Acupressure (no needles) and its parent of acupuncture (needles) from Traditional Chinese medicine, has been around for a few thousand years. I have been leaning and practicing acupressure for almost 40 years with great results.
I will be speaking next week at the University Club of Winter Park, about the benefits of this type of self massage. Headaches, low energy, faintness, stress, general & specific pain, and restless leg syndrome are conditions that I will teach specific techniques to better manage.
If interested in attending this FREE event, please contact me at 407-234-0119 for more details. Class is limited so let me know as soon as possible if serious about joining us for an hour of learning.
University Park Club
841 N. Park Avenue, WP
2-3pm, January 13th
Be well, get healthy, be wise.
I am currently available for health and wellness lectures and classes for group, & private instruction in the Orlando, Florida area. Mind and Body Exercises on Google: https://posts.gle/aD47Qo
Why do food companies seem to have more rights than consumers, when it comes to disclosing what ingredients are in particular foods? The FDA loosened food labeling requirements mid-2020, with the stated goal of providing regulatory flexibility, to lessen the impact of supply chain disruptions of product availability related to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Reports show that the FDA is actually partially funded by the same companies that they are tasked with regulating, raising concerns with conflicts of interest. It is almost always best to do the due diligence and find where this information is coming from and find reputable sources as there is so much information available to the public today that can and will support whatever ones beliefs and viewpoints tend to lean towards.
The US government at its relative public health agencies, save severely lost the trust of the American people. Medical experts that have an audience, can start to rebuild trust, by just putting themselves out there with some transparency, honesty, humility, and empathy regarding these topics at hand. For example, if a scientist is interviewed as an expert on a particular topic, have them tell their story of being a director for the FDA and now being a board member for Pfizer, instead of people Googling this fact, seeing it maybe as a conflict of interest and then formulating their own conspiracy theory from it. Similarly, if the FDA is going to report that they took 108 days to review documents for licensing of the Pfizer covid19 vaccine and will honor a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, don’t take 55 years to fully release the information to the group of scientists that made the request. Leaders and experts need to stop creating the perfect storm of events that will undoubtedly lead to conspiracy theories and consequently, more vaccine resistance.
I am currently available for health and wellness lectures and classes for group, & private instruction in the Orlando, Florida area. Mind and Body Exercises on Google: https://posts.gle/aD47Qo
I have learned a bit about energetics over the years from my massage therapists as well as my martial arts/qigong teachers. During a massage, energy is depleted by the practitioner from the physical effort as well as the mental energy in trying to help and often heal the patient. This is very similar to emergency room doctors, nurses and others that can find themselves very run down or ill, while attempting to treat others. My understanding is that you can only give out what you yourself have an abundance of. If massage therapists and various other health-related professionals continue to draw from their well (life force, qi, prana) but fail to replenish it, they will soon have their own health issues. Exercise, diet and lifestyle choices all affect the practitioners’ own well-being to replenish or retain their innate life force.
My understanding is that it really comes down to any occupation or activity that one individual loses some level of energy while trying to help another. It can be a parent taking care of a child; caretaker of a parent, teachers, etc. It is all about intent and energy expelled and received. This can lead to the topic of energy vampires and energy suns. We have probably all meet people who when walking into a room, drain the energy of all in their company. Or conversely, the person who comes in and brings up everyone energy and puts a smile on everyone’s’ face. Yin and yang in all things!
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Be well, get healthy, be wise.
I am currently available for health and wellness lectures and classes for group, & private instruction in the Orlando, Florida area. Mind and Body Exercises on Google: https://posts.gle/aD47Qo
I have found that in order to manage posture issues, it helps to have some type of physical exercise program that is geared towards maintaining symmetry while also providing strength, flexibility, control, etc. Examples would be be Yoga, tai chi, Pilates, kettle bells, and some weight training (with lighter weights). Most people don’t realize that they have a posture issue until they have pain and discomfort. It is similar to have tires on one’s car that are out of alignment, where the owner sees and feels their car bouncing around so they replace the balding tires. A few months later the problem returns and they again replace the tires, but the alignment is the root problem. I know a root cause of postural issues is sometimes the lack of flexibility and muscle tone to keep the spine and associated joints and muscles in the proper alignment.
