May Days

This latest posting is likely to be more interesting my friends and family than to those of you who are gracious readers. Here's what I am up to this month...

Unity Women's Retreat in Leaky, TX

I attended the 2nd annual retreat last weekend with 13 other attendees. The retreat's theme was "creativity". The highlight for me was the music of Janet O' Connor. She has an upcoming album entitled Strawberry Fields, which she performed to open the retreat. During our creative time, Janet lead volunteers in song and taught us how to drum. Well, "taught" might be stretching it. She was joined by Jenna and Josh to lead a drum circle at sunset at the riverbank. Not an activity I would usually sign up for, it was an uplifting experience. After dinner, Janet, Jenna and Josh played gypsy music as we twirled on a makeshift dance floor. Gypsy flavored music was a surprise. It was a unique treat since I had brought a Turkish scarf with silver coins. I was thrilled to try out some of my new bellydancing moves.

Mother's Day With My Daughter

I will leave this Friday to spend the weekend with Jessica in Athens. We're leaving Doug behind. Spa treatments, Sunday brunch, gossip and the chick flick, Made Of Honor, are on the schedule.

Birthday Celebration with Jesse Cook

Doug and I are great fans of music and flamenco guitar in particular. Jesse Cook is an extraordinary Rumba Flamenco artist. So much so that we are jumping on a plane to Pheonix simply because he is playing there! He has a new cd out, Frontiers. We'll catch up with old Supercuts associates, The Staples, and our cousin, Jan. Oh, and it's Doug's birthday.

Concert with Rajamani with Andalusi dancer, Elisa Rodriguez

My Andalusi dance teacher will be holding a special performance with her musical partner at my San Antonio studio. After treating the public to a complimentary Final Friday Andalusi class, Elisa will don her stage attire to accompany Rajamani. I am very much looking forward to the class and the concert.

And...

The Pilates Room At Synergy is paying the rent and then some, I am happy to say. I will hold anoter series of Pilates For Stylists classes. I have added Superslow strength training to balance my pilates work, first introduced to me by Chauncey and Shirah Bell. I was the star of a Lululemon Ambassador photo shoot. We're having a party for Doug with the Newkirks and Aguirres. I'm putting the final touches on the Charleston Girls Getaway for the first weekend in June.

Merry May to you!

Carolyn Goes lulu....Trunk Show!

This past Tuesday, I held the first ever lululemon athletica kitchen trunk show in San Antonio! A group of my girlfriends and movement teachers assembled to enjoy a girls nite in and snap up some beautiful attire to work out or run about in.



Carolyn with the lululemon showroom team: Jessica, Johanna and Mary.








Lindsay, Meg and Louisa, members of the Alamo Heights Spurs Dance Team modeled the functional (and fashionable) clothes.









Guests received a lulu loot bag. The bag is reusable and is printed with lululemon's corporate manifesto.









lululemonade

1 can Minute Maid lemondade
2/3 cup Blue Curacao
2/3 cup Citrus Vodka
2/3 cup Triple Sec

Empty lemonade in pitcher. Fill can with liquors and add to pitcher. Add water to meet the suggested 4 3/4 can water. Sitr and serve over ice.






San Antonio's Pilates Mafia: Patty, Dana, Carolyn, Jean, Laura and Roseanna.





My gratitude goes out to the lululemon ladies for helping me host such a fun event.

Pelvic Floor

The pelvic floor is very significant to me in teaching and practicing Pilates. The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that resemble a hammock attached to the four corners of the pelvis. These muscles support the internal organs and help stabilize/mobilize the pelvis. The pelvic floor is an integral part of the "Core" or "Powerhouse", from which all Pilates movements are executed. The quality of our sex lives and eliminations are somewhat determined by the health of our pelvic floors.

I have spent a great deal of time lately studying the pelvic floor's anatomy and physiology as well as revisiting the Pilates Method fundamentals and exercises lately. I was prompted by a friend's complaint of leakage she and others were experiencing as well as having a client in her early 40's pregnant for the 2nd time. As a woman in her mid forties, the pelvic floor is an area I must maintain in tone and strength to ward off physical problems that middle age brings: accidental incontinence and loss of intimate sensitivity. Here's some of what I have come to have a deeper understanding of or have discovered...

• Health issues related to weak pelvic floor (Kegel or PC muscles) include urinary incontinence, rectocele, prolapsed uterus and prolapsed bladder.
  
• Younger women experience urinary incontinence pre and post pregnancy.
  
• Pelvic floor dysfunction is present in men as well as women. Women suffer from too much flexibility (childbirth and hormonal changes) while men suffer from too little flexibility (tensed pelvic floor from long hours seated or lack of exercise).
  
• Women who engage in jumping or bouncing activities such as high impact aerobics or running have high incidents of accidental leaking. Women in Pre Menapause phase may also experience what is termed stress incontinence.
  
• Men may experience bladder and bowel issues after prostate or anal surgery. Homosexual men may also have trouble with the anal sphincter portion of the pelvic floor. A weak pelvic floor is a symptom in erectile dysfunction and impotence.
  
• Improperly performed abdominal exercise can contribute to the weakening of the pelvic floor. Contracting the abs so they "cinch" or create an hourglass design at the waist creates pressure on the internal organs downward into the pelvis. This movement is contraindicated for pregnant women and counterproductive for everyone else.
  
• Women of a certain age have to contend with thinning of the vaginal tissue and loss of genital blood circulation, present in female sexual dysfunction. Strengthening the pelvic floor can prevent a decline in intimacy and pleasure sensation .
  

