ENJOY! -- Ellen & Tim
of the month
Recommend a friend (heck, recommend an enemy!) for a massage or for our 3-for-$150 introductory Pilates deal and get $30 off a 1-hour massage with Ellen!
of the month
Summer is coming to a close and Fall will soon be upon us. We all need supplemental exercises whether we are outdoors biking and hiking, or indoors at the gym or doing yoga. Our intention is to keep you fit throughout the year with some Pilates moves you can do at home. Collect them as we go through the year to make a complete workout.
Frog: lying on your back with a neutral pelvis, soles of the feet together, knees out to the sides, hands gently cradling your head with elbows spread wide, keep your pelvis stable as you lift your upper torso as far up as you can go and pulse up an inch and down an inch. 10-20 reps, depending on whether or not you are doing other exercises. Remember: always activate your pelvic floor before lifting your torso and don't lift your pubic bone or move your legs. Don't pull from your neck. Breath in on your way down and out on your way up.
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Quad stretch: lie on your belly, lifted up on your forearms with your elbows directly under your shoulders and fingers pointed forward. Turn the right forearm toward the left elbow, bend your left knee and grab your left foot with the left hand (if you can -- if not use a strap or a towel). Keep both hips on the floor and pull your belly button into your spine and tailbone towards the floor. Try to keep the front of your leg down on the mat. Hold for as long as it feels good (a few breaths at least). Switch sides and repeat. Remember: elongate the ribs on the side of the body that is supporting (not stretching)by pressing that elbow into the mat and relaxing the top of the shoulder. Reach the armpit towards the hip (i.e., engage the lats) and twist the ribcage forward toward the mat.
Ellen's
in the
Kitchen
This month's recipe is one I have made numerous times this Summer and is simple, very nutritious, light and soo good! This is really a great meal because it has lots of protein, and all the veggies including the mint can be bought fresh at a farmers market or from your garden! And as the weather gets cooler, it works as a great side dish with hot soup. Tabouli keeps well in the fridge for several days. Note: I tend not to use measurements when I cook, so measurements are an estimation. Have fun, experiment!!! Happy, healthy eating -- Ellen.
Quinoa Tabouli
1 cup of quinoa (a light whole grain high in protein, available at any health food store and many supermarkets)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 heaping tsp. garlic -- fresh, crushed
1/2 cup chopped scallions (greens included)
2 medium tomatoes -- chopped
1 full cup fresh parsley -- chopped
1/2 tsp. dried mint -- (fresh is better if you can get it)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 can of cooked chickpeas
1 cup of cucumber -- chopped
1 whole red pepper -- finely chopped
salt and black pepper to taste
Cook quinoa in 2 cups of boiling water until soft (maybe 15 minutes). Let stand till cool. Add lemon juice, garlic, mint, olive oil, parsley, veggies and chickpeas. Stir, add salt & pepper to taste. Refrigerate for several hours till cool. Adjust seasoning however you and your family prefer.
Pick
Generally, our restaurant recommendations will fit the following criteria: local, middle-market in price, and (ideally) flying under the radar. Our recommendation this month fits the first two qualities to a T. A'Mangiare in Elmsford (121 East Main St.) is the new addition (to locations in Bronxville and Pleasantville) to the A'Mangiare family of restaurants. One of my foodie clients stumbled upon the location by serendipity last week and she says it's some of the best Italian she's had. (And she knows from Italian...) So the next time you're jonesing for mozarella en carozza or some veal saltimbocca, you know who to call.
Dear Seamus: Why is Tim always going on about the Iliotibial Band, and doing that excruciating stretch on the outside of my leg? (P.S. And what's with all the barking?)
Dear DF: While your courage in questioning Tim's dogged regime of stretching the ITB proves you are indeed an intrepid soul (for truly if he is able to decipher your enigmatic moniker "DF in New Paltz" before your next session one would not be paranoiac to assume one might receive a double-helping of said excruciating stretch), I must say that any stretch which can keep the ITB looser and thereby prevent (during walking/exercise) a continual rubbing of the band over the lateral femoral epicondyle and a resultant irritation and inflamation of said tissue -- well, it doesn't take a liberal arts degree from a distinguished university (although I am enrolling in a Victorian Studies program at Vassar) to understand that what's good for the ITB is good for all of us. As for the barking, well...ya'll wouldn't understand -- it's a dog thing.