You have become passionate about the cause to the point of dogma. You will not tolerate any opposing view. Composite: Getty

When you told me you had decided to become avegan, I was worried. Youhad always been afussy eater and I feared that, with such a limited diet, you wouldnt get the nutrition you needed.

But you were over 18, so it was yourchoice. In addition, you did begin to eat more fruit and vegetables and tried to include the right food and supplements in your diet, so I was, at least partly, appeased.

You said your motivation was animal welfare and the environmental damage caused by agriculture. Fairenough.

With a younger child and a full-time job, I found it a challenge to research and cook meals for you, but I took it onboard. And when you left home for university, I made sure the car was packed with homemade vegan soup foryour freezer.

But it is not enough for you that Iaccommodate your choice. As you have explained many times, for you, veganism is not just about what you eat its a lifestyle. You have watched all the pro-vegan documentaries, read mountains of information on the internet and can effortlessly reel off thesoundbites. You have become passionate about thecause to the pointof dogma. You will not tolerate any opposing view. Crucially, you can no longer respect anyone who is not persuaded to go vegan. And that means me.

I am open to at least some of your arguments and have made changes tomy diet on account of information you have passed on to me about farmed animals. But, as a middle-aged woman, my choices in life are narrowing and will continue to narrow. I have no intention of limiting those choices further by going vegan. In your eyes, that just makes me selfish.

When we meet, I take you to vegan restaurants and embrace the choices available. I send you vegan recipes andseek out vegan chocolate for you in the supermarket. I know that you appreciate my efforts, but I also know that I will always fall short. I have stopped even trying to explain my reasons for not going vegan as it just ends up with both of us getting upset.

There is an uncomfortable contradiction for mein all of this I have brought you up to be astrong, powerful, compassionate young woman. I would expect you to be passionate about what you believe in. I have taught you that tolerance is vital, but that there is a point when a line is crossed and certain behaviour cannot be tolerated. So I really can understand, in part, your attitude.

But I cant tell you how hard it is to live with the knowledge that my own daughter is sickened by me. It is so important to me to feel worthy of yourrespect.

I hope that, in time and with maturity, dogma may give way to amore open attitude. But my fear is that, while you may mellow in how outspoken you are about veganism, your revulsion of me will remain vivid. And I will just have to live with that.

Anonymous

We will pay 25 for every Letter to (please write about 600-700 words), Playlist, Snapshot or We Love to Eat we publish. Write to Family Life, The Guardian, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU or email family@theguardian.com. Please include your address and phone number. We are only able to reply to those whose contributions we are going to use

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A letter to My daughter, who hates me for not being vegan - The Guardian

SPOKANE, Wash. Fit and trim, Ned McNamara uses a gentle voice while naming yoga poses for a midday class he teaches at the Spokane Valley YMCA.

Wearing black-rimmed glasses, a black T-shirt and athletic pants, McNamara appears much younger than his 69 years. He holds the yoga poses with ease but stops on occasion to check postures among his 18 students, a mix of men and women of various ages.

Let gravity be your friend, he told a recent class, as relaxing music played in the darkened studio. Continuing to breath, out through the nose a cleansing, centering breath.

A certified personal trainer, McNamara could be described as the epitome of active retiree. He teaches yoga and fitness classes for the YMCA and the ACT 2 program of Community Colleges of Spokane, volunteers for search and rescue activities, and teaches rescue skills.

Hes also a runner, swimmer, former triathlete, and operator of a home-based business, NrG Fitness.

And just over a year ago, he had quadruple bypass surgery.

With me, it was hereditary; it wasnt my diet or fitness level, said McNamara, who had noticed symptoms such as shortness of breath in the preceding months.

Both my parents died of heart attacks. I never had a heart attack, and my heart wasnt damaged, but the major arteries were 95 percent-plus blocked. I was on the edge of having a major heart attack. I was (a) walking dead guy.

