This Type of Breathing is far superior to high or mid breathing for four reasons: (1) more air is taken in when inhaling, due to greater movement of the lungs and the fact that the lower lobes of the lungs have a larger capacity than the upper lobes; (2) the diaphragm acts like a second Heart. Its piston-like movements expand the base of the lungs, allowing them to suck in more venous blood- the increase in the venous circulation improves the general Circulation; (3) the abdominal organs are massaged by the up and down movements of the diaphragm; and (4) low breathing has a beneficial effect on the solar plexus, a very important nerve center.
Middle Breathing
Middle Breathing is a little harder to describe since the limits of variability are more indefinite. Yet, it is breathing in which mainly the middle parts of the lungs are filled with air. It exhibits some of the characteristics of both high breathing, since the ribs rise and the chest expands somewhat, and low breathing, since the diaphragm moves up and down and the abdomen in and out a little. It has been called Thoracic or Intercoastal or Rib Breathing. But too often it also remains a shallow type of breathing. With this form of breathing, the ribs and chest are expanded sideways. This is better than high breathing, but far inferior to low breathing and the Yoga Complete Breath Technique.
The Complete Breath
Most of us use three or four Kinds of Breathing. These may be called high, low and middle breathing and complete breathing. The complete breath is a combination of high breathing, mid breathing and low breathing.
The Complete Breath, as defined by Yoga, involves the entire Respiratory System and not only includes the portions of the lungs used in high, low and middle breathing, but expands the lungs so as to take in more air than the amounts inhaled by all of these Three Kinds of Breathing together when they are employed in shallow breathing. The complete breath is not just deep breathing; it is the deepest possible breathing. Not only does one raise his shoulders, collarbone and ribs, as in high breathing, and also extend his abdomen and lower his diaphragm, as in low breathing, but he does both as much as is needed to expand his lungs to their fullest capacity.
The Yoga Complete Breath is the basic technique of all the different types of Yoga Breathing, and therefore should be mastered before you learn the specific breathing exercises. It brings the whole lung capacity into play and is the basis of the three specific breathing exercises. Keep in mind that this Type of Breathing is only done when you do the breathing exercises. The rest of the time you should be doing low breathing by pushing the stomach out slightly when you inhale, and then just letting the stomach fall back to its original position when you exhale. Also, make sure you are breathing through your nose and not your mouth.
The Four Stages of Breathing in Yoga
1. Puraka (Inhalation)
A single inhalation is termed Puraka. It is a process of drawing in air and is expected to be smooth and continuous. If a person should pause one or more times during the process of a single inhaling, the process might be spoken of as a broken Puraka rather than as a series of Purakas.
2. Abhyantara Kumbhaka (Pause After Inhaling) Full Pause
Kumbhaka consists of deliberate stoppage of flow of air and retention of the air in the lungs, without any movement of lungs or muscles or any part of the body and without any incipient movements. A beginner may experiment by using some force to keep such pause motionless. Quite elaborate instructions and techniques have been worked out for this purpose.
3. Rechaka (Exhalation)
The third stage, Exhalation, is called Rechaka. Like inhalation, it too should be smooth and continuous, though often the speed of exhaling is different from that of inhaling. Normally, muscular energy is used for inhaling whereas exhaling consists merely of relaxing the tensed muscles. Such relaxing forces air from the lungs as they return to a relaxed condition. Muscular effort may also be used for both inhalation and exhalation. You can force air out with muscular effort like when you sit or stand erect with your abdominal muscles under constant control. When you deliberately smooths the course of your breathing and hold the cycle in regular or definitely irregular patterns, you are also likely to use muscular energy at each stage, including the pauses. However, in a condition of complete relaxation, you should expect to exert some effort for inhalation.
4. Bahya Kumbhaka (Pause After Exhaling) Empty Pause
The Fourth Stage of Breathing, the pause after exhaling, is also called kumbhaka, especially when the stoppage is deliberate or prolonged. This empty pause completes the cycle which terminates as the pause ends and a new inhalation begins.
