People are out pushing limits in team sports or striving for a personal best.  What is the best nutrition to enhance the performance of summer athletes? I hike with friends every week.  Friends in a high-rise retirement home are logging miles so the combined efforts of the group will total the distance of the Pacific Crest Trail from the border of Mexico to Canada, 2650 miles.  Else, who turned 80 last year, leads the pack walking from First Hill to the Seattle waterfront and back up the steep incline several times a week.

My acupuncturist tells me she will participate in the Washington Trails Association Hike-a-thon.  She has the awesome goal of hiking 4 days a week during the month of August.

Most of us are into sports because being active is fun, enhances fitness, flexibility and greater longevity.  A few sporty people are elite athletes competing at the state, national and international levels.  I don’t know about you, but I like to know what the winners do to achieve their results.  Perhaps their nutritional practices would help you and me do better.  I turned to the Shaklee-fueled Olympic winners to see what helps them get to the top of their game.

Led by pentathelete and Beijing games competitor Eli Bremer, the Shaklee Pure Performance Team is an amazing group of world-class athletes that has been handpicked from a variety of highly competitive sports.  They represent Shaklee’s long-term commitment to creating a 100% pure, safe and effective nutrition that gives athletes the healthy edge they need to win at the highest level of competition.

These elite athletes have the most stringent anti-doping regulations in sports, so what they put into their bodies is critically important to them.  To make sure they are not only getting the performance and efficacy they need to compete, but also guaranteed quality and purity, these top athletes—who have already won a combined 120 gold, silver and bronze medals at summer and winter games—all choose to use Shaklee.

There are many medal winners whose sports are practiced in the summer.  I want to focus on a couple who match the sporting actions of people I know.

Michael Blatchford’s first true passion, at age 13, was a potentially dangerous and imposing force: the Velodrome in Los Angeles, a 250-meter oval track designed for high-speed cycling that was used during the 1984 Games. But since visiting that track as a young teen, Michael went on to become one of the most dynamic American sprinters on the track circuit.

It’s a truly amazing story because from a young age Michael has suffered from both migraine headaches and asthma. The damage done to his lungs is irreversible and is so bad his doctors say he never should have been able to compete on a bike—especially at a world-class level. He also learned to push his body through the pain of migraines, which not only gave him a higher tolerance for pain that made him a better rider but also diminished the effects the of the headaches themselves.

In 2004, Michael became the first junior to win an elite national title with a sprint victory at the U.S. National Track Championships. He also set a national record at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, earning a silver medal in the team sprint.

Michael on 12 national championships and was a competitor in 2008 summer games, narrowly missing out on a spot to compete at the 2012 London Games. He has now retired from the world of competitive cycling to complete a long-postponed college degree.

Michael says, “Athletes are responsible for what they put in their bodies; the ideas of health and performance do not stop at just racing.”  His favorite Shaklee products are MindWorks, Performance, Physique and Energy Chews.

Not many of my friends row, but my grandson is hooked.  He just came back from an extended camp in Pittsburg, one of 30 high school rowers from across the US.  This last weekend he raced in Cincinnati in the junior nationals.  (see picture at top) Because of him, I want to showcase Shaklee rower Caroline Lynd Shald, teammate on the US Olympic women’s eight gold medalists, London 2012 and Beijing 2008.

Little did this two-time gold medalist of the Games know that when her mother happened upon an article in The Wall Street Journal proclaiming that there was a large number of rowing scholarships available for women, it would change her life. “When I attended Phillips Andover in high school, rowing was available,” Caroline said. “One week in and I was hooked!”

Flash forward and Caroline is not only on the US national rowing team, she’s also a four-time women’s eight rowing champion at the summer Games and a four-time World Champion. Dedicated to her craft, she practices intensely with her team two to three times a day, six to seven days a week—her least favorite exercise being stationary biking. “Every day as I train with my incredibly talented and powerful teammates they push me to be better, faster, and stronger,” Caroline said.

Caroline says much of her success in rowing has come from overcoming mental obstacles. “When your brain is telling you, ‘Stop! It hurts too much!’ You need to tell it, ‘No! We’re going…and we’re going NOW!’ It’s that moment when you push past the impossible, that you achieve it.”

“When I pulled my indoor rowing machine outside facing the lake and the mountains, I had exactly what I needed: the cool, early evening air, and my Shaklee 180 Energizing Smoothee.”

Caroline’s favorite Shaklee products are Energy chews, Physique, 180 Energizing Smoothees, Enfuselle Sun Block SPF 30 and Performance.

There are swimmers in my family of grandchildren.  Hanna is on a swimming scholarship at her college in California, SOKA.  Daniel and his sister, Elizabeth and brother, Ian both swam their way through school.  Elizabeth continued all four years of Calvin college in Michigan.  Many of my readers have swimmers in their family.  The Shaklee powered swimmers competed in the most difficult feat of all, the pentathlon.  Here’s the story of Dennis Bowsher.