McNamara said he at first mistook tightening and burning in the chest as a sign hed let his own fitness slip and needed to work out more.

The danger didnt click until he had coffee with a friend, one of his students, and that friends wife, a doctor. Upon hearing McNamara describe his symptoms, they immediately helped him book an appointment with Spokane heart experts.

Here I am in Spokane, one of the heart centers of the world, so I ended up with the absolute best doctors at Sacred Heart because of people in my class, he said. I got right in when they scheduled the stress test.

Actually, I had the symptoms for about nine months. I got chided a little bit by doctors who said, What would you think if you found someone in the backcountry who described these symptoms?

After his surgery Sept. 2, 2015, doctors by the following Oct. 26 granted him 100 percent return to doing full cardiovascular workouts.

Ive gone back to climbing mountains, teaching, doing all the cardio work I did before, he said.

McNamara and his wife Catherine, 69, deliberately chose Spokane in 2013 to move from Colorado for their retirement years, in part because of this regions lower cost-of-living and outdoor activities, he said. He also likes to ski and has season passes at 49 Degrees North.

He said Spokane even reminds him somewhat of New England, where the U.S. Air Force veteran was raised in a little town near Plymouth, Massachusetts. His career took him across the U.S. and internationally, so he traveled frequently, but he always found time for regular workouts.

I only stayed (at) places where I could run, he said. Ive always taken care of myself; never been out of shape.

After moving to Spokane, McNamara saw a booth for Spokane County Sheriffs Office volunteers at the Bighorn Outdoor Adventure Show. At first, he helped with sheriff incident responses, until he joined the volunteer-based Spokane County Search and Rescue (SAR) three years ago.

McNamara is now SAR council president and serves on three separate teams its swift water rescue, mountain rescue, and Inland Northwest Search and Rescue specializing in mountain and technical rope rescues (formerly Spokane Mountaineers).

Among volunteer search and rescue missions so far, he participated in a search for an autistic child who disappeared at night in the South Hill area. Another call sent him and searchers looking for an older man with dementia in Spokane. Both resulted in individuals found safely.

Additionally, McNamara volunteers as an instructor for the search and rescue groups academy, teaching skills ranging from building survival shelters to navigation. He also volunteers at church, Valley Real Life, as acting director of security.

While living in Colorado, McNamara completed several triathlons, and thats when people first began asking him for fitness advice. Ten years ago, he became a certified personal trainer after completing requirements of the American Council on Exercise.

In part, his yoga focus began on a business trip. At an airport gift store, he bought a yoga book, but it sat unread for months. Later, he saw a newspaper ad for a yoga class in his hometown.

I went, and I loved it, McNamara said. He decided to include yoga for opening a home fitness studio in Colorado, so he worked a few years to gain YogaFit certification.

I have a passion for it, he said. If a doctor told me I could only do one thing to take care of myself, it would be yoga, no question.

With yoga, its a strengthening process. Its all about breathing and breath-as-life energy. Youre providing your body with a lot of oxygen, and you gain a lot more range of motion and flexibility. I teach Ashtanga yoga; it flows and youre constantly connecting dots.

Yoga also provides a very calming experience, he said.

It allows people to totally relax and decompress, and a person will sleep better, McNamara said. Stress is a killer. The deeper a person becomes in the yoga discipline, with breathing and stretching, that goes away.

Providing fitness training isnt high-paying, McNamara said, but thats not why he does it. He described his reward as coming from seeing transition and growth in clients.

After the recent yoga class, McNamara chatted with several people heading out. He enjoys that too.

I love people, he said. If you genuinely care for people, it comes back to you tenfold.

Continued here:

Living large after heart surgery - MyAJC

MADONNA has given fans a glimpse at her adopted twins playing piano together, as she passes on her love of music to the adorable youngsters.

The singer, 58, recently welcomedlittle Stella and Esther Mwale, originally from Malawi, into her family, and theyre taking after her already.

