Although Joseph Pilates did not achieve fame in his lifetime, his work was practiced and carried on by a small group of devotees to his methods, for decades, before the recent explosion of Pilates exercise programs and Pilates yoga. Today, Pilates’ form of yoga is at the forefront of exercise and self discipline regimes. Pilates yoga is especially popular with dancers and athletes, as well as celebrities who’ve caught on to the superior benefits of Pilates’ methodology.

Pilates yoga requires an instructor to have expertise in human anatomy and movement, physiology and the principles of yoga. In order to evaluate the knowledge and integrity of the yoga instructor, several yoga organizations offer online information on choosing a qualified yoga instructor. There are even certification programs which require months or even years of study.

If you choose to pursue a Pilates oriented yoga program, you’ll want a well qualified person as your instructor. Be aware that some “certified” instructors may have as little as a day’s or one weekend’s training. In order to gain maximum benefit of a Pilates yoga class, look for a teacher with at least the minimum certification of 250 hours of training. An instructor with a 500 hour training certification will likely prove a good choice.

With the current popularity of the Pilates programs, you need to be careful in choosing an instructor, as certification programs are not standardized and vary widely in both standards and depth of training a certification may represent. So how do you make an intelligent assessment of your Pilates yoga instructor?

The Pilates Method Alliance (www.pilatesmethodalliance.com) has a database allowing you to search for qualified Pilates instructors in your locale. In addition, they give you a run down on the profile and standards of a qualified instructor, as well as tips on interviewing your potential instructor.

Another resource is the non-profit Yoga Alliance group (www.yogaalliance.org), dedicated to serving the yoga community with resources and their own searchable database of Pilates yoga instructors meeting their strict standards of qualifications.

Last night my upper back, just between my shoulder blade and spine was throbbing. Now this could be due to and injury or pulled muscle, but I know it’s not. It’s definitely nothing new for me. I have had that same soreness on and off for years. It is where stress builds. You may encounter something similar. This is a common area to acquire pains if you’re hacking away on a keyboard all day long. Those upper-back and shoulder areas are very vulnerable. Now, what do I do as far as stress relieving goes? After all, I can’t just deal with the pains for a good week until they’re gone. I’m sick of that. This is why I take a different route and choose to go to a massage therapist. She knows all about muscle aches and stress relieving. Her gentle hands knead those knots right out of my back muscles. This then speeds along the healing process. In not time, I’m back to my old self again. If you’ve never tried a massage for stress relieving, I highly recommend it.

What about acupuncture? This is another great route to stress relief. One thing I will encourage is that you go to a reputable place for this therapy. It’s never prudent to try acupuncture on yourself if you don’t know what you’re doing. This therapy consists of needles penetrating your flesh. Therefore it’s to be left to the professionals. I personally have heard wonderful things about acupuncture and its benefits concerning stress relieving and allergies. And finally, don’t forget good old-fashioned R&R. We all need plenty of rest and downtime if we expect to avoid the stress monster.

There are many great health supplements out there, but you do have to be careful what you take. Many think that because something saying ‘natural’ on the bottle that they can just take it without really doing any research into what they are putting into their body. You can get someone in the store to help you decide what health supplements you may need, but that does not mean that they are safe for everyone to take whenever they think they need them. Most of the ‘natural’ supplements you find on the shelves have not been tested, and may be unsafe to take. Ephedra was something that many people took before it was abruptly pulled from the shelves due to deaths.

Some health supplements might interact with prescription medications, and that can have a very bad outcome. There are some that will cause a reaction that can lead to death. Not all things that grow in nature are meant to go into our bodies when we are taking something else. I have seen many stories on my local news about people who have taken natural health supplements and have then ended up in the hospital fighting for life.

If you are taking anything, make sure you talk to your doctor before you think about buying any health supplements. They will be able to tell you what you can take and what you should avoid. Make sure you listen to what they say, and read up on anything that you want to take. Your doctor might even have suggestions on what health supplements he or she thinks will do you the most good, and ones that you might want to consider taking along with a good exercise and eating program.

Before you go out and buy an exercise rubber band, however, you should think about your workout routine. The fact is that there are an almost unlimited number of gadgets that you can use to exercise, and all of them will work pretty well. Exercise rubber bands are no better than many of the other ones, even if they can be used with more versatility then some.