I have had issues with my posture due to an old knee injury affecting other parts of my body, causing me to pursue TCM, chiropractic, yoga, massage, rolfing, martial arts and maybe a few others. I attached a graphic I produced a while back showing what I have learned from my teachers and other CAM practitioners.
From my past experiences, many people lift weights with the goal of becoming stronger or cosmetically more “in shape” which are both admirable results to pursue. I have found that training with lighter weights, with exercises that work more than just the main muscles groups, can actually provide better overall body strength as well as flexibility, control, reflex, speed and eventually power. This latter concept can often lead to better posture and consequently less chronic pain issues.
Depending upon the trainer, instructor and/or practitioner heavy weight training is often geared towards the main muscle groups of the pectorals, abdominals, quadriceps, glutes, biceps, triceps, etc. Some exercise programs with lighter weights, wrist/ankle weights, medicine balls, kettle bells, etc. are sometime referred to as functional training, where the movement of the body with the weights for resistance is more of the focus than just trying to lift a certain amount of weight.
From my experience, staying active and even more specifically being engaged in exercise methods that not only stretch but encourage strength and flexibility are key components of managing chronic pain. Many types of pain relief methods whether massage, pharmaceuticals, heat/cold therapy, acupuncture, etc. often address the symptoms of the root cause of the pain. Chronic pain issues of the spine can be relieved but in order to find long-term benefits there needs to be some muscle tone to hold the proper alignments of the muscles, bones, fascia, nerves etc. in place. Flexibility is needed to allow a comfortable range of motion for joint mobility. So to sum it up, pain relief methods can help, but long-term benefits come from strength, stability, flexibility and range of motion, or so I have been taught and experienced.
Be well, get healthy, be wise.
I am currently available for health and wellness lectures and classes for group, & private instruction in the Orlando, Florida area. Mind and Body Exercises on Google: https://posts.gle/aD47Qo
I posted this article of mine almost 1 year ago. I thought it would be interesting to re-post and re-visit to contemplate if much has changed in the last year regarding the health of our nation.
In the words of Dr. Jerome Adams, the former surgeon general of the United States, “You know what will make you and your community healthier but still, you choose not to do it.” He goes on to state that 7 out of 10 of 18-24-year olds are ineligible for military service. They cannot pass the physical, can’t meet educational requirements, or have a criminal history. In years past, recess and physical education were part of the school day from kindergarten through elementary school. High school students had PE every school day until graduation. Today if students are not involved in school or extracurricular sports, few make the time or commitment to stay physically active. Unhealthy kids quickly turn into unhealthy adults. The health of our people is directly affecting the safety of our nation.
Ask an average citizen in the US if their health and their family’s is a priority and the response will be something like, “Of course our health is my top priority and we have the healthiest country in the world!” No, not true for both statements based upon data from seemingly reputable data outlets. The Bloomberg Global Health Index for 2020, ranked the US #35 in the world for overall quality of health but ranks #1 for healthcare spending. The US spends more than $3.4 trillion annually on health care, more than any other country. Made obvious from the data is that investing more money in healthcare, does not necessarily make a country or the person healthier. Money does not change our health. We need to improve life expectancy and other indicators of health with better education along with a change in mindset. If someone has great healthcare coverage but eats junk food every day, does not exercise regularly and has a negative outlook, they will probably experience health issues sooner than later.