Instagram

Sharing a short clip of them on the piano together,the pair smile happily as they bang their hands down on the keys.

Madge wrote: Saturday Jam! Awesome!

She then followed it with a snap of them relaxing on the grass outside together, clearly tired out from the activities.

While the singer herself is pictured laid out, the twins are sat beside her chatting.

Instagram / Madonna

Instagram

She wrote: Beverly Hillbillies!

Madonna has been keeping fans up to date with her kids development in their first fewweeks with their new family.

Just days ago, she shared a snap of them all enjoying a pyjama party together.

The little girls were all smiles as they sat on the knees of their big sister Mercy James and big brother David Banda, with the Like A Virgin singers other children Rocco and Lourdes absent from the shot.

Mercy, who Madonna adopted in 2009, flashed a cheeky grin as she cuddled her little sister while David, brought into the showbiz brood three years earlier, mimicked her pose cradling the other twin.

Giving her fans an insight into her childrens happy night in, Madge captioned the shot with the words: Pajama Game on , and four Emoji faces crying with laughter.

She followed up with: The revolution of love starts at home.

Mum-of-six Madonna then followed with a throwback shot, also posted to her page, which showed her in Africa kneeling on the floor.

Her two twin girls could be seen playing in the background and she confessed: Already missing this beautiful place!

The warm heart of Africa.

The proud parent has been flooding her account with new snaps showing the adorable sisters.

Instagram

The snap shows the adorable youngsters smiling next to each other with big bows round their heads.

Madonna wrote: Todays Blessing brought to you by Adidas!

Got a story? email digishowbiz@the-sun.co.uk or call us direct on 02077824220

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Madonna shares video of her adopted twins playing piano together before relaxing on the grass outside in adorable ... - The Sun

Game. Changer.

Many highly sensitive people (HSP) walk around in a perpetual state of exhaustion. You have a nervous system that is wired differently, and a brain that seems to miss a filter and living in a society that feeds you with information 24/7.

By the end of the day, you are looking for that hole in the ground you wished you could crawl into and never come out again.

THIS Type Of Person Is The Most Sleep Deprived, Says Science

Ive been on this self-care journey for a while now. Most of the time I dont even like the term self-care. It seems that we just forgot common sense and because of that, we need a word to affirm to ourselves and others that we are not just being selfish because we are choosing to do something just for us.

But that is just a side note. As for the self-care journey, meditation, yoga, spa days, walking in nature, relaxing music, and alone time are all great self-care practices that Ive been experimenting with and implementing since my last burnout.

But, if you ask me, what the number 1 thing is every HSP needs to start with when in a state of where is my hole in the ground, I will always say: SLEEP MORE!

I believe that this is an advice that every person should take. But if you are highly sensitive, you need even more sleep than others.

When your nervous system is a state of constant alert, your brain will feel fried by the end of the day. Sometimes, it occurs even at the beginning of the day.

It is no surprise that being highly sensitive increases your chances of experiencing burn out at least once during your lifetime. And sleep helps decompress and revitalize your nervous system. This is not a luxury item on a one day I will list. This is a necessity.

Seeking for a solution for my exhaustion outside of myself, as we all tend to do when we first start on our healing journey, I went to see an acupuncturist a few years ago.

After patiently listening to my story (the 2 toddlers keeping me up all night story), she just looked at me and said: Well, I have the solution for you. For 2 whole weeks, I want you to be in bed by 8 p.m. and you are not allowed to get out of bed until you feel rested. If you then feel that you still need my help, you come back.

Within one week I was up and running again. I couldnt believe that it could be that simple! I enjoyed the sleeping so much that I did do the 2 weeks. And from there on, I never ever forgot to prioritize sleep in my life.

When I work with clients in creating self-care practices, I now always start with sleep. You can meditate all you want, but if you are sleep deprived, you are probably falling asleep by your third mantra.

What really amazes me is that when I give this advice, it creates a lot of resistance.