All of these problems are treatable. Your doctor or therapist may recommend specific exercises (now referred to as the Kegel exercises). Since there is a low rate of compliance with exercise, they may also prescribe medications and eventually, surgical intervention may be necessary.

Now I have another reason to continue with Pilates! Besides simple exercises, drugs and surgery, there are devices on the market specifically developed to assist strengthening the pelvic floor.

Kegelmaster 2000 This one has a celebrity endorsement by Terri Hatcher. Designed for women.
Pelvic Floor Exerciser This site has an exercise device for men and women.
Both of the before mentioned are created so that your progress is measurable.
F.P. T. (Feminine Personal Trainer) This product is a contoured stainless steel weight.

I don't know about you but any kind of incontinence or diminished sexual activity is to be avoided at all costs. I will be making the investment in time and money to prevent or delay as long as possible these undesirable problems that come along with aging.

Del Castillo

Last Saturday night, Doug and I treated ourselves to a concert by Del Castillo with opening act, Patricia Vonne. Patricia is the sister of the director, Robert Rodriguez, and my Andalusi dance teacher, Elizabeth Rodriguez.

They were electrifying! Two flamenco guitarists. A Latin -Rock rhythm. Fabulous combo.

Lululemon Athletica

My favorite fitness wear, lululemon athletica, is opening a showroom and two stores in San Antonio. I am also hosting a trunk show for my next Girls Nite In this April. I will also serve as a lululemon Ambassador!

lululemon is not available online. It is worth hunting down, which you can do by visiting the website's locations tab. I've been wearing the brand almost exclusively for a year. I was attracted by the fashionable styles and colors. I have remained an avid fan as a result of the durability of the products. Having sold the line, I can also attest that there is something for every body.

A few of my favorites are:Women's Athletic Deep V TankWomen's Crop Slit BoogieMen's Training S/S TechVelocity Gym Bag

Doug has seen me invest so much of my Pilates salary in lululemon, he made an investment of his own...NASDAQ: LULU!

In my carry on

A few weeks ago, I was browsing Borders on a midday break and came across Dr. Forni's book. I have since learned that there is a Choosing Civility website and the book is making its rounds in book clubs. I am pleased to learn that the Dr. is a professor in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures.

12 Power Principles for Living a Spiritual Life

My friend, Victoria Moran, recently wrote that she has wanted to publish a book entitled, 12 Power Principles for Living a Spiritual Life. No publisher willing to go to press yet but she shared those principles in a recent weekly email...

1. Accept yourself. If this is difficult, clean up your past as best you can and then look at each day at the end of it so you can make things right as you go along. None of us is ever going to be perfect, but we can start each day fresh and feel good about our imperfect selves.

2. Claim your joy. Joy is necessary. It's contagious, so being joyful is a great way to help others. And it begets more of itself (see my little story above about the great things that came into my life week when I was in such a happy state).

3. Take quiet time every single day. Meditate, pray, write in a journal. Quiet time is mandatory to get in touch with your deeper self and with your Source.

4. Keep a Sabbath. If you don't have a religious Sabbath, just pick a day and set it aside for spiritual, recreational (that means re-create, you know), and delightful endeavors. For me, it means no email and keeping my desk verboten.

5. Cultivate greater compassion. "Feel with" (that's the basic definition of the word compassion) the homeless guy on the corner, whether you opt to give him a buck or not. Feel with the people you read about in the paper, and expand your circle of compassion to include other sentient beings. The Jain saint Mahavira put it so beautifully: "To every creature, his own life is very dear."

6. Treat your body as a temple. Honor it. Care for it. Treat it kindly. Use it well. Feed it the best food, give it enough rest and exercise, and show it some appreciation: it does a lot for you.

7. Share your time, talent, treasure. Give of your time, let the world benefit from your talents, and give of your resources, either through tithing (regular giving of 10% of all money that comes to you) or some other system of sharing. This makes the world better and opens the way for the universe to give back to you.

8. Study and learn. Read the scriptures of the world or of your own tradition.
Read mystical poetry (I love The Oxford Book of English Mystical Verse). Read the spiritual classics such as The Yoga Sutras of Patajali or Brother Lawrence's The Practice of the Presence of God. Read new books that help open your mind to more wonder and beauty and grace.

9. Create community. Bring into your circle people who are also on a spiritual quest. You need them to reflect back to you what's really important.

10. Allow others to, simply, be. Principle 9 states that you need people around you whose spiritual questing is in keeping with yours, but you also need to allow other people to be on other paths and some to be on, seemingly, no path at all. Shine your light: if it's of the wattage they can see and appreciate, they may want what you have and they'll ask how you got it. If not, trust that they have a Higher Power, too, and that they're just where they should be.

11. Find Spirit everywhere. Look around your life and your day and find God, Spirit, Presence, Source Energy. See it in nature, in serendipity, in children and animals, in art and beauty, in simple pleasures.

12. Make gratitude your constant companion. Make gratitude your first thought upon awakening. Make gratitude lists in your head as you walk around town or in your car as you wait for the light to change. Be grateful when things are going fabulously and be grateful when they're in a slump - it's even more helpful then. Gratitude connects you with the Source of all good. You can't do better than that.

Love and light, Victoria

It has been many years since I was browsing a bookstore during a vacation in Orlando. It was then that I came across Creating A Charmed Life. Victoria's words of wisdom have served me well since and I have been fortunate to make her acquaintance. I appreciate her guidance about attending to the spiritual dimension of life.