In a sport that thoroughly tests both the mind and body of an athlete, Dennis Bowsher is a force to be reckoned with. He finished fourth-place in the men’s modern pentathlon competition at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, which qualified him for the 2012 Games in London. The U.S. Army specialist and four-time national champion competed in those Summer Games.

Passionate about competing—and winning—Bowsher was introduced to the sport of pentathlon while still in high school. The modern pentathlon is a five-event competition: pistol shooting, épée fencing, swimming, equestrian show jumping, and cross-country running.

“It takes a lot of commitment to compete at this high level,” says Dennis. “And it is not just in training, the commitment extends to things you do outside of training. Your body and mind are what are going to get you to the goals you set. You have to be doing everything to make sure your mind and body are in tip-top shape, and making sure you’re getting the nutrients you need is definitely high on the list. You also need to make sure you’re getting the best amount of sleep each night, and you need to keep stress out of your life so you can focus 100% on what needs to be done to achieve your goal.”

Training for the pentathlon is a grueling training program. Dennis regularly runs 60 miles a week, swims 12 miles a week, fences for a total of seven hours a week, shoots for 7½ hours a week, and rides for 1½ hours during the week. “Since there are five sports that we’re training for, we have to create a specific training plan to improve in each of them,” he says.

Dennis’ sights are now set on the 2016 Games in Rio. And you can bet he’ll hit his mark.

“Shaklee has been invaluable to me—I use something from the whole line on nearly a daily basis, and I travel with as much as I can bring!”

Dennis loves the 180 snack bars, the 180 Energizing Smoothees and Shaklee’s Performance.

Personally, I use all these products to enhance my training and favorite sport, hiking.  Performance is in my water when I hike.  I drink Physique within twenty minutes of my work out at the Xgym with my personal trainer.  I use the 180 Smoothee with a beet, carrot, stalk of celery and kale, plus ¼ green apple and ¼ c. raspberries for breakfast everyday (when I’m not traveling) and I wear the Enfuselle SPF 30 daily.  The Energy Chews are in my car especially useful in the morning before a long hike when a glass or cup of green tea would send me into the forest frequently.  The Chews have the same energizing effect at the beginning of a hike and toward the end when the parking lot is just too far away.

Try them yourself to test the results.  You may increase your stamina, speed, over-all performance.  If you are not satisfied with your results, get your money back.  My cycling friend’s husband just tried her Performance and decided to abandon the drink he’d favored for Shaklee.  He likes it better.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving,

Betsy

Shopping for Shaklee products www.HiHohealth.com

Travel stories, most recently Tuscany and the Amalfi coast www.EmpoweredGrandma.com

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Please leave your sporting comments and don’t hesitate to pass this post along to your favorite athlete.  And thank you.

The post summer athletes appeared first on GrandmaBetsyBell.

Chronic disabilities won’t hold you back.  Get out and explore the world.  If by my bravado in the face of aches and pains irritates you, my intention is not to belittle, but to inspire.  This story inspires me.  It may seem as though I am never down, but leap about all the time.  I do get grumpy when everything hurts and I will do anything to sit down for a few minutes to rest my back, hips and knees.  So, I’m with you if you are one of the people caught up short by arthritis.

I just spent twelve days in Mexico with three companions, two of whom use support for walking: a walker and a hiking stick.  All three are several years older than I which puts two of them in their 80s.  I worried when I invited them to accompany me to my lavish time-share in Nuevo Vallarta because the walking distance from the unit to the pool is quite far. There are steps involved.  Any trips into Puerto Vallarta and beyond would have uneven pavements and sketchy handicap access.  Only in the USA is there a preoccupation for the welfare of a handicapped person.

So imagine my relief and my delight when these gals said, “Yes” to every adventure, walked the vast campus of the Gran Mayan complex, took a public bus home from the Puerto Vallarta Arboretum way south of town and climbed the steep ramp to worship at the great church of the Virgin of Guadalupe in downtown PV.

Once we were settled and had a look around, we were smitten by the place: an unbroken view of the ocean, waves crashing just beyond the low wall; majestic native trees rising out of pale blond sand; pelicans swooping along the wave crests; the occasional horsed rider passing by on the beach.  Raul’s wife brought us a fabulous dinner of fresh mahi mahi and homemade tortillas.  I made fresh lime margaritas and guacamole from the groceries I had bought in the Mega Comerciante while waiting for my s-in-l to arrive.  The kitchen was a dream to cook in with its gas stove, big counter and all the condiments you could ask for plus every insect repellant you could imagine.  I did get a few sand flea bites, but no mosquitoes.  The air was fresh, the stars brilliant after the full moon set.  The hammock perfectly located on the veranda.  We each had our own bedroom and bath, not luxurious, but homey and comfortable.

The next day we decided to see the village of Quimixto knowing there was a stream to cross.  The “steam” turned out to be a wide river, slow moving and shallow, thank goodness. My s-in-l used her sticks and her water shoes.

I put on my tevas and replaced them with walking shoes on the other side.  The village is about five cobble stone paved blocks along with a pier at the far end and a few shops, an open church and a primary school plus private houses along the way.  The little harbor is full of open fishing boats.