15 Struggles Only Those Of Us With Insomnia Will EVER Understand

Being an adult seems to imply that you stay up late (there is also a fear of missing out hidden somewhere in there) and that you dont need as much sleep as a child.

Although this IS true, you dont need as much sleep as your children, you, as a highly sensitive person, do need more sleep that the non-highly sensitive person.

I am not asking you to be in bed by 8 p.m every day, an hour earlier than you normally would go to bed, is already 7 more hours of sleep booked in one week.

Commit for 2 weeks on going to bed 1 hour earlier than you normally do. For you to do so start decompressing at least 2 hours before you really want to go to sleep. This means no type of stimulation that impairs the production of melatonin, which plays a key role in regulating your sleep cycle.

I am talking about smartphones, iPads, television, computers, and more. Our bodies have not evolved to handle this much artificial light in the evening. You can read before bed but use a small reading lamp.

When you feel that youve caught up on sleep, do everything you can to maintain this foundational self-care habit.

Set up boundaries for yourself. Create your life around getting enough sleep. Dont go without less than 8 hours for more than 2 nights in a row. Believe me, your nervous system will thank you!

Getting enough sleep helps you create a sturdy foundation for not only creating other habits that fit your sensitive needs but also for creating a life that is energized and purposeful!

This guest article originally appeared on YourTango.com: The #1 Self-Care Practice For Highly Sensitive People.

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Could Highly Sensitive People Need More Sleep than Others? - PsychCentral.com (blog)

Posted March 05, 2017 13:55:48

In the world of elite sport, athletes are always looking for that special something that can help them gain a winning edge over their opponents and cope with extreme pressure.

Mindfulness and meditation techniques have been around for centuries, but increasingly some of Australia's high-profile athletes are using the tools to help them deal with life on and off the playing field..

Sydney Swans assistant coach Brett Kirk was one of sport's fearless competitors during his playing career with the AFL club.

But his ferocity on the field belies his thoughtfulness off it, and he believes it was his daily meditation practice that helped him reach the pinnacle of the sport.

"It gives you great clarity. Footy is like life. It is a game of crazy chaos," he said.

Kirk said he started practising mindfulness and meditation while at the Swans in his early 20s following the death of a close mate.

"Like a lot of young men you get tipped upside down and turned inside out and I didn't really know which was up," he said.

"I found it was really comforting for me and also allowed me to deal with some anger and different other stuff that was going on inside me."

Up and coming Australian cricketer Cam Bancroft's journey to meditation was similar.

"I know that at times I have got some personality traits of being really intense, being really focused," he said.

"And while they are strengths of mine being able to tailor that back to a really relaxed, passive approach is something that I have had to learn and develop."

Bancroft's Perth Scorchers coach and former Australian opening batsman Justin Langer describes his meditation routine as the most important part of his day.

And now at the age of just 24 Bancroft has become a meditation teacher.

"I think it is a really important part of your life. It's amazing what you can come to in your own mind when you have a really passive attitude in the way you think," the West Australian batsman said

Sandy Gordon, an associate professor at the University of Western Australia's School of Sport Science Exercise and Heath, said research showed there were countless benefits to athletes who practised mindfulness and meditation including stress and anxiety reduction, and greater creativity.

He cited the brain's ability to adapt as a key factor.

"The neuroplasticity in our brain has been recognised as promoting greatest well-being of all in terms of forgiveness, self compassion, enhancing performance of people in leadership positions in highly volatile circumstances," he said.

"So there's quite a robust literature now on the benefits of mindful practices."

Kirk said athletes were using meditation in the same way they had embraced yoga and ice-baths in the past.

"I can understand why as a coach you are now looking at why there are fluctuations in individual and team performances," he said.

"I actually find If I don't do it from day to day it is like brushing your teeth. I actually feel a bit furry. I feel like I'm missing something," he added.

