Category Archives: Health

Forest Therapy Wellness Workshops

Enhance your employee wellness program with Guided Forest Therapy.

Guided Forest Therapy is a fast-growing wellness activity that is convenient and highly recommended.

Our guide, Lance, was great! The hike was very relaxing, and I recommend everyone try it. Lance led us on a short hike while inviting us to reflect with nature. A great way to relax on a Saturday morning.

What is Guided Forest Therapy?

The application of Japanese Shinrin Yoku aspects combined with traditional practices to create a unique experience in nature.

Our certified Forest Therapy Guides use the approach that the forest is the therapist. As guides they seek to open the door to invite you into the process.

Guided Forest Therapy sessions are available in monthly 2-hour blocks. Your team members can take these sessions and you can also choose to schedule groups for team building workshops and retreats.

komorebi
Komorebi

Awesome experience to slow down and take a break from life. The guide was very accommodating and welcoming to the whole experience. You will not regret taking a couple hours off with Lance because you will be immersed in nature with serenity and newfound strength.

Venues…

Available venues include the Walnut Creek Community Regional Park, The Los Angeles Arboretum, and Monrovia Canyon Park. For additional locations or if you have a location you would like to schedule a walk in please contact 626 263-1983.

Dates…

2-hour sessions can be scheduled monthly by appointment for up to 12 people. To inquire about scheduling team building workshops or retreats, email lance@lanthony.org

For more about Guided Forest Therapy visit

NatureAndForestTherapy.org

Be sure you guide is certified by an organization that is recognized and has established professional standards and guide competencies.

Guided Forest Therapy by L. Anthony

170 E. College St. #4323 Covina, Ca 91723

Doctors Prescription: Nature

www.pbs.org/newshour/show/why-doctors-are-increasingly-prescribing-nature

As rates of chronic disease among children have skyrocketed over the past few decades, pediatricians have increasingly looked for solutions beyond the clinic. Sometimes that means actually prescribing time outside. Special correspondent Cat Wise reports from Oakland on the medical evidence that indicates escaping modern urban life, even temporarily, can yield health dividends.

Forest bathing: What it is and why you should try it – Thrive

The Japanese practice of forest bathing — or shinrin-yoku — may result in some impressive health benefits. Here’s what you need to know.

These days, we stay indoors for hours scrolling through social media, binge-watching TV shows, or playing video games. We shop online and have purchases delivered straight to our homes. We live in or commute to cities surrounded by concrete, steel, and smog. Our days are mostly spent away from sunshine, trees, water, and fresh air.

While our modern way of life can be convenient, it’s taking us away from the health benefits of nature. To the point where getting outside should now be a priority. This is where the Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku — or forest bathing — can help.

What is forest bathing?

In 1982, the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries created the term shinrin-yoku, which translates to “forest bathing” or “absorbing the forest atmosphere.” The practice encourages people to simply spend time in nature — no actual bathing required. It’s also very low impact, which means you don’t have to go for trail runs or do an intense hike. The goal of forest bathing is to live in the present moment while immersing your senses in the sights and sounds of a natural setting.

— Read on thrive.kaiserpermanente.org/thrive-together/live-well//forest-bathing-try

Forest Bathing

 

Forest Therapy, also known as
Shinrin-Yoku,”

refers to the practice of spending time in forested areas for the purpose of enhancing health, wellness, and happiness. The practice follows the general principle that it is beneficial to spend time bathing in the atmosphere of the forest. The Japanese words translate into English as “Forest Bathing.”

How do might you do it?

Enter the forest with an intent to have a direct, uninterrupted, immersive engagement.

arboretum lawn

Cross the threshold into the forest and acknowledge the ceremonial honor of entering the home of gracious beings.

baldwin lake shoreline

Take time to become aware of yourself, your body, and what your senses are perceiving

Begin to take notice of each impression you have as it occurs

baldwin lake side cottage

Move slowly through the forest as you observe everything else that is moving around you

lakeside palm

Explore aspects of the forest that enable you to have an intimate appreciation for what you find by connecting with your senses

water feature

Sit and discover what has been revealed to you

phoenix

close your visit with a ceremony before crossing the threshold as you depart

 

“The problem with our busy city lives, however, is that the stressful events keep piling up.  There will be emails to answer, co-workers demanding attention, a deadline looming, the shopping to get done, the bills to be paid.  And our cortisol levels remain always slightly raised.

When cortisol is released constantly, it can disrupt all our body’s processes. And people who produce chronically high levels of cortisol are at increased risk of numerous health problems.”