Vallarta Adventures brings a boatload of tourists from the cruise ships in to Quimixto and takes the people walking through town to a corral where 20+ Mexican ponies wait.  Once the tourists are saddled up and instructed, they file up a trail to a dramatic waterfall about a mile and a half up into the jungle.  I decided to walk this and had to cross the “creek” four more times, climb quite a bit to a bar perched on the edge of a deep pool into which the waterfall plunged.  The tourists arrived by horse back after I had my viewing spot picked out, a good place to watch them jump in the water, haul the brave ones up hand over hand to a ledge and shoot down the water fall’s natural sluice. Enterprising locals had souvenirs for sale and one man offered me a giant iguana for a picture.  And a tip, of course.

In the other direction from the village, a trail ran along the shore and then climbed to a long undulating ledge to another cove and another village, this one much larger though still accessible only by boat.  Perched on this trail’s hillside amidst the jungle plants is a yoga center, sleeping cottages stair step up to the main yoga room at the top.  The place is only 3 years old. http://www.xinalaniretreat.com/ Check it out.  I walked the trail below the center, across their beach and up into the jungle towards Las Animas beach, about two miles along the coast.  Believe me; I will take my hiking sticks with me in my suitcase every time I travel from now on. This trail was steep and rugged, rising and falling to streamlets.

Besides describing the wonders of this place, I want you to understand that my s-in-l suffers from neuropathy caused by complication that developed after a knee surgery.  For two years now she has had a hard time walking, going numb in her foot and lower leg and the other knee is bone on bone.  But, she is determined to continue adventures and will not sit down in resignation.

At the Grande Luxxe, Polly, Liz, Joan and I used the golf carts and trolleys to get from place to place on the vast campus, and walked miles to the beach, restaurants, the Santuario nightclub and to take taxis off on adventures.  With careful on line research, I was able to locate an accessible restaurant right in the middle of the art galleries. We spent time admiring the art and talking to the artists, taking advantage of the weekly Wednesday art walk.  The restaurant, if you are looking for fine cuisine and atmosphere, is Café de Artistas.  The violin and piano duo rank right up there with the finest musicians and have a unique electronically connected way of playing together without occupying the same space.  Hence, the violinist could wander throughout the many spaces and you heard them as if they were playing in the same room.

Walking to the main street that runs the length of the center of Puerto Vallarta, we watched several groups of Peregrinantes making their pilgrimage to the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  Typically, the groups come from parishes in the area, businesses, hotels and schools.  They choose their theme which could be a float with a Virgin surrounded by the Bishop and Juan Pedro, the Indian whose miraculous vision of the Virgin is celebrated for twelve days.  Other themes are dancers, flute, and drum players in Aztec costumes.  We happened to be on the street corner when a motorcycle club roared to a standstill and waited their turn to process toward the church.  Each group enters the church when their turn comes, brings their offering to the Virgin, receives a blessing and then disperses to the central square or along the streets where food booths invite with local delicacies:  roasted ears of corn, flat bread, cups filled with cut melon and pineapple, freshly made tortillas, enchiladas, and so on.  It is a logistical nightmare for some organizer and seems to work.  Every group has its moment in church beginning at six and going until midnight.  A Bishop is there at midnight on the 12^th, the actual Saint’s day.

On Sunday, we attended the 10 o’clock mass which was in English and Spanish. The nave was packed with ex-pats and there were a few missals in English for the people who got their early.  A visiting choir sang magnificently.  We looked at each other with tears in our eyes, the music was so beautiful.  Most churches in PV have no choir so this was a special treat. Talking with the soprano who sang the Ave Maria, (we met her at Starbuck’s after church); we found out that she grew up in the States singing in girls’ choirs. She got her first job after college in the American School in PV teaching the kindergarteners and immediately searched for a choir.  She finally located one in the Iglesia del Refugio.  It was their choir who so inspired us.  I’ll know where to attend mass the next time I am in Puerto Vallarta.

Another brave adventure was a trip to the spectacular botanical gardens

south of town in the mountains above Quimixto, https://www.vbgardens.org/ , the

brainchild of a group of ex-pats.  Several years ago, they bought an

old ranch, and its Hacienda de Oro is authentic Mexican residence, now restaurant set above the Rio Los Horcones.  Birds and butterflies abound.  They just opened a new Conservatory of Mexican orchids housing a collection of orchids from many regions of Mexico, some very rare.  This was my third visit.  I have hiked the trails through the jungle and gone skinny-dipping in the beautiful river, but this time stayed close to the orchids, Hacienda and other plantings.

Returning to Puerto Vallarta is when the adventure began. We decided to take the bus, which meant getting from the Hacienda to the highway, an uphill cobblestone drive of 200 yards, more than either a walker or a pair of hiking sticks could manage.  A gardener offered to take my companions on his ARV.  What a sight!  Unfortunately, climbing on was almost too much for bum knees, but we all survived, managed to board the bus and ride to the center of Puerto Vallarta.  Whew!