Topics: sport, meditation-and-prayer, wa

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Mindfulness, meditation helping elite athletes on and off the field - ABC Online

For the past three years, Youth First has been providing Dialectical Behavioral Training (DBT) to its social workers. The concepts of mindfulness and meditation, which are part of DBT, were new to me.

We are busy people with lots of responsibilities. Most of us rarely take time for ourselves or our relationships.

The concepts of mindfulness and meditation can be intimidating. After practicing DBT skills, however, I clearly see the benefits and how it can help you feel more peaceful and in control.

Mindfulness involves acceptance, meaning that we pay attention to our thoughts and feelings without judging them. Unfortunately, our society is prone to making judgments.

Our brains move from topic to topic. We ignore and push feelings away. We find it difficult to focus and concentrate. Learning how to be mindful and in the moment can reduce the stress in your life, improve relationships, and help sharpen your concentration and focus.

One way to begin a mindfulness practice is to find a quiet place, sit in a chair or on the floor, take a few deep breaths, close your eyes and begin to focus on your breath for two minutes. It sounds easy, but you may find your mind wandering. If this happens, simply return your thoughts back to your breath.

Practice this daily and gradually work up to 10 minutes. Relax and let your body and mind work together.

According to the website Greater Good (http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/topic/mindfulness/definition), mindfulness is defined as maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment.

Some of the potential benefits of mindfulness listed in this article include the following:

Mindfulness is good for our bodies. Practicing mindfulness and meditation boosts our immune systems ability to fight off illness.

Mindfulness is good for our minds. Several studies have found that mindfulness increases positive emotions while reducing negative emotions and stress.

Mindfulness helps us focus. Studies suggest that mindfulness helps us tune out distractions and improves our memory and attention skills.

Mindfulness enhances relationships. It helps people feel more accepting of and closer to one another.

Mindfulness is good for parents and parents-to-be. Studies suggest it may reduce pregnancy-related anxiety, stress, and depression in expectant parents.

Mindfulness helps schools. Theres scientific evidence that teaching mindfulness in the classroom reduces behavior problems and aggression among students and improves their happiness levels and ability to pay attention.

Mindfulness helps health care professionals cope with stress, connect with their patients, and improve their general quality of life. It also helps mental health professionals by reducing negative emotions and anxiety and increasing their positive emotions and feelings of self-compassion.

Mindfulness helps veterans. Studies suggest it can reduce the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the aftermath of war.

Mindfulness fights obesity. Practicing mindful eating encourages healthier eating habits, helps people lose weight, and helps them savor the food they eat.

Instead of worrying about what may happen, try mindfulness and meditation and be fully present. You will be amazed at how quickly your stress levels decrease.

This column is contributed by Katherine Baker, LCSW, school social worker for Youth First, Inc., a local nonprofit dedicated to strengthening youth and families. Youth First provides 38 Masters level social workers to 56 schools in seven southwestern Indiana counties. Over 60,000 youth and families per year are served by Youth Firsts school social work and afterschool programs that prevent substance abuse, promote healthy behaviors, and maximize student success. To learn more about Youth First, visit http://www.youthfirstinc.org or call 812-421-8336.

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Mindfulness and meditation - Washington Times Herald

Written by Shyamlal Yadav | Gadva Ghat (varanasi) | Published:March 5, 2017 5:14 am

Prime Minister Narendra Modi would on Monday visit an ashram here known for its influence among Yadavs. He will perform cow puja besides seeking blessings for its head Sadguru Sharananand. I will not seek anything from him. Let us see what he seeks from us, Sharananand told The Indian Express. The ashram is located on the banks of Ganga on eastern side of Varanasi and is called Saint Mat Anuyayi Math. It enjoys huge influence among Yadavs. The ashram has around 100 ashrams in India, Lahore (Pakistan) and Nepal under its umbrella. It runs Gau Shalas (cow shelters) for nearly 200 cows, a mahila ashram and some schools.

