Community News
Health Spotlight: Yoga Hikes

Yoga Hikes connect you to health, nature and community. They take place year-round in different locations throughout Winnipeg and surrounding areas, such as The Forks, Kildonan Park, Silver Springs Park in Birds Hill and more.You will be guided on a hike through city streets and parks and practice yoga at scenic stops along the way.

These 1 hour (3 km) outdoor yoga classes are suitable for all levels.
No yoga mats needed – just dress for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes.

Your teacher will share interesting facts about Winnipeg and surrounding areas while leading you through yoga poses. Practice Eagle before a big Manitoba sky!

Visit us for our weekly schedule, for locations, and to sign up for Yoga Hikes!

Do you feel trapped?

Winter is coming! Many of us lose motivation when it comes to going outdoors throughout these cold winter months. We want to hibernate but our high efficiency homes are a petrie dish for viruses, bacteria and mold.

The air quality in our homes is significantly worse than the cold outdoor air. Schools, business offices and medical facilities actively contribute to this problem. There are quality air filtration systems available to help resolve this issue that also help with asthma, allergies, COPD, colds, and flu.

Let’s ensure we don’t suffer by feeling miserable all winter long. It’s time to breathe easier and live well!

Rachel Silva, Quality Living Network
204-505-5040

Support Your Natural Defenses

The elderberry Sambucus nigra, has a long history of traditional use in central Europe, especially in the Swiss Alps region where it has been prized for centuries. Sambu Guard offers a combination of wild-grown elderberries and elder flowers along with other immune-enhancing ingredients. Each of the ingredients in Sambu Guard have been selected due to their specific function it contributes to the formula, and for their ability to work synergistically with the others for maximum effect.

A must-have for every household, Sambu Guard supports a strong immune response and is most effective when taken at the first sign of symptoms before they become full-blown. Every member of the family can enjoy this delicious tasting herbal syrup to support and secure the body’s natural defenses.

 

Hot Stone Massage

This truly unique style of massage, has been gaining popularity throughout the world after being re-discovered in the United States in 1993.

The story is that a massage therapist, named Mary Nelson, who was suffering from repetitive use injuries in the shoulders and wrists, was having a sauna with her niece and was “called” to the stones. Mary picked up some of the hot stones and started massaging her niece with them – it felt great (for her niece as well as herself) and thus Stone Therapy’s reawakening occurred.

The three main cultures which have heavily influenced stone therapy are the Chinese, the Native Americans and the Hawaiians as there are recorded uses of all of them using hot stones as therapeutic tools. Hot Stone Massage is one of the most relaxing forms of massage a person can receive and because of its popularity, has once again traveled quickly around the globe.

Feeding Hungry Minds

Imagine starting every day hungry, unable to focus on what your teacher is saying over your growling stomach and pounding headache.

Unfortunately, for too many Canadian children, this is a reality. When a child is hungry it is hard to learn, and yet 1 million Canadian children, that’s 1 in 6, face hunger every year. Undernourished children have difficulty focusing on tasks, have lower self-esteem and are absent from school more often.

Breakfast for Learning is one of the largest national charities committed to ensuring students attend school well-nourished and ready to learn. Working to support communities in every province and territory, Breakfast for Learning helps schools start and sustain breakfast, lunch and snack programs each year. Since 1992, Breakfast for Learning has helped 3.6 million children and youth enjoy over 554 million healthy meals and snacks.

Keep Your Pets Warm

Keep your pets inside as much as possible during winter months!

Cats will curl up against almost anything to stay warm, including car engines. Cats caught in moving engine parts can be seriously hurt or killed. If you light a fire or plug in a space heater, remember that the warmth may be just as inviting to your pets. Keep an eye out to make sure that no tails or paws come in contact with flames, heating coils, or hot surfaces. Pets can either burn themselves or knock a heat source over and put the entire household in danger. Pets that go outside can pick up snow, ice, and ice melting chemicals in their footpads. To keep your pet’s pads from getting chapped and raw, wipe their feet with a washcloth when they come inside.