To really get full advantage from an exercise rubber band, you need to use it in conjunction with a machine. Some of the popular exercise machines, like the Bowflex bodybuilding machine, use exercise rubber bands in their design. Using one by itself, however, can only give you minimal benefit. You probably would do better with a set of free weights, if you are only going to have one tool for exercising. This is a good place to start.

Of course, for physical therapy, the exercise rubber band is almost indispensable. Light resistance can be obtained from exercise rubber bands, which is perfect for people who are just starting to regain their strength. When a patient is at the point where they have very little mobility and want to build more, an exercise rubber band can do wonders if administered properly by a trained professional. This kind of exercise rubber band, however, is much different than the kind you buy in a store for working out. These is much lower force, and it is designed with specific exercises in mind. Nonetheless, the principles are the same.

One of the great things about exercise rubber bands is that they are very cheap. You can usually by an exercise rubber band for a fraction of the price of a weight set, and it can fulfill many of the same functions. It might be worth it to try one out. How else would you ever know if it would fit into your routine?

Sitting in a wheelchair for long periods of time can cause annoying restlessness and be quite uncomfortable for those persons who are disabled. It’s important to keep the body moving and make exercise in your wheelchair a daily part of your fitness program, regardless of your disability.

Wheelchair exercise will help increase strength, flexibility, improve mobility, strengthen the heart and lungs, and help control weight.

Before any exercise session, it’s always a good idea to warm up, stretch and cool down for about ten minutes before and after workouts. Start slowly and work up to more weight and then to more challenging exercises. An upper body workout would include exercises for the arms, torso, neck, and shoulders.

Everyone, depending on the disability, has a unique situation, so consult with your doctor first to determine which exercises are better for you.

There are two basic types of wheelchair exercise that will be important to know for your workout — resistance training and strength training.

The first type of wheelchair exercise is resistance training. It uses large, stretchy rubber bands called resistance bands. Wrap the bands securely around a door, pole, arm of your wheelchair, or other stable object. Now pull the bands towards you or away from you to work your muscles. You can use the bands to do arm and leg extensions, shoulder rotations and pull downs.

The second type of wheelchair exercise is strength training. This is done by lifting free weights or dumbbells. If you don’t have free weights or dumbbells you can use cans of food. Look around. Weigh them if you can. Start with 1-2 pound weights and work up slowly Lift while you are watching TV if you like.

The benefits of strength training include the ability to perform daily activities, like pushing wheelchairs, carrying items and transferring. Many wheelchair users have an inefficient ‘push’ and strengthening the muscles involved will greatly help.

If resistance training or strength training is impossible for some reason or if you would like to supplement it, get a video or DVD that is especially for keeping fit and exercising while one is in a sitting position.

Remember to always keep a positive attitude. Use discipline to get into a regular exercise and fitness program you’ve created for yourself and continue to do it. Set goals and rewards for yourself. Don’t do anything you know you shouldn’t. Start slowly. Keep your eye on the end result. A good fitness and wheelchair exercise program, regardless of the disability, can significantly improve your health and increase mobility for you and others who are disabled.

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For more information on wheelchair exercise and travel tips, see Helen Hecker R.N.’s http://www.AllAboutDisabledTravel.com which specializes in travel, transportation, exercise, sports, recreation with tips, help, advice and resources including information on keeping fit while you sit DVD

Boasts a track record for helping those who normally wouldn’t exercise much — people with various mobility impairments, people with Multiple Sclerosis, Arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, stroke survivors, Asthmatics and others — get some of the benefits of exercise. It’s also touted for people with Osteoporosis or as a prevention for it.

Based on the theory that by disrupting stability in a minor way, both large and small muscles get a workout so overall muscle strength and performance is improved. Increase flexibility and range of motion, reduce pain especially in the lower back, fat burning, improve blood circulation and reduce joint and ligament pain. Further Whole-body vibration increases bone mass and growth hormone levels according to studies posted on the company’s website.

On a basic, neural level, all the muscles –small and big- work to counter the vibration. It’s reducing swelling and overall water retention. It exercises muscles to maximum capacity without putting any strain on joints, making it ideal for those with specific medical conditions.

