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Why It’s Okay to Pig Out on Thanksgiving

It’s okay to indulge, even overindulge, once good ol’ Turkey Day comes ‘round. Cheat meals – even full-on cheat days – are good for the body and even more satisfying to the brain.

Restricting, psychologically speaking, just isn’t going to work in the long-term. Eventually, no matter your willpower, you will cave to temptation. You’ll scoop away at that pint of ice cream. You’ll feast on that fried chicken. You’ll pop open that bag of potato chips. Whatever the temptation, it’ll reel you in eventually. It’s okay. In fact, it’s even better than okay. It can be good for you, if done properly.

Food, even the junk, can be enjoyed without damaging your physique or putting a dent in your health and wellness goals at the Greenville sports club. Really? Yes. Really. It’s simple. The trick is scheduling these indulgences into your Greenville gym plan, either at one cheat meal or cheat day per week.

According to health guru, Tim Ferriss, there are two reasons why you should most definitely “cheat” on your Greenville athletic club routine.

  1. If you don’t allow for indulgences, you’ll go mental. The mind naturally wants what it can’t have. When you do allow for a cheat day/meal once per week, it’s easier to keep temptation at bay because eventually, you know you’ll be able to have whatever it is that you want. It promotes peace of mind, focus and healthy eating for the rest of the week.
  2. Your body actually benefits from a weekly cheat day/meal. Without it, your body will enter starvation mode. NOT GOOD. “Cheating” on your Greenville health center routine keeps you out of this state and actually supports fat loss.

Yeah, it might sound too good to be true, but it’s truly not. Sure, there are some caveats. To get the best experience from your Turkey Day cheating, read up on the important dos and don’ts in this post: The Ultimate Guide to the 4 Hour Body Cheat Day (www.slowcarbfoodie.com).

Cut your brain and body a break this holiday season, and schedule Turkey Day as a guilt-free cheat day. Get it out of your system so you can eat well (and have zero desire for those leftovers) and optimize your Greenville health club training.

Looking for an easy-does-it workout this holiday season? Greenville yoga is where it’s at, offering a great counter to the stress of the season. Contact us for the Yoga Greenville class schedule.

 

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Yoga Poses for Ankle Injury Rehab

Are you struggling with an ankle injury?

Yoga may just be your best rehabilitation modality.

However, before taking a Greenville yoga class, it’s mandatory that you allow your body an adequate period of rest. Follow the old RICE regimen: Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. However, keep in mind that too much rest can actually stunt your ankle’s healing process. After the initial pain and swelling have subsided, it’s time to get going on your recovery. To avoid losing mobility and flexibility, gradually begin creating gentle movements in the ankle and exploring ankle stretches.

Poses that are awesome for maintaining flexibility include hero pose, frog pose and child’s pose. When practicing hero or child’s pose, you might consider rolling up a towel and placing it underneath your feet to subdue the pressure placed on the ankles. Another option is to tuck the toes and sit back on your heels. This provides a pretty intense stretch, so explore this option later in your healing process.

To increase ankle mobility and re-build strength, try out chair pose. Don’t hesitate to use the wall or a chair to support you if your balance is wobbly. Also, downward facing dog is a great pose to recover your ankle’s range of motion. Really press the heels down into your mat to receive that sweet ankle opening.

Finally, once your balance is solid, you can introduce balancing postures into your recovery plan to really strengthen and stabilize the muscles supporting the joint. These poses include eagle pose, half moon pose, dancer’s pose, and extended big-toe hold.

Once you are in full recovery mode, commit to a Greenville yoga class, which will surely introduce a combination of these ankle-healing postures. If you can’t seem to squeeze in a class, explore these yoga poses (asanas) before, after, or during your typical Pivotal Fitness Greenville gym workout.

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10 Simple Yoga Poses for Tight Hamstrings

Tight hamstrings are an all too common concern for athletes, gym enthusiasts, and avid runners. The solution? Stretching. Lots of stretching. One of the best realms to get your stretch on is yoga. Plus, you’ll soak up all the mental, spiritual, and physical benefits of the practice while you’re at it.

What’s wrong with tight hamstrings anyways?

Sometimes your tight hamstrings might get lucky. They might not provoke injury or aches and pains. Other times, however, you might not get so lucky. Tight hamstrings can be more prone to severe strains and can contribute to other issues such as back pain. Also, tight hamstrings can limit your sports performance and/or your Pivotal Fitness Greenville gym performance. The only way around these issues, as mentioned, is to improve your flexibility via stretching.

To target the hamstrings, here are some accessible yoga poses (with accompanying video demos) you can implement pre- or post-workout at the Pivotal Fitness Greenville gym.

  1. Standing Forward Fold. Note: You can just hang loose here like a rag doll or you can take a more active variation of the pose by grabbing onto the backs of your legs or ankles to pull yourself deeper. You can also grab onto the big toes or even step on the hands to go even deeper. Wherever you are, you should feel a strong stretch, yet experience no painful sensations.
  2. Wide-Legged Forward Fold. Note: Again, you can take this pose deeper by grabbing onto the backs of the ankles, the calves, or the outer edges of the feet. Don’t be intimidated by the tripod headstand in the video. Just skip it or go for it!
  3. Half Split.
  4. Full Split. Note: Only work into this pose if half split is incredibly accessible for you.
  5. Reclining Big Toe Pose.
  6. Seated Forward Fold. Note: You can take a more active approach by grabbing onto the outer edges of the feet to pull yourself more deeply into the posture.
  7. Seated Wide-Legged Forward Fold. Note: Again, grab the feet to pull yourself deeper.
  8. Head-to-Knee Forward Bend.
  9. Revolved Head-to-Knee Pose. Note: Attempt this only if #8 is a breeze for you.
  10. Pyramid Pose.

Regular practice of these simple poses will create happy and free hamstrings and reduce your risk for injury and back pain.

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