The buses run on Basilio Badillo Street which is full of art galleries, a large blown glass sales room which specializes in exports, and an oasis restaurant owned by a Canadian.  We went in there and had the best, most refreshing sangria I have ever been served.  A great ending to a glorious adventure and everyone feeling all their limbs, joints and bones still functional.  Pretty amazing.

In conclusion, I will say that the best adventure is the one you are determined to take, regardless of your challenges, walker, sticks and all.  Attitude makes the difference.  These ladies were brave and resilient even when the circumstances were difficult.  If you can, go, and don’t let chronic disabilities hold you back.  Next year you may not be able to go.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving,

Betsy

206 933 1889

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Traveling again, and wanted so much to have a healthy retreat.  I flew to Santa Fe for a long weekend to sit, walk and write with Natalie Goldberg at the Upaya Zen Center.  November in Santa Fe worried me.  I packed long johns, silk undershirts, leg warmers and turtle necks and vests.

It did snow, their first of the winter, but I need not have worried about these Zen practitioners.  They are not given to the kind of austerity we witnessed in the book Natalie assigned to us:  The Bones of the Master, by George Crane.  The page-turning tale of a Zen Monk, Tsung Tsai, was the last and only member of his Ch’an lineage in Inner Mongolia to survive the Red Chinese take over.  Under normal circumstances these monks endured freezing temperatures without heat or warm clothes.

Upaya was toasty from the spacious Zendo where the sixty-seven participants met for writing to the sleeping quarters scattered in older and new southwestern adobe style buildings on the Center’s campus.

Health issues came up over and over as a topic in writing practice.  Natalie is battling cancer and was not with us for every meal or for the early morning sitting zazen, harboring her strength. When I saw her the first day, I was relieved to the point of tears to see light in her eyes and no strained evidence of pain clouding her mind and wit and demanding teaching.

Thich Nhat Than, the Vietnamese Zen bhuddist who has offered so much peace making teaching to us Americans over the last 45 years and has been a spiritual guide for many, is lying in an ICU with a cerebral hemorrhage.

While walking in a nearby Nature Conservancy reserve east of the Center, I received notice of my cousin by marriage, Jack Bell’s massive heart attack.  Mortality loomed large.  The Roshi (the abbot or head priest of a Zen center), organized a healing service for all who hang in that liminal place between life and death asking for best possible outcome.  Roshi Joan Halifax spoke to us about not knowing what the “best” is.  The names of those close to the Center who have gone on to join the Great Majority were listed on the altar. I was profoundly moved by the service, the chanting, the deep surrender to the will of God.

We students wrote our hearts out and read aloud to each other. I was struck by how often struggle and death came up.  These big themes were peppered by the lesser but just as pesky themes of life threatening aches and pains of the aging body. Even the younger writers read about waking up to the changes they notice in their bodies, the laziness that has taken over, the hurry of life that causes neglect of physical health.  Natalie has always taught “Sit, Walk Write” and paid additional attention to long vigorous walks as a way to loosen the mind and go deeper.  I overheard comments like, “I’m going to put more walking into my day.”  “I’m going to be more consistent with my exercise.”

One woman I wrote with at a writing retreat in Italy is swimming again, up to a mile as she turns 69, using the thirty-five laps as intentional meditation time.

You think of writing as a sedentary life, but the way Natalie teaches it, it is anything but.  When you are stuck and have become too linear or wallow too long in research, get up and walk:  around the house, the coffee shop, the neighborhood.

The sitting part of practice is the hardest on the body. At the Upaya Center, they begin at 6:30 a.m. and sit on their cushions in silence for 40 minutes, take ten minutes of slow walking and stretching and then 40 more minutes of silent sitting.  I joined each morning at the slow walking part and at first sat in the folding chairs provided.  I was awake in time for the 6:30 sit time, but staying healthy on the go requires me to lie on the floor and do my back exercises, cat/cow stretches on all fours and a few yoga moves so I am functional with relatively little pain all day.  The second two days, I sat on a cushion and fared pretty well with the hips and knees.

When I travel, I take a small camping pillow for my head and another to put between my knees while sleeping.  Something you might try is finding a pillow that keeps your back and neck lined up in a back-friendly way.

I always take all my supplements.  The stress of travel is no time to cut back on the nutritional support you are accustomed to at home.  One of Natalie’s writing topics for a “bullet writing” –2-3 minutes—was “Vitamins.”  One writer, a nurse from Phoenix who I roomed with when I went to write with Natalie in France, was saying she was so confused by vitamins and took the ones everyone talks about—Calcium, D and fish oil—but never felt any difference.  So she wandered away from that discipline.  I suggested a good multi might make everything work better.

What I love about the Shaklee Corporation is that they tell you up front if you don’t feel better with Vita-lea and Protein taken daily for one month, you will get your money back. That’s a big promise and seldom cashed in on.

Water, water, water when you travel. The high desert of Santa Fe, 7000 ft.—gave me a slight headache and dizziness. After 24 hours and quarts of water, everything was fine.  I know some people slow down on their water intake when they travel because they are worried about the availability of bathrooms.  Trust the place. Drink water. You will feel better.