To take that a step further, I began looking into meditation techniques at www.freemeditations.com. I was extremely pleased to find that the introduction to the site exactly reflected everything that I have learned and come to believe:
"The aim of free meditations is to bring inner peace within our self and the world in a positive and spiritual way. The world is not a peaceful place and within every soul there is some form of tension and stress. It is therefore essential to create positive and peaceful thoughts to bring peace to our mind. Meditation is one of the best methods to bring about transformation and nurture the natural qualities within.
The best way that we can create that change is to change our thoughts from being negative to positive. The positive discovery about meditation is that we are focusing within our self and becoming free of negativity. Meditation techniques simply involve a process of transforming yourself, your thoughts, and recognizing the negative thoughts, and changing them into positive and peaceful thoughts.
The best attitude towards meditation is to be very patient as the mind does not always want to focus. Having a sense of expectation towards positive results can create uncomfortable pressure and thus take away the enjoyment of the experience. By practicing meditation regularly, the person whom meditates gains a wonderful sense of the self.
Meditation is a self healing process, any form of stress is a sign of our negative thinking and Dis ease within our mind. If we don't attend to disease in the mind we may find that chronic stress can lead to disease of the body."
This site completely agreed with everything that I have been preaching about changing thoughts to reach happiness and calm. As I read on, the site offers links, instructions, and guides to dozens of meditation styles. After reading about several, I decided that Mindfulness Meditation was the style that was right for me. A lot of the others had extreme religious ties (which I am not yet looking for because truly, I don't know what I am. I like some aspects of Buddhism, but not all. I believe in finding spirituality through nature. Part of me thinks I'm agnostic, but part of me thinks that is a cop-out. Bottom line is, I am not ready for a meditation connected with a specific religion. Part of this journey is finding out what religion means to me.), or asked you to think about certain things while you meditated. Mindfulness meditation asks you to focus on breathing, and consciously freeing your body of stress. Here is the complete guide:
"Mindfulness Meditation
Equipping individuals to deal with stressful situations by accepting them and being aware of them, Mindfulness Meditation is an effective and miraculous technique of meditation against life’s problems and situations.
True, stress, anger, disappointments, frustrations, and other negative emotions adversely affect our minds and even bodies. Such negative emotions and actions should be dealt effectively and set-backs should be accepted without injuring our health. Mindfulness Meditation is that medicine which helps to deal with negative emotions and situations in the most effective manner.
Mindfulness Meditation, also referred to as Insightful Meditation, requires or allows individuals to be aware of their surroundings, to develop a sense of sensitivity in perceiving every moment, and enabling them to accept stressful situations, instead of avoiding them. By being aware of the inner state of our minds during Mindfulness Meditation, we can accept difficult situations in our lives without much resistance.
Through the practice of Meditation, we can train our minds to achieve a state of tranquility, without being disturbed by outside forces. Mindfulness Meditation helps in training and developing the strengths of the mind to achieve this peacefulness.
One can practice Mindfulness Meditation by sitting in an appropriate upright position, cross-legged, and focusing on our breath or anything else, such as mental and physical processes which help us in becoming aware of our present thought patterns and inner state.
The practice of Mindfulness Meditation focuses our attention on our thoughts, actions, and present moments non-judgmentally. It does not encourage evaluating or thinking on our past actions and neither does it take our thoughts to the uncertain future. Mindfulness Meditation helps and trains our mind from getting distracted by outside disturbances and enables us to focus our thoughts and relax the mind.
Mindfulness Meditation can be conducted or practiced through informal and formal techniques. While formal Mindfulness Meditation involves Yoga, in which there is a control and awareness of breathing patterns with appropriate body movements, informal Mindfulness Meditation includes taking into account each experience in life with relish and enjoyment.
Mindfulness Meditation is a technique of introspection or insight through which we can obtain a clear picture of our thoughts and inner states, focus our thoughts, and even train our mind to perceive things and situations more effectively."
