December 2009 [Volume 8, Issue 12]

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In this issue of To Your Health:

• Stretch Through the New Year
• Learning and Unlearning
• Music to Your Heart

Stretch Through the New Year

Have you ever started a workout program and then found something that got in the way? Or even reached your goal then quit the routine? This next year is going to be different, and here is help for you to stick with your resolution. The key to sticking with any program is to ask yourself: "Is fitness a lifelong commitment to improve my quality of life or just something I'll do for a short time?"

The easiest way to begin is with flexibility training. With stretching exercises in our routine, we will dramatically improve our performance in whatever else we do and can ease any muscular pain and tension. Read the full article.

Learning and Unlearning

In the following article, oncology massage therapist, Tracy Walton, tackles some old beliefs and some myths about massage therapy as it relates to cancer.

"In watching thousands of people with cancer and cancer histories, I am struck by how much information, and how many skills, patients learn along the way. They master medical information, often unfamiliar at first. They learn which people to bring into the loop, and whom to hold at bay. They learn how to care for their bodies, under "new normal" conditions. They discover how to filter information, and listen deeply to their hearts, their families, and their physicians.

"Learning and unlearning requires giving up old beliefs, and being open to new information and skills. This is a rich process, and sometimes a challenging one. On the way to wisdom, it's good to know that there are resources to support us." Read the full article.

Music to Your Heart

They say music can soothe the soul, but did you know it may also improve your heart health? Research presented at the 2009 European Society of Cardiology Congress in Barcelona, Spain suggests music therapy reduces blood pressure, heart rate and anxiety in patients with acute coronary syndrome - any of a collection of symptoms, such as chest pain, brought on by sudden reduced blood flow to the heart. Read the full article.

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