On the way home I had a twinge of throat tickle and plopped a Vitalizing Immunity in my water bottle and drank it down before boarding the plane. Gone. No hint of a cold.

I had my Herb lax in case the food and water—being different—caused digestive difficulties.  In fact, the cook, Sharon, at the Upaya center is creative with seasonal root vegetables and prepared the most delicious and nourishing vegetarian meals I have ever eaten.  Lots of roughage!

Whether you are traveling for business, pleasure, study or a healthy retreat, take care of yourself. Keep your immune system strong so you don’t get sick.  That can ruin a trip. Stay hydrated and keep the digestive track functioning.

Don’t forget sleep:  I always take ear plugs and Gentle Sleep Complex to help with sleeping in a strange place.  How wonderful to attend a healthy retreat!

I love hearing what you do to stay healthy on trips.  Please comment.

Be well, Do Well and Keep Moving,

Betsy

206 933 1889

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I opened the quarterly Earth Letter from Earth Ministry to read the lead article, “The Work at Hand”.  It’s about making a holy kitchen.  Let me explain. The author’s name, Carol Flinders, did not ring a bell until I came across a reference to “all the things we said in Laurel’s Kitchen” and I was flooded with emotional memories.  In 1973, it had been a couple years since I was diagnosed with breast cancer, had the mastectomy and continued merrily on my way. I deftly covered up the deep dread about a recurrence of cancer.  I was 36 years old.

With four little girls to feed and a diet of Fruit Loops, Velveeta cheese, Chitos and Oreo cookies, day old Wonder bread and ice cream to consider, I slowly explored the possible dietary contributions to developing cancer.  Laurel’s Kitchen fell into my lap.  I remember tearfully reading Carol’s introduction.  I was just like her in my innocent acceptance of advertised foods, packaged cake mixes, a meat heavy diet and cutting costs on everything.  Our milk came from powder.  I secretly ate whole packages of day old sugar donuts on the way home from the grocery store.

The dietary changes seemed necessary if I was going to prevent future cancers.  They came slowly and the children didn’t like them. They traded my homemade brick-bread sandwiches for their classmates’ Wonder bread when they could.  Vacations at my mother’s began with filling the cart with sugared cereals and steak.

I had no idea how to get enough protein into my body before I met Laurel, and ended up in the doctor’s office so anemic, they ran blood tests to see if the cancer had metastasized into the blood.

Gradually my entire life style changed to include fresh foods, far less meat, and more exercise.  I didn’t enjoy good health, free from frequent colds, however, until I added supplements made by Shaklee.  That was when I met my own Laurel, Jayme Curley, who introduced me to a peaceful life style and good food as well as foundational supplementation to fill in the gaps and bring me up to a high level of wellness.

Today we are surrounded by the Laurel’s kitchen choices in our high-end health food grocery stores.  A small percentage of the population has made a shift in their relationship to food.  But what about everyone else who hasn’t responded to something that leads them to make these dietary discoveries?  In her Earth Letter article, Carol calls us to be pioneers, people who choose a different kind of life.

She encourages us into the kitchen preparing a balanced appetizing meal with unprocessed foods, even when it takes a chuck of our day.  She quotes a friend, “I don’t know, really, what changed. I just know that one evening I walked in there grim as usual, determined to get it over with, and instead I found myself relaxing—accepting that I was there and willing to do it as well as I possibly could. And even since then, it’s been completely different.”  It’s recognition that what goes on in the kitchen is holy making it a holy kitchen.

She ends her article:  “Perhaps, though, the real point is not so much to find the holy places as to make them. Do we not hallow places by our very commitment to them?  When we turn our home into a place that nourishes and heals and contents, we are meeting directly all the hungers that a consumer society exacerbates but never satisfies…that home becomes a genuine counterforce to the corporate powers-that-be, asserting the priority of a very different kind of power.”

My own take away is that we are not striving for “being good” and avoiding the guilt of “I ate badly today.” We are embracing nourishing others and ourselves from a deep place of gladness. Perhaps being pioneers means showing the way to others.

Peacefully preparing good food day in and day out has not been easy for me.  I am part of the “hurry-up and get stuff done” life we all inhabit.  Years after the cancer, when my daughters were all away at college or beyond, one sent me a beautiful hand painted card with a sunset over a meadow and these words “The slower you go/the more you get done.”  I wrote a little poem in gratitude.

Mom Says

The slower you go

the more you get done.

The note writ large comes in a card

from one of several daughters

grown up and gone away

I stare at the words on paper

and remember days of kneading bread

the phone in one ear

a child in the other

lists, meetings, clamor, time

ticking, running

running late

I learned then to pay attention

show up to the bread

to the friend

to the child

one thing at a time

I must have repeated

slow down

for all my daughters

for myself

stop doing three things at once

make chopping onions

a zen practice

She sent my words back to me.

I need them again.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving.

Betsy

Please, leave your comments.

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In my last post, I talked about the pain of plantars faciitis along with some suggestions as to how to alleviate that debilitating pain. Today, I want to address the care of your feet, i.e. blisters and how to heal and prevent them.