I plan to practice ten minutes of mindful meditation per day, isolating myself in a quiet, dark space, and clearing my mind. I will focus on low breathing and consciously changing my thoughts and energy to positivity. Hopefully this will help me find optimal success and make the best choices in college.
Honestly, I went into Senior Project with the expectation that I would spend 5 weeks learning how to work out correctly, and walk away with a better body after getting out of shape with my injury. I expected to make a plan as to show to stay in shape and eat right in college. There was nothing very concrete. That, I believe, was a complete blessing because it allowed my project to really take on a life of its own and lead me down a path that I never foresaw. This new path focused in on listening to my body--not just the physical aspect, but the emotional as well. When I felt stressed or upset, instead of wallowing in it or falling deeper into a hole, I examined why I was experiencing those feelings. Most of the time it was because of the energy that I was putting out. I am the master of my own being. If I focus on being happy, I will be. Over the course of this project, I have developed the skill of confronting problems head on rather than letting them fester. This has really done wonders to improve my relationships with friends and family which is a great blessing in these last few months that I am around my house.
The idea of living holistically is especially appealing to me because it acknowledges how much being emotionally out of balance can affect other areas of my life. When I go to college, it will be an extremely high stress environment, and I will be surrounded by a lot of people making poor choices. It will be up to me to make sure that I stay true to myself and don't fall into that bad decision making.
In order to help me stay calm and centered, one major thing I plan to practice in college is Yogic breathing. To better explain this, I looked to http://www.abc-of-yoga.com/pranayama/. It said:
"Pranayama - The Art of Yoga Breathing
When the Breath wanders, the mind is unsteady, but when the Breath is still, so is the mind still." - Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Breathing is life. It is one of our most vital functions. One of the Five Principles of Yoga is Pranayama or Breathing Exercise which promotes proper breathing. In a Yogic point of view, proper breathing is to bring more oxygen to the blood and to the brain, and to control Prana or the vital life energy. Pranayama Yoga also goes hand in hand with the Asanas. The union of these two Yogic Principles is considered as the highest form of purification and self-discipline, covering both mind and body.
High Breathing
The Complete Breath High Breathing refers to what takes place primarily in the upper part of the chest and lungs. This has been called "Clavicular Breathing" or "Collarbone Breathing" and involves raising the ribs, collarbone and shoulders. Persons with Asthma, a tight belt, a full stomach or who otherwise become short of breath tend to resort to high breathing. One may deliberately draw in his abdomen and force its contents upward against the diaphragm and into the chest cavity in order to cause High Breathing. High Breathing is naturally shallow and a larger percentage of it fails to reach the alveoli and enter into usable gaseous exchange.
This is the least desirable form of breathing since the upper lobes of the lungs are used and these have only a small air capacity. Also the upper rib cage is fairly rigid, so not much expansion of the ribs can take place. A great deal of Muscular energy is expended in pressing against the diaphragm and in keeping the ribs and shoulders raised abnormally high. This form of breathing is quite common, especially among Women, probably because they often wear tight clothes around the waist which prevents the far superior abdominal breathing. It's a common cause of digestive, stomach, constipation and gynecological problems.
Low Breathing
Low breathing refers to what takes place primarily in the lower part of the chest and lungs. It is far more effective than high or mid breathing. It consists mainly in moving the abdomen in and out and in changing the position of the diaphragm through such movements. Because of this, it is sometimes called "Abdominal Breathing" and "Diaphragmic Breathing." Sedentary persons who habitually bend forward while they read or write tend to slump into low breathing. Whenever one slouches or slackens his shoulder and chest muscles, he normally adopts low breathing. We often use low breathing when sleeping. But whenever we become physically active, as in walking, running or lifting, we are likely to find abdominal breathing inadequate for our needs. To do low breathing, when you inhale you push the stomach gently forwards with no strain. When exhaling you allow the stomach to return to its normal position.
