Rami's Blog

Like the Yin-Yang, Eastern Martial Arts and Western medicine are two halves of a whole. My mission is to preserve the ancient mind-body tools and pass them on to you.

 

Mind-Body Workout #2: Stretch and Strengthen your Core

It's time for another mind-body vlog workout routine! This month, we're going to focus on the core, which we'll narrow down to our abdominals, lower back, and inner pelvic girdle muscles.

The core of our body is the true seat of our health and strength. In martial arts, all power is transferred through the core into our punches and kicks. The core structures also protect our vulnerable internal organs from damage.

Routine #2

This workout routine will not only work your core muscles and increase strength, it will also stabilize your lower back and massage your internal organs. Here your go!

Mind-Body Workout #2: Stretch and Strengthen your Core

Do these exercises five days a week (weekends off).

Chair Twists x 1 set
Hold each side for 2-3 minutes. Keep your shoulders even and relaxed. Don't turn your hips!

Groin Stretch x 1 set
Hold this stretch for a good 4-6 minutes. There are a lot of tense muscles in the pelvic floor.

Sit-ups x 3 sets
Go slowly, with 2 minutes of rest in between each set.
1-15 reps is beginner. 16-30 reps is intermediate. 31-50 reps is advanced.

Buddhist and Taoist Breath x 4 sets with 30 seconds of rest in between
First two sets: Buddhist breathing for 1 minute.
Second two sets: Taoist breathing for 1 minute.

These last two exercises should be done while you continue to do the Empty and Full Moon motions. If you can't coordinate that much mind-body motion yet, just focus on your breathing in and out.

Grind x 6 sets of slow, controlled motion. 
Alternate: one set rotate left, one set rotate right.
First two sets: smaller circles. 
Second two sets: medium circles.
Last two sets: big circles.

Push the Tablets x 3 sets, 30 seconds each
This is a great rotational exercise. Use a chair is you want. Put your mind in your core!

Few! That's a pretty intense workout. A lot of these moves come from Tai Chi. If you want to explore more Tai Chi movement and theory on your own, check out my DVD, Sunrise Tai Ch.

Good luck!

Another Way to Recover from a Mastectomy

This is part 2 of my October Breast Cancer Awareness and Treatment vlog series. See the first installments here and here.

This movement is called "Push the Tablets," and it incorporates rotational stretching of the lower back, in addition to moving the upper back and chest. It is great for pulling air into the back of your lungs, and for loosening the soft tissue of your chest and shoulder girdle.

Unsolved Pain in Lower Back and Legs

Recently, a reader asked me about treating Sacroiliac joint problems.

I know what you're thinking: "Sacroiliac joint? What the heck is that?"

The sacroiliac joint is where your spine meets and connects with your hips. Specifically, the sacrum bone (the second to last bone in your spine, going down) connects to the ilium (think of them like the "wings") on either side of your hips. This joint is composed to many short, strong ligaments. All of  the muscles in your lower trunk and hips help move this joint. 

Sacroiliac joint issues usually occur in women over 30 years old. SI joint issues are often mistaken for lower back injuries, or sciatica, because the pain is very similar.

The SI joint is extremely important for overall health and mobility. It is at the crossroads of our two greatest bases of movement: our spine and our hips.

Below, I've posted an abridged version of the routine that I gave to the reader, specifically designed to relieve SI joint issues. If you are experiencing similar unsolved back pain or leg pain, give these exercises a try.

Step 1 and 2: Lots of excess weight and long periods of sitting down can put too much stress on the SI joint, so before you begin to stretch it out, you need to make sure you are at a healthy weight and are remembering to take breaks during desk work and long drives to get up, stand, walk, and stretch.

Step 3: Do the following mind-body exercises:

All these stretches should be done at 40-60% effort. Also, supplementing this routine with some standing or moving meditations from my Sunrise and Sunset Tai Chi forms would add a lot.

