Spring Ab Crunch Challenge - Week 2

The ab exercise for Week 2 is the Twist Crunch. This exercise focuses on working your abs and obliques.

Lying on a mat, have your knees bent, elbows out, and hands behind head. Your feet should be flat on the ground. Keep a space between your chin and chest as if looking towards the ceiling. Exhale as you lift up rotating your upper body to one side, then rotating back to center. Inhale and lower your back to the floor. Switch sides. Goal is to do 10 on each side.

Combine these with the 20 basic crunches you're already doing for a great ab workout!

Spring Ab Crunch Challenge

Join us for the Spring Ab Crunch Challenge. This is a friendly, 12 week challenge where we will encourage each other to complete the suggested crunches.

Week 1 Challenge: Complete 20 basic crunches each day. Can’t do 20 at a time? Break it up into two sets of 10 or four sets of 5.

For the basic crunch:

• Lie on your back, with knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
• Beginners: cross arms over chest; others: rest hands behind the head (be sure NOT to pull on your neck). In either arm position, place your chin at a fist's distance from your chest.
• Raise your chest and shoulders several inches from the ground, keeping your feet and lower back flat on the floor. Exhale as you come up; inhale as you lower back down.
• Keep your movements slow and controlled, feeling the contraction in your midsection only. Fast jerky movements do not work the muscle properly.

When doing a crunch remember to pick a spot on the ceiling and keep your eyes focused on it to avoid pulling on your neck, and do not bring your elbows in or forward. Another option if you can’t stop pulling on your neck is to cross your arms across your chest. Take a deep breath, then exhale while curling up and forward until your shoulder blades are lifted off the floor. Hold for a moment at the top of the movement, fully exhale all of the air in your lungs for complete contraction of the abs, then slowly lower yourself back to the floor.

Be sure to check in and let us know how you’re doing!

Get a Dog; Get Healthy

Numerous studies by medical professionals have shown that there are many benefits to our well being by having a dog in your life. Blood pressure and cholesterol levels were found to be lower in dog owners. Just the act of petting a dog can greatly relax a patient and bring about therapeutic results. Petting a dog also helps to bring about better emotional health as well. Studies have also proven that dogs aid in a patient’s recovery from illness and can induce an overall quicker recovery time.

Just one more reason for us to love our dogs!

The Wonder Activity

So what activity can provide strength and cardio training, increase flexibility, relieve stress and provide nutritious food? You guessed it! Gardening!

Gardening done 4 to 5 days a week can provide a sufficient amount of physical activity to lower your risk for heart disease, cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure. It also provides strength training important in the prevention of osteoporosis.

As an added bonus, studies have shown that gardening helps people recover more quickly from everyday stresses and mental fatique. For many, the garden is their escape from family and job responsibilities.

So go ahead, get out those seed catalogs, and start planning your garden!

Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate

Clinical studies have shown that dark chocolate can help lower blood pressure. Over time, eating one piece of chocolate―the equivalent of 30 calories―every day lowered systolic blood pressure by 2.9 millimeters of mercury (mm/Hg). This in turn may lower your risk of stroke or coronary artery disease.

Enjoy 1 to 2 ounces of each day, just be sure to choose dark chocolate that contains at least 70 percent cocoa.

Celebrate Valentine's Day with these Chocolate-Dipped Almond Meringues and know you're doing your heart good!

Exercise for a Healthy Heart

An inactive lifestyle is one of the main risk factors for heart disease. Fortunately its a risk you can easily avoid with 20 to 30 minutes of aerobic exercise three or four times a week.

Regular exercise, especially aerobic, has many benefits. It can:

• Strengthen your heart and cardiovascular system.


• Improve your circulation and help your body use oxygen better.


• Improve your heart failure symptoms.


• Increase energy levels so you can do more activities without becoming tired or short of breath.


• Increase endurance.


• Lower blood pressure.


• Improve muscle tone and strength.


• Improve balance and joint flexibility.


• Strengthen bones.


• Help reduce body fat and help you reach a healthy weight.


• Help reduce stress, tension, anxiety and depression.


• Boost self-image and self-esteem.


• Improve sleep.


• Make you feel more relaxed and rested.


• Make you look fit and feel healthy.

Be sure to check with your doctor before starting any exercise program.

February is National Heart Month

Heart attacks are a life-and-death emergency – every second counts.

Know the heart attack warning signs:

• Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.
• Discomfort in other areas of the upper body. Symptoms can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.
• Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.
• Other signs may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness

As with men, women's most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort. But women are somewhat more likely than men to experience some of the other common symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, and back or jaw pain.

Call 9-1-1. Minutes matter and fast action can save lives. Don’t wait more than five minutes to call 9-1-1. Calling 9-1-1 is the fastest way to get lifesaving treatment.