Dr. Qing Li

Forest Bathing, pgs. 66-67

autumn autumn mood colorful edge of the woods
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Summer Travel

One of the benefits of travel is the experience of nature at its best.  The majesty of the sights, sounds, and feelings from sun, wind, and water.  Nothing compares.

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An example of this: The hike to Stewart Falls in Sundance, Utah.

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The location can be reached only on foot.

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You can then appreciate the reward for your effort, and the fulfillment of your anticipation.

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About 4 miles long, by setting your own pace most can make it.

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And you can bring your dog for added fun.

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Healthy Eating

What I learned from Ketogenic Dieting

Carbohydrates are a problem.  At least for me.  So out of necessity I searched for a short-term solution where I could cut carbs and lose weight too.  I am getting to the point where I need to settle in on a long-term alternative for my diet.  This is a good time to reflect on where eating and maintaining Ketosis arrived as a tool for me.

I began with strict daily calorie counts.  25 grams maximum of carbs.  To reach the level of fat burning I wanted, my ratio of 4% Calories from carbs, 15% from protein and 81% from fat was what I followed.  So, with about 2000 calories daily, I had 77 grams of protein and 184 grams of fat to eat.

agriculture basket beets bokeh
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Was it hard?  You bet it was.  Finding enough fat to eat seemed almost impossible.  The shock for me was realizing how much the typical American diet is high carb and “low” fat.  What was good for me is that I reached Ketosis quickly and saw early weight loss.  I did not stay on it very long because of the health risks people around me kept reminding me of.

Lifesum diet app
From https://www.dietspotlight.com/lifesum-review/

I found that using a dieting app was indispensable.  After looking around a bit I went with Lifesum.  lifsum logoThe choice of diets with the app were a factor for me.  I soon switched to their Ketogenic easy.  This meant I now got to eat a whopping 100 grams of carbs each day.  My ratio changed to 20% calories from carbs, 15% from protein and 65% from fat.  The bad news was that my protein stayed at 77 grams per day.  The shift up by 75 grams of carbs was offset by a reduction in 35 grams of fat down to 149 grams a day.

lunch table salad
Photo by Kaboompics .com on Pexels.com

While that may seem easy as the name implies, at first it was hard for me to get up to 100 carbs.  I began with the idea that by eating about 4 times I could average about 25 grams of carbs per meal.  This average was significant for me because I was wary of how large swings in carb consumption would affect blood sugar.

One of the biggest benefits from this new diet was that it led me on an unending search for healthy, convenient, nutritious and consumable sources of carbohydrates.  So many of these foods checked off some of the boxes but not all.  They might be extremely hard to prepare, or even harder to digest!  Some are delicate and challenging to use.  It seemed like the window of when they are ripe, and edible was so small that if you didn’t have a backyard garden full of trees giving birth to them the moment before you ate some, then forget it.

hand fruits rural gardening
Photo by mali maeder on Pexels.com

Another benefit was that I lost weight, and on a gradual timeline.  I learned over time how I would be able to maintain my goal weight once I reached it.  With the 2000 calorie plan, any day I burned more than I consumed contributed to my weight loss.  The app was a big help with measuring my daily calorie burns.

My takeaways.

  • Eat at least 4 meals at regular intervals. If fasting, plan the fasting periods with care.
  • Avoid unhealthy calories. These can lead to very bad consequences.  Take the time and make the effort to find healthy types of fat, protein, and carbohydrates for your diet and then eat them in healthy amounts.
  • Counting calories is a good habit to have. Knowing  how much you are eating keeps you out of danger.
  • Counting the calories that you burn each day has huge benefits. This lets you know if your amount of exercise is contributing to a healthy lifestyle or an unhealthy one.
  • Healthy dieting can provide better alternatives than caffeine and other stimulants people depend on.
  • There are so many things to learn about diet and exercise that can impact not only your health but your brain, your skin, your energy, even your sleep.

spinach chicken pomegranate salad
Photo by Kaboompics .com on Pexels.com

Positive Thoughts | Positive Living with MS

ms1aI’ve shared this story before, but for those who don’t know, when I was younger it wasn’t a requirement to attend kindergarten. Because of that, my first classroom experience was first grade. I loved my teacher, I loved my school, I loved my entire first grade life. Well, most of it.Two weeks into the school year I was sent to the principal’s office. Now you have to understand, I was a well behaved kid back then. Really, I was. For me to be in trouble was a big deal. My dad was a Drill Sergeant at that time in the military so I knew not to misbehave, and if I did misbehave…well, let’s just say it would be better for me to pack my bags and go live in the treehouse.

Source: Positive Thoughts | Positive Living with MS