“Like a normal, vigorous workout, it leaves persons both energized and physically tired. People sleep better. Have less pain and feel more relaxed’. Some of these people can even stand for a very short time and some of them hope that it will help achieve their big goal” says Ms. Nelke van Aspert, Managing Director,
Power-Plate Middle East.

How it works?
“By placing feet on the platform, immediately, a vibration runs through your feet, up into your legs, your hips, clear to the top of your head. After exercising you will feel stronger than before. Power Plate produces a 3 Dimensional vibration through which energy is transferred to the whole body. This mechanical stimulus produces a stretch reflex which can vary from 30 to 50 times per second, resulting in muscles constantly contracting very vigorously. Exercise makes the body fatigue, rest allows it to recover. By repeating this process, the body adjusts to the effort, resulting in an increase in physical performance.”

The theory behind whole-body vibration came out of Russia in the 1970s. Trainers chasing Olympic gold said it worked, which led to research by the Russian space program. Now NASA is reportedly doing its own research with the Power-Plate because space travel and its zero-gravity conditions seems to degenerate bone and muscle mass, which both rely on weight-bearing activity to maintain them.

Further Power-Plate claims that “100 percent of the muscle fibers contract,” leading to a host of benefits. It’s currently extremely popular in Europe, USA, Australia and Japan and is quick picking up steam in the Middle East, India and Africa.

It is worth noting that not all multiple sclerosis sufferers are affected by heat sensitivity. If you are one of the ones not affected, you are definitely luckier than I am!

Things to avoid

If you are one of the heat sensitive multiple sclerosis victims, there are some things you should be conscious to avoid whenever possible. Some of these things are:

• Being outside on hot days
• Hot Showers
• Over Exertion
• Saunas
• Hot Tubs
• Illness that causes Fever

Essentially, the trick is to avoid doing things that elevate your core body temperature. Even a small rise in your core body temperature can trigger flare-ups of MS symptoms. The good news is that these flare-ups are usually temporary and pass on their own, after you give yourself time to cool down.

Increases in body temperature due to fever and illness are sometimes known to cause real exacerbations that are not temporary. They can be genuine flare-ups that cause a worsening of symptoms that may be permanent and be a true progression in the MS. This is, of course the worse thing for we MS sufferers as we certainly do not want a progression of our illness!

What Happens if You Overheat?

Since MS is so individual in different people, there is no specific set of symptoms that will be brought on by heat in every multiple sclerosis sufferer. Some of the typical symptoms that are reported are things like weakness, numbness, vertigo, body aches, blurred vision, tremors and even impaired cognitive function.

I know that I have personally been known to overdo it when working in the yard. On two occasions, I have found myself with the choice of falling or sitting down NOW. My muscles seem to just refuse to work, my body gets very weak and I also get very dizzy.

One of the early warning signs for me is when I’m outside in the summer, it’s 95 humid, Georgia degrees here in Atlanta, and suddenly I’m covered with chill bumps. About that time, I figure it’s time for me to take a break and cool off.

What Can I Do to Avoid This?

When you have MS, it is important that you do everything you can to avoid getting overheated. I’ll give you some ideas on how to remain more comfortable. When you’re at home, make use of the air conditioner or at least fans to help keep you cool. If you’re going out, try to choose places to go that are air conditioned and cool, such as shopping malls, grocery stores, restaurants and movie theaters. If you want to exercise, try to go swimming in a nice cool pool! That will allow you to exercise and still be kept cool.

When you know you’re going to be out in the heat, there are numerous things that you can do to help yourself stay cool. Take advantage of available cooling products such as cooling vests, cooling neck wraps and cooling bandanas. Also, try to wear seasonally appropriate, loose fitting, light weight clothing. Be sure to keep yourself well hydrated and drink plenty of fluids, especially cold, icy drinks.

Last, but not least, try to avoid exposure to illnesses that may cause you to have a fever and sickness. It’s not always easy to avoid sick people and you might not always be able to. Even so, you can do things to help. Two major things are to wash your hands several times a day and get an annual flu shot. The handwashing helps keep your hand free of germs that you might transfer to your face. And the flu shot??? Well, let’s just say you really need to try to avoid a nasty case of the flu!

Now, with all of this in mind, remember to take care of yourself and BE COOL!