This Type of Breathing is far superior to high or mid breathing for four reasons: (1) more air is taken in when inhaling, due to greater movement of the lungs and the fact that the lower lobes of the lungs have a larger capacity than the upper lobes; (2) the diaphragm acts like a second Heart. Its piston-like movements expand the base of the lungs, allowing them to suck in more venous blood- the increase in the venous circulation improves the general Circulation; (3) the abdominal organs are massaged by the up and down movements of the diaphragm; and (4) low breathing has a beneficial effect on the solar plexus, a very important nerve center.
Middle Breathing
Middle Breathing is a little harder to describe since the limits of variability are more indefinite. Yet, it is breathing in which mainly the middle parts of the lungs are filled with air. It exhibits some of the characteristics of both high breathing, since the ribs rise and the chest expands somewhat, and low breathing, since the diaphragm moves up and down and the abdomen in and out a little. It has been called Thoracic or Intercoastal or Rib Breathing. But too often it also remains a shallow type of breathing. With this form of breathing, the ribs and chest are expanded sideways. This is better than high breathing, but far inferior to low breathing and the Yoga Complete Breath Technique.
The Complete Breath
Most of us use three or four Kinds of Breathing. These may be called high, low and middle breathing and complete breathing. The complete breath is a combination of high breathing, mid breathing and low breathing.
The Complete Breath, as defined by Yoga, involves the entire Respiratory System and not only includes the portions of the lungs used in high, low and middle breathing, but expands the lungs so as to take in more air than the amounts inhaled by all of these Three Kinds of Breathing together when they are employed in shallow breathing. The complete breath is not just deep breathing; it is the deepest possible breathing. Not only does one raise his shoulders, collarbone and ribs, as in high breathing, and also extend his abdomen and lower his diaphragm, as in low breathing, but he does both as much as is needed to expand his lungs to their fullest capacity.
The Yoga Complete Breath is the basic technique of all the different types of Yoga Breathing, and therefore should be mastered before you learn the specific breathing exercises. It brings the whole lung capacity into play and is the basis of the three specific breathing exercises. Keep in mind that this Type of Breathing is only done when you do the breathing exercises. The rest of the time you should be doing low breathing by pushing the stomach out slightly when you inhale, and then just letting the stomach fall back to its original position when you exhale. Also, make sure you are breathing through your nose and not your mouth.
The Four Stages of Breathing in Yoga
1. Puraka (Inhalation)
A single inhalation is termed Puraka. It is a process of drawing in air and is expected to be smooth and continuous. If a person should pause one or more times during the process of a single inhaling, the process might be spoken of as a broken Puraka rather than as a series of Purakas.
2. Abhyantara Kumbhaka (Pause After Inhaling) Full Pause
Kumbhaka consists of deliberate stoppage of flow of air and retention of the air in the lungs, without any movement of lungs or muscles or any part of the body and without any incipient movements. A beginner may experiment by using some force to keep such pause motionless. Quite elaborate instructions and techniques have been worked out for this purpose.
3. Rechaka (Exhalation)
The third stage, Exhalation, is called Rechaka. Like inhalation, it too should be smooth and continuous, though often the speed of exhaling is different from that of inhaling. Normally, muscular energy is used for inhaling whereas exhaling consists merely of relaxing the tensed muscles. Such relaxing forces air from the lungs as they return to a relaxed condition. Muscular effort may also be used for both inhalation and exhalation. You can force air out with muscular effort like when you sit or stand erect with your abdominal muscles under constant control. When you deliberately smooths the course of your breathing and hold the cycle in regular or definitely irregular patterns, you are also likely to use muscular energy at each stage, including the pauses. However, in a condition of complete relaxation, you should expect to exert some effort for inhalation.
4. Bahya Kumbhaka (Pause After Exhaling) Empty Pause
The Fourth Stage of Breathing, the pause after exhaling, is also called kumbhaka, especially when the stoppage is deliberate or prolonged. This empty pause completes the cycle which terminates as the pause ends and a new inhalation begins.