I have linked to the exercises that I have blog videos for, and will update with more links as we release more of them. All of these exercises are in my books.

You could also buy my Lower Back Course on Udemy.com, which comes with all of these exercises, meditations, and more. Choose what option is best for you!

P.S. If you have bought any of my books or DVDs, please consider writing an honest review about it on the website you bought it from. I can't tell you how much your feedback matters both to me, and to other people considering my mind body practices.

Thanks!

Breast Cancer Surgery: Preparation and Recovery

Fight breast cancer like Xena the Warrior! In this video, I show you two stretches that you can use to prepare for, and recover from, surgery for breast cancer. This is the first of our four breast cancer-beating videos for October. The theme throughout these videos will be opening up the shoulder girdle and chest area. If you haven't checked it out yet, take a look at my other video about preparing for upper body surgery, which has four more stretches you can do to help you prepare for and recover from a mastectomy, or other breast cancer surgery. And definitely don't forget my rule of 80% effort!

Breast Cancer Awareness Blogroll

October is breast cancer awareness month, and that means that a lot of pink is going to hit the shelves of stores, the socks of professional athletes, and more.

This kind of awareness is a good thing. When we pervade pop culture with reminders of breast cancer, it helps us understand the lives of those people who suffer from it, and how this disease is part of every day of their lives.

However, seeing pink is not the most important thing you can do for these breast cancer fighters. If you really want to help spread awareness of this terrible disease, you should listen to the people suffering from it, and take their experiences to heart. We all know what cancer is, but most of us do not know what it is like to live with it.

So, for you readers who want to know more, and those of you currently fighting breast cancer, here are 10 Breast Cancer Blogs (in no particular order) that can help you on your journey:

  • Living Beyond Breast Cancer - This is the website for a non-profit located based outside of Philadelphia (LBBC) committed to providing breast cancer fighters and their loved ones with reliable information and the writings of a team of bloggers.
  • Nancy's Point - Nancy Stordahl is an author, writer, and teacher who lost her mother to breast cancer, and was later diagnosed with it herself. Her blog is the best way to read her experience, but she has also contributed to a number of other websites and organizations. 
  • Darn Good Lemonade - Breast cancer fighter and professed "dog mom" Mandi writes about her experience making lemonade from the lemons life gave her.
  • Lisa Bonchek Adams - On her blog, Adams writes not only about living with metastatic breast cancer, but also about dealing with the grief of loss, as well as her experience raising a son with congenital abnormalities.
  • Dancing with Cancer - One of the longest stories about breast cancer surviving on the internet. Author, Jill, writes about breast cancer awareness, her original diagnosis in 1999, and the return and spread of her cancer in 2002.
  • Chemobrain...In The Fog - Ann Marie's blog is particularly relevant to people who have undergone chemotherapy and are experiencing abnormal side-effects. Ann tells the story of her life after being forced to give up her accounting job due to cognitive issues from the chemo, and her pursuit of volunteer opportunities after that.
  • IHATEBREASTCANCER - Katherine O'Brien, a B2B magazine editor, writes about her experience (and her mother's experience) with breast cancer. Her answer to the age-old health blogger question "Why are you doing this?" is a simple and resounding "Because I am here."
  • The Accidental Amazon - Kathi brings a much needed snark to the post-breast cancer life, and writes about being an "symmetry-challenged" artist, moving through life with a prosthesis and some long-term side-effects.
  • But Doctor... I Hate Pink! - Ann Silberman writes honestly about life with terminal cancer on this blog, and there just so happens to be a video about her and her family that you should go watch.
  • The Battle We Didn't Choose - I know I said these blogs weren't in a particular order, but I did save this blog for last for a reason. On this blog, Angelo Merendino chronicled his wife Jennifer's battle with breast cancer, a battle for him as well, which ended December 22, 2011, when Jennifer passed. Angelo's beautiful photography is truly stunning, and is a perfect example of the impact one person can have on raising awareness.

That's it! I hope everyone has a wonderful October!