In Varanasis three assembly segments, there are around one lakh Yadav voters. They have traditionally voted for BJP, with some exceptions.

In Varanasi city area, Yadavs have voting pattern opposite to other areas, where they have been staunch support base for SP, said local BJP leader Ram Sunder Yadav. Here in Varanasi city area, we have several leaders at local level in BJP and mostly Yadavs here vote for BJP. .

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UP polls 2017: Modi to visit ashram known for influence among Yadavs - The Indian Express

BATON ROUGE, La. Ten minutes before the evening aerobics class even begins, the music is blasting and a half dozen women dance and clap in rhythm.

Leader of the pack is 75-year-old Gracie Perkins.

For a decade Perkins has taught this rhythmic aerobics class for seniors at BREC's North Sherwood Forest Community Park, dancing hard for an hour every Tuesday and Thursday. And she barely breaks a sweat.

"She's the fountain of youth," says Brenda Summers, 50, a regular participant. "She makes you want to be better."

When the class officially starts, the room is full, and Perkins grabs a stack of CDs next to the boom box. The ageless, constantly smiling Perkins wears a pink T-shirt slightly off her shoulder, her short, dark hair highlighted with brassy tones.

"Where y'all want to go?" Perkins asks the room while searching through the music. She puts on Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'," and the women know all the moves. They mimic jumping rope, then spin around.

Most of their routines involve a few easy-to-learn steps repeated in all four directions. The moves matter less than the idea of getting moving, Perkins says.

"You're not concerned about making mistakes," she says. "We're concerned about fitness for life. We get vigorous."

They dance to classic songs from the 1960s and '70s and modern pop songs, just taking breaks to swig water, towel sweat out of their eyes and prepare for the next song.

Can't see video below? Click here.

"I love what I'm doing," says Mattie McClain, 67, who has done aerobics for 15 years nine with Perkins. "It keeps you feeling young and living longer. And it keeps you happy."

Trained as a health and physical education teacher, Perkins teaches them that while working out is about looking good, it is primarily about cardiovascular health and getting the blood flowing.

"It's all about cardio, from the inside to the outside," she says.

Born in Baton Rouge, Perkins helped create the Southern University Dancing Dolls, becoming the celebrated troupe's first director and choreographer. She taught in Kansas City and Seattle but settled back home in Baton Rouge. She's been teaching aerobics since the workout craze first hit more than 30 years ago.

She has always been energetic and active, says Perkins' niece Shari Poydras, 50, who attends the class.

"This is her all the time," she says. "I don't think she would be herself without it."

The members of the class perform their routines at fitness fairs all over the parish and have even shown off their moves at a Southern University football halftime show. Sometimes they take trips together.

"They're about having fun," Perkins says. "We love it, and what's amazing about it is we love each other. This is what we need."

Later in the class, the women grab small plastic platforms and hoist 2-, 3- and 4-pound weights to step up and down to the Motown hit "Please Mr. Postman." In most classes the women take 8,000 to 10,000 steps, says Theresa Charles, 64, who wears a pedometer.

The class winds down with stretching and balance exercises, and Perkins incorporates mental drills in which she calls out a time 12 o'clock or 6:30 and the class has to move their arms like the hands on a clock face.

But they love to dance, and, not counting the pre-class warm-up, they move for at least an hour.

"We live to dance. We dance to live," Perkins says. "Whenever we go someplace, that's our motto, we dance to live. Life is beautiful. Love it. Have fun."

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75-year-old has been leading an aerobics class for a decade ... - nwitimes.com

The next time your pup starts to pant and pace during a thunderstorm or you have to leave for a day and you know separation anxiety is about to ensue, consider turning on some music. But not just any musicaccording to a new study published in the journal of Physiology and Behavior, dogs prefer the sounds of reggae or soft rock more than any other genre.