As a nation, we eat an extremely high amount of low-quality junk food and then sit for hours per day. We hope to efficiently digest low quality food that will eventually often cause illnesses and even death. More than 36.3% of youth aged 2-19 eat fast food on a given day.This is complicated even more so with the sedentary lifestyle and laissez-faire attitude towards individuals accepting responsibility for their own health. Americans meeting the CDC guideline for aerobic and muscle strengthening exercises is only 23.2% as of 2018.These factors help contribute to the increase of obesity over the last 60 years. Obesity is a key factor in many health issues based on data from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and other reputable sources. In 2017–2018, the age-adjusted prevalence of obesity in adults was 42.4%. Stats for kids (not shown) are just as appalling. These numbers are truly pathetic. Further issues to discuss would be how many manage their nutrition by monitoring their intake of sugar, salt, trans fat, alcohol, and other consumables? What about managing stress and emotional health? The US economy needs our citizens to support the fast-food industry and consequently gives the health care industry an overabundance of its own customers. It seems as if the US wants its people to be healthy enough to work, but not too healthy as to put the fast-food and healthcare providers out of business. This is our reality that many choose to deny.
The leading causes of death in the US are all very much influenced by our diet, our sedentary lifestyle, lack of exercise and excessive sitting. Also contributing is our attitude towards managing stress or lack thereof. Thinking that more is always better or if we are not stressed, we are not doing enough. Heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and respiratory issues are all leading causes of death by far. Each of these ailments can be much less if we made it a priority to do so.
Another health issue is our obsession with following the news and the mental stress that can develop from it. Media in the US, love it or hate it, usually focuses mostly on reporting politics, crime and mostly the negative aspects of our society. The phrase “If it bleeds it leads” shows America’s fascination with negative news. This year so far has been mostly the tragedy of Covid19. The media, the government, the entertainment industry and healthcare leaders fail to promote personal responsibility for the individuals’ own actions relative to diet, exercise and lifestyle, and how that can affect on a much broader level the health of our nation. Instead the strong focus is mostly upon wearing masks and social distancing as a way to make an unhealthy nation, somehow immune to disease and illnesses that affect most those that have multiple health issues to begin with. Please understand that even typically well and health conscious people do get sick also. Athletes and health enthusiasts can get sick too. However, people that are active usually recover faster though.
We need to honestly look at the root causes for our health issues, instead of looking to politics or others to blame for our own personal accountability. Blaming others will not make us healthier. We are where we are, because of our choices. I love pizza but I should not be eating it every day of the week. Some TV viewing is fine but 4-7 hours a day is a bit much no? We need to own our health.
Our actions support the data that we do not truly put exercise, nutrition and stress as high priorities deserving more action than mere conversation. Healthy living and habits are a choice and a mindset that we as Americans as a whole, fail terribly at practicing. It does not need to be this way. There are things that can move us forward to become a healthier nation.
The 5 Pillars of Health
Eating healthier can be achieved by managing less intake of junk foods, sugar, and salt, as well as reasonable amounts of alcohol. More fruit and vegetables are healthier snacks that have many nutritional rewards. Become more active by getting up and off the couch, stepping away from the PC, TV, smartphone, and other electronic addictions. Better sleep is a major immune system booster and can be earned by being more active during the day. Relieve stress through exercise, meditation, or breathing deeper and more deliberately, or take more breaks from the news and social media. Be nice to others because what you put out, you receive back. Basically, get moving more, eat healthier foods, sleep better, stress less and be a nicer person. Enjoy life but know your limits and take all things in moderation.
Fryar, Cheryl, et al. Fast Food Intake Among Children and Adolescents in the United States, 2015–2018, NCHS Data Brief No. 375, August 2020, www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db375.htm
Hales, Craig, et al. Prevalence of Obesity and Severe Obesity Among Adults: United States, 2017–2018, NCHS Data Brief No. 360, February 2020. www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db360.htm
Qigong, tai chi, baguazhang, and yoga are not the only methods that can be used within this formula but have proven the test of time as methods to cultivate harmony of the mind, body and spirit. These exercise practices offer a wide spectrum of physical wellness benefits, stress relief as well as means of self-awareness. Not all teachers nor students practice these for the same goals.
I am currently offering wellness lectures and classes for group, small group & private instruction in Wekiva, Longwood and Winter Park.
United Martial Arts Association 