Last Wed. Betty and I hiked 11 miles along Rattlesnake Ridge, overlooking North Bend, WA., a trail 45 minutes from Seattle. It is a through-hike requiring two cars.  We chose the long uphill route dropping to the Ledge and thence to the lake below.  Rattlesnake

ledge is infamous because so many unprepared people can easily get up there–it is only 1 1/2 miles, and every year one or two fall off to their death below.

In spite of arthritis, chronic pain, aching joints–hips, knees, ankles–, you still want to go walking.  Your feet must have the best possible support.  For me, this has been a huge challenge because I have bunions which require double wide men’s shoes.  At one point I developed a metatarsal neuroma or  Morton’s neuroma .  I mentioned Dr. Huppin’s Foot and Ankle clinic last week.  He knew exactly what modifications to make to the orthotic inserts to take the pressure off the 2nd toe and spread weight over all the toes.

He and his partner, Dr. Hale, publish a guide to shoes that helps a person choose the most stable shoe.  They even consider and recommend a flip flop!  Here’s the link where you can sign up for their recommended shoe list and guide lines on how to choose a shoe that will keep your foot stable.

On the Rattlesnake Ridge hike, I make a huge mistake.  I ignore a hot spot between my big toe and the 2nd toe, a place where I have rubbed countless blisters.  By the time I get home late that night, after another event, I can hardly walk.

I’d like to share what to do to avoid that suffering.  Blisters are serious business.  I knew a woman who ignored a blister her ski boot rubbed.  It developed septicemia and she died before they could airlift her to a hospital.

In my pack I carry a tape made by a German company.  The product is called Hansaplast and is not available in the US, only Canada and Mexico in North America.  But of course anywhere in Europe you can purchase rolls of this magical thin, easy-to-tear-with-your-fingers tape.  If I’m not going to Europe, I ask a traveling friend to buy it for me.  Usually I put a piece of this tape on the areas of my feet most likely to blister in my hiking boots before I begin the hike.  Usually, if I feel a hot spot, the way I did when we hiked out of Commonwealth Basin up the Pacific Crest Trail toward Red Pass, I stop on the trail and take off my boots and sox and put the tape on, thus preventing a blister.  But on Rattlesnake Ridge, I ignored everything I usually do.

The blister kept me awake all night. In the morning I punctured it, cleaned it carefully and put Second Skin on it.  This is the second thing to tell you about blisters.  Second Skin is a must for your pack first aide kit.  Don’t leave home without it.  You leave the second skin on for 5 days and by that time the blister is completely healed.  I hiked again yesterday, 8 miles on Tiger Mt. with quite an elevation gain.  Before going, I used the Hansaplast and a pair of liner sock.No blisters or sore feet.

One more suggestion for protecting your feet and legs: walk with hiking sticks and use them to lift your body up and lower it down on the steep bits of trail.  Your upper body gets a work out and your legs and feet have less stress.  We spent much of our time on Tiger a little bit lost.  I was glad we were 5 and that my smart phone GPS could locate us, but nothing helped poor signage.  We are determined to master the maze of wilderness trails on this complicated mountain, a foot hill of the Cascade Range, blessedly protected by forward looking environmentalists.  Known as the Issaquah Alps, Tiger and Cougar and Squak mountains form a corridor of wilderness in an otherwise densely developed exurban Seattle.

More than anything, keep moving, Gentle Reader, keep moving.

Before you go, what is your foot sore story and how have you kept sore feet from keeping you in your chair? Let us hear from you.

Be well, Do well and keep moving

Betsy

206-933-1889

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How many of you have suffered from chronic foot pain? You’ve been to the doctor, the chiropractor, the massage therapist – and nothing seems to help for very long.  Julie Donnelly is a Deep Muscle Massage Therapist with 20 years of experience specializing in the treatment of chronic joint pain and sports injuries. In today’s GrandmaBetsyBell/blog post Julie tells you a very simple technique you can use at home to experience dramatic pain relief.  Thanks for Dr. Steve Chaney for this information.
If you find value here, please forward this email to a friend.

You Can Make Your Foot Pain Go Away       —    Heal Your Plantar Fasciitis Naturally

Author: Julie Donnelly

Just a couple of weeks ago I taught you how to make your hip pain go away. Today’s topic is foot pain. And, yes, you can make your foot pain go away as well. But, let’s start at the beginning.

How Does Foot Pain Get Started?

You feel it coming on gradually. Maybe your lower leg aches a bit, but you’re busy so you ignore it. After a while every time you take a step you feel a burning that spreads along the entire lower leg and into your arch. Still you ignore it.  But it doesn’t go away, in fact, it gets worse.

[I’ve had foot pain many times over my life time of hiking and walking several miles at a time on the city streets.  The most recent was a few weeks before setting off for Switzerland to hike 50 miles in the Engadine Valley.  At the first slight twinge, I went to my podiatrist for an adjustment to my orthotics and avoided misery on the 6 day hike, or worse, cancellation.]