To take that a step further, I began looking into meditation techniques at www.freemeditations.com. I was extremely pleased to find that the introduction to the site exactly reflected everything that I have learned and come to believe:
"The aim of free meditations is to bring inner peace within our self and the world in a positive and spiritual way. The world is not a peaceful place and within every soul there is some form of tension and stress. It is therefore essential to create positive and peaceful thoughts to bring peace to our mind. Meditation is one of the best methods to bring about transformation and nurture the natural qualities within.
The best way that we can create that change is to change our thoughts from being negative to positive. The positive discovery about meditation is that we are focusing within our self and becoming free of negativity. Meditation techniques simply involve a process of transforming yourself, your thoughts, and recognizing the negative thoughts, and changing them into positive and peaceful thoughts.
The best attitude towards meditation is to be very patient as the mind does not always want to focus. Having a sense of expectation towards positive results can create uncomfortable pressure and thus take away the enjoyment of the experience. By practicing meditation regularly, the person whom meditates gains a wonderful sense of the self.
Meditation is a self healing process, any form of stress is a sign of our negative thinking and Dis ease within our mind. If we don't attend to disease in the mind we may find that chronic stress can lead to disease of the body."
This site completely agreed with everything that I have been preaching about changing thoughts to reach happiness and calm. As I read on, the site offers links, instructions, and guides to dozens of meditation styles. After reading about several, I decided that Mindfulness Meditation was the style that was right for me. A lot of the others had extreme religious ties (which I am not yet looking for because truly, I don't know what I am. I like some aspects of Buddhism, but not all. I believe in finding spirituality through nature. Part of me thinks I'm agnostic, but part of me thinks that is a cop-out. Bottom line is, I am not ready for a meditation connected with a specific religion. Part of this journey is finding out what religion means to me.), or asked you to think about certain things while you meditated. Mindfulness meditation asks you to focus on breathing, and consciously freeing your body of stress. Here is the complete guide:
"Mindfulness Meditation
Equipping individuals to deal with stressful situations by accepting them and being aware of them, Mindfulness Meditation is an effective and miraculous technique of meditation against life’s problems and situations.
True, stress, anger, disappointments, frustrations, and other negative emotions adversely affect our minds and even bodies. Such negative emotions and actions should be dealt effectively and set-backs should be accepted without injuring our health. Mindfulness Meditation is that medicine which helps to deal with negative emotions and situations in the most effective manner.
Mindfulness Meditation, also referred to as Insightful Meditation, requires or allows individuals to be aware of their surroundings, to develop a sense of sensitivity in perceiving every moment, and enabling them to accept stressful situations, instead of avoiding them. By being aware of the inner state of our minds during Mindfulness Meditation, we can accept difficult situations in our lives without much resistance.
Through the practice of Meditation, we can train our minds to achieve a state of tranquility, without being disturbed by outside forces. Mindfulness Meditation helps in training and developing the strengths of the mind to achieve this peacefulness.
One can practice Mindfulness Meditation by sitting in an appropriate upright position, cross-legged, and focusing on our breath or anything else, such as mental and physical processes which help us in becoming aware of our present thought patterns and inner state.
The practice of Mindfulness Meditation focuses our attention on our thoughts, actions, and present moments non-judgmentally. It does not encourage evaluating or thinking on our past actions and neither does it take our thoughts to the uncertain future. Mindfulness Meditation helps and trains our mind from getting distracted by outside disturbances and enables us to focus our thoughts and relax the mind.
Mindfulness Meditation can be conducted or practiced through informal and formal techniques. While formal Mindfulness Meditation involves Yoga, in which there is a control and awareness of breathing patterns with appropriate body movements, informal Mindfulness Meditation includes taking into account each experience in life with relish and enjoyment.
Mindfulness Meditation is a technique of introspection or insight through which we can obtain a clear picture of our thoughts and inner states, focus our thoughts, and even train our mind to perceive things and situations more effectively."
I plan to practice ten minutes of mindful meditation per day, isolating myself in a quiet, dark space, and clearing my mind. I will focus on low breathing and consciously changing my thoughts and energy to positivity. Hopefully this will help me find optimal success and make the best choices in college.
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