Remember … if you are cold outside, they probably are too!

Book Club: A Candle at Both Ends

Thoughts of Inspiration for the Beginning and End of the Day, by Tiffany Prochera

A Candle at Both Ends by Winnipeg author, Tiffany Prochera, is an inspiring, thought-provoking and humorous collection of prose and poetry to help you wake up in the morning with enthusiasm and focus, and go to sleep at night resolved and peaceful.

With morning cheers, tips on how you can get the most out of life and be the person you truly to want to be and musings on special occasions such as birthdays and anniversaries. A Candle at Both Ends allow you to take a moment to breathe, dream and create your life.

Energizing Date and Almond Shake

A little something to keep you warm and cozy this winter!

This is a creamy, delicious, soothing for the digestive system, helps build iron and perfect for a cold day.

Prep Time: 10 min (plus overnight soaking)
Serves: 2 – 3

Ingredients:

10 
medium dates, pitted and soaked.
1 tsp soaked fennel seeds.
25 soaked whole raw almonds or you can use cashews too!
2-3c warm water for the “milk” plus a cup boiling hot for blanching.
2 pinches cardamom.
1 pinch nutmeg.
2 pinches saffron (optional)

Directions:

Soak the pitted dates with fennel seeds and the almonds in separate bowls overnight. In the morning, drain and peel almonds. Pour some boiling hot water over almonds to blanch and then peel them easily (slip skins while the water is still hot or they stick again). *almond skins are hard to digest that is why they are skinned. Try it and see the difference! Blend with 3 cups fresh warm water and all other ingredients for 2 minutes or until smooth.

Comments and Tips: The added cardamom and nutmeg is delicious and really helps us handle the almond digestion and prevent water retention. Please be creative and add any spices you like to this.

Flatter Belly this Holiday Season?

As we age, we often feel the middle expanding.
Have you noticed we become shorter and wider? 

Fortunately, this is reversible! Block Therapy addresses the reasons tissue ages and safely and effectively teaches you how to take your body back to a more youthful place. Although it treats the whole body, it largely focuses on the foundational component, the rib cage and the core. This allows you to access proper diaphragmatic breathing, which creates the most optimal environment for the body to function. The results are improved digestion and elimination, and a waistline you will love.

It doesn’t matter your age, sex or physical condition, Block Therapy will teach you how to use your body the way it was designed, resulting in the healthiest version of yourself.

Men think it can’t happen to them

Osteoporosis, also called the “silent thief”, impacts men too!

During their lifetime, at least one in five Canadian men will suffer a broken bone from osteoporosis, a disease that can result in disfigurement, lowered self-esteem, reduction or loss of mobility and decreased independence – it may even lead to death. Lawrence McCaffrey is one of 113,000 Manitobans living with osteoporosis. McCaffrey suffered his first wrist and hip fractures at age 32, but due to the lack of information about men and osteoporosis, it was not until six years later that his doctor diagnosed McCaffrey with the disease. Osteoporosis can strike anyone at any age, so know your risks.

Contact the Manitoba Chapter of Osteoporosis Canada at 204-772-3498 or manitoba@osteoporosis.ca to register to attend our free Public Forum on Wednesday, November 5th at the Eastern Star Chalet in Charleswood.

Flowers Improve Emotional Health

Nature provides us with a simple way to improve emotional health – flowers. The presence of flowers triggers happy emotions, heightens feelings of life satisfaction and affects social behavior in a positive manner far beyond what is normally believed. Flowers have an immediate impact on happiness. Flowers have a long-term positive effect on moods. People studies feel less depressed, anxious and agitated after receiving flowers, and demonstrated a higher sense of enjoyment and life satisfaction. “Common sense tells us that flowers make us happy,” said Dr. Haviland-Jones, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology at Rutgers. “Now, science shows that not only do flowers make us happier than we know, they have strong positive effects on our emotional well-being.”

www.academyflorist.com