Now your arch just doesn’t feel “right.”  Then it starts to hurt, but not every time you put pressure on your foot. Again, you ignore it until finally you are experiencing foot pain all the time.   Then eventually you can’t ignore it any more, it’s like a knife being jabbed into your arch. Now it’s not just hurting when you run or drive your car, your foot hurts with every step.

Almost every day you do something that causes you to lift the front of your foot while your heel is still resting on the floor. For most people it comes from straining your lower leg muscles when you are driving a car, especially if you drive often. It is even more evident if you are doing any type of city driving because you are off and on the gas and break constantly, repetitively straining all of your lower leg muscles. You just know that your foot hurts and it’s affecting your life.  You must find a solution!

What is Plantar Fasciitis?

You’ve been told you have plantar fasciitis, and you may have been told you need expensive orthotics.  Perhaps you’ve even tried them and while they worked for a short time, eventually the pain returned and then it started to hurt worse.  Now you’re told you need to replace the orthotics, but you’ve come to realize that isn’t the answer.  And it’s not the answer. The orthotics are focusing on the symptom, but totally ignoring the source of the problem.

[Julie has some great advice in this article, and, in my experience, orthotics can make a difference.  It depends on the doctor.  Mine is an auto mechanic with his attention and expertise directed to the foot. If you are the Seattle area, I suggest you see him http://www.footankle.com/ Drs. Huppin and Hale.  Dr. Huppin has terrible bedside manner, but I got his full attention and he worked with my plantar fasciitis and a metatarsal swelling over time to get the orthotics adjusted to address the root problem.  Find a doctor who is not just putting an band aid under your sore feet.]

The good news is that you can heal your plantar fasciitis naturally. Most people, including too many medical professionals, don’t realize that foot pain is frequently coming from outside the foot. The muscles of your lower leg actually are there to move your ankle and foot, not to move your lower leg (that comes from your upper leg).

The reason is simple. First let’s use an analogy that I use all the time because it’s so perfect to explain how muscles work to move a joint.  If you pull your hair at the end, it hurts at your scalp. You don’t need to massage your scalp, you don’t need to take pain medications to stop the tension in your head, and you certainly don’t need brain surgery, you just need to stop pulling your hair!  Now substitute the muscle for your hand, the tendon for your hair, and the joint for your scalp.

Muscles originate in one place, they merge into a tendon that crosses over a joint, and then the tendon inserts into a point on the other side of the joint.  When the muscle pulls, the tendon tightens and the joint moves, but if the muscle is tight it will continue pulling on the joint even when you don’t want it to move.  In the case of the lower leg muscles and the foot, the muscles are pulling your foot up from the ground, but you are pressing it down and causing the tendons to put a strain on the insertion points, which in this case are all in your arch.

How the Muscles Get Strained

Every time you take a step you are using all of the muscles of your lower leg. As you work you contract these muscles every time you step on the pedal. Lifting the front of your foot up you are using your tibialis anterior and then you press down on the pedal you are using your calf muscles. If you walk a lot, or you are a runner, you are causing a repetitive strain on the same muscle fibers. Also, while driving your car your foot is picked up in the front to go from the gas to the brake, again straining the same muscles. You do this over and over until you have strained the muscle fibers.  Eventually the fibers shorten due to a phenomenon called muscle memory.

Muscle memory will hold your muscles in the shortened position even when you don’t need them contracted. This puts pressure on the insertion point, in this case, the arch.

The Result is Arch Pain

The two primary muscles that cause arch pain are the tibialis anterior and the peroneals.  They originate at the top of the lower leg, merge into tendons where your ankle begins to slim, and then insert into the bottom of your foot.

The tibialis anterior goes along the outside of your shin bone, crosses over the front of your ankle and then inserts into your arch.  When it contracts normally you lift up the inside of your foot so you are resting on the outside of your foot.

The peroneals originate at the top/outside of your lower leg, run down the leg and merge into a tendon that goes behind  the outside of your ankle and inserts in two places; the outside of your foot, and under your arch to the inside of your foot. When it contracts normally you pull up the outside of your foot so you are resting on your big toe.

An Easy Treatment that Works

The goal with this Julstro self-treatment is to force the toxins out of the muscle fibers, drawing in blood to nourish the muscles.  As the blood fills the muscle, the fibers lengthen and the strain is removed from the arch.

Begin by treating the tibialis anterior on the front of your leg.

#1 – kneel on the floor and put a ball just outside of your shin bone.

#2 – Move your leg forward so the ball rolls along the outside of your shin bone.

Then treat the peroneals on the outside of your lower leg, sit on the floor with the leg you are treating bent and resting on the floor. Put the ball on the outside of your leg (so it is actually on the floor and your leg is on top of it) and then press the outside of your leg into the ball.  Move your leg so the ball starts to roll down the outside of your lower leg.  Your intention is to do the same as you did for the tibialis anterior (above)
Or, sit on the floor or a bed and position your leg as shown in picture #3. While using either a dowel or a length of PVC pipe, slide the pipe from just above your ankle bone to just below your knee joint.

#3 – Using a dowel or piece of PVC pipe, put pressure on the outside of your leg and slide along the peroneals muscle from your knee to above your ankle bone.

The treatments will feel sore but that’s because you’re forcing H+ ions through the muscle fibers, and acid burns. But, it’s better to have the toxins out of the muscles and fill the fibers with blood, plus the lymphatic system will pick up the toxins and eliminate them from your body.

[Supplements that help are Alfalfa and Lecithin.  Alfalfa tablets—eat them like peas, a teaspoonful at a time—moves blood, infusing the hard-to-reach area with nourishment and acting as a diuretic, flushing the region.  Lecithin is nature’s emulsifier.  You find soy lecithin in many tablets and other products.  The task lecithin performs is liquefying sticky material so it can flush through the lymph system.]

There are several other treatments that work to eliminate arch pain and plantar fasciitis, but I’ve found these to be the most productive, and they may be all that is necessary to eliminate the problem completely.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

You Might Also Like

Blog post : Making Hip Pain Go Away

Again, my thanks to Dr. Steven Chaney for his research and leadership in the field of alternative approaches to health issues.  If you would like to be on Dr. Chaney’s mailing list, go here to sign up for his weekly Health Tips from the Professor.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving,

Betsy

206 933 1889

Leave a comment or email me!  I love to hear your solution to the problems presented in this blog.

The post Making foot pain go away appeared first on GrandmaBetsyBell.

How many of you have suffered from chronic hip pain? You’ve been to the doctor, the chiropractor, the massage therapist – and nothing seems to help for very long.  Julie Donnelly is a Deep Muscle Massage Therapist with 20 years of experience specializing in the treatment of chronic joint pain and sports injuries.   Thanks to Dr. Chaney, I received this excellent article written by Julie about a very simple technique you can use at home to experience dramatic pain relief.

If you enjoy today’s post, please forward this email to a friend.

How Can You Relieve Chronic Hip Pain?

Making Hip Pain Go Away

Author: Julie Donnelly

Do you have joint pain or stiffness?  Does it hurt when you’ve been sitting and you try to get up and walk? Have you tried to stretch and either it feels good for a few minutes and then you’re back to square one, or maybe even worse, it hurts more than it did before? Do you sometimes feel like your joints are just tied down and you’re no longer flexible? Do you maybe even blame it on “old age?”  The odds are extremely high that all that’s happening is your muscles are in spasm.  

If any of these statements fit you, you’ll really love today’s message.  As a bonus, at the end of this blog you’ll learn a self-treatment technique that you’ll love if you ever have hip pain.

I’ve mentioned many times that a tight muscle pulling on a tendon will cause joint pain, just like pulling on your hair will cause your scalp to hurt.  And, just like the only way to stop the pain in your head is to let go of your hair, the only way to stop the pain in your joint is to release the tight muscle.

Another analogy that I use frequently has to do with stretching and why you may feel worse AFTER you stretch than you did before you stretched. If you took a 12″ line and tied enough knots in it so it is now 11″, and then you try to stretch it back to 12″ without first untying the knots, you can see what would happen.  The knots would become tighter and the fibers on either side of the knot would be overstretched and could possibly even tear.  If the line was attached to a fixed point on either side you can imagine the strain that is happening to the attachment points.  This is exactly what is happening to you when you when you stretch a muscle that is tied up in knots (spasms).  You can see how important it is to first release the spasms before stretching.

Today I’d like to share with you how to do one of the Julstro self-treatments that we teach on the Julstro self-treatment DVD.  So many people have hip pain that I’d like to explain how to treat the tensor fascia lata muscle which is located on the outside of your hip, between your hip bone and the top of your thigh bone:

Using a tennis ball (hollow in the center so it is a bit less intense) or a Perfect Ball (solid in the center so it gets in deeper) place the ball right where the side-seam of your pants is located – between the two bones.  If you are in a lot of pain, start by leaning into a wall. If you want to go deeper into the muscle, lie on the floor on top of the ball.  You may need to move an inch or so to find the “epicenter” of the spasm, but you’ll know immediately when you locate it.  Always make sure you keep your pressure to a “hurts so good” level, you’re in control so don’t over-do.

Once you find the spasm, which is also called a “trigger point,” just stay still on it for 30-60 seconds. Lift your weight off the ball for a few breaths and then press into the ball again. This second time you’ll find that it won’t be as painful as the first time because you have already pressed out some of the H+ ions that are causing the spasm (and the pain).

Keep repeating this for a few minutes and then slightly move your body so you can find other trigger points that are around your hips. You’ll probably find points that are a little bit toward the front of your hip, so make sure you rotate your body so you’re facing more toward the wall or the floor, and then rotate your body so you’re back is more toward the wall or the floor.

This one simple technique has saved several of my clients from thinking they needed hip surgery! It will help you move easier and with less discomfort – and often it will totally eliminate the pain from your hip completely.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Thanks to Julie for this advice.  For those of you who have sciatica, try this method to get rid of hip pain.  Let me know how it works for you.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving

Betsy Bell

206 933 1889

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