For the study, conducted by the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), researchers with the University of Glasgow turned on six-hour playlists of five different genres of music for shelter dogs. During the duration of the study, the dogs heard classical, soft rock, reggae, pop and Motown. While the dogs were listening, researchers took note of their heart rate, cortisol levels and behaviors that measure stress levels, like barking or lying down.

Tatiana Ayazo/Rd.com, shutterstock

It turns out that dogs are fans of chilling out to Bob Marley, just like we do on our beach vacations, as results showed that dogs were less stressed while listening to soft rock or reggae. When listening to Motown, their stress levels were higher, study co-author Neil Evans told the Washington Post.

Overall, the response to different genres was mixed highlighting the possibility that like humans, our canine friends have their own individual music preferences, Evans said. That being said, reggae music and soft rock showed the highest positive changes in behavior.

Based on the results of the study, Evans and his team believe that shelters and dog owners alike would benefit from playing reggae or soft rock music for their canines during high stress situations. For animals entering a shelter for the first time, the new surroundings can be scary, leading to barking, shaking or cowering, and dogs living in home can be fearful of loud noises or when their owners leave. Here are some ways to decipher if your pet is sick, instead of stressed.

This latest research dates back to previous findings that discovered shelter dogs that listen to classical music were more relaxed, barking less and lying down more. Unfortunately, the study also found that by the seventh day of listening to classical music, the dogs returned to restlessness, leading researchers including Evans to believe that the animals were getting habituated with the music, or possibly getting bored. Those previous results are what led the researchers to try varied genres for the new study.

Two Scottish SPCA shelters are taking note of the study and will begin playing music in their shelters, allowing their dogs to reap the relaxing benefits.

While reggae and soft rock might be good for Fido, the study authors have yet to determine if felines enjoy the same sounds. In the meantime, you can brush up on what your cat is trying to tell you.

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The Most Soothing Music for Dogs Is NOT Classical - Reader's Digest

Proper Sleep

Everyone is busy. I get it. However, did you know that a poor nights sleep puts your student at a higher risk of injury? One study found that kids who slept more than eight hours per night had a 68% less chance of getting injured during sports. So, shut the television off, put your phone away, and get to bed! It may just save you from an injury.

Our bodies sleep best in dark, cool environments, so consider purchasing light-canceling shades and turning the AC down a few degrees at night. Also, avoid staring at bright lights 30 minutes before bed. Many electronics including your phone, TV, or computer emit bright light that tricks your body into thinking it is daytime. Instead, try reading a book or listen to relaxing music immediately before bed. Doing this allows the brain to settle down to fall asleep faster.

Proper Eating Habits

Food is fuel for our bodies. Put bad fuel in and you get bad results. Put good fuel in and your body benefits. With the business of life, eating well can be a constant battle. While the quick, easy option may sound good at the time, your body will feel its effects up to days later. Eating a poorly nutritious meal prior to a game or practice will keep your student from performing at his or her best. Eating poorly over time can quickly result in suffering from a nutritional deficiency.

Unsure what the nutritional guidelines are for your child? Many nutritional websites, such as http://www.nutritional.gov, provide helpful resources including grocery lists and recipes. If you are looking for in depth nutritional counseling including meal programming seek out a registered dietitian.

Proper Training

Look into any athletic training room during the first week of a season and youll find it packed. Too many times, an athletes body is simply not ready for the demands of their sport. The intensity of practices and games often are much more than what a typical offseason program includes.

Seek out an experienced coach or trainer during the offseason to ensure your athlete is following a logical progression of activity leading up to the season. Training in small groups of similar ability level during the offseason is often another great way to prepare for the intensity of an upcoming season. In season be sure your athlete is in constant communication with their athletic trainer about any aches or pains they may be having. Small aches or pains can quickly become a full-blown injury.

Follow these three steps to reduce your risk of injury and stay on the field all season long.

ByDerek Rietman, CPT, FAFS, Trainer at imove

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COLUMN: Three easy steps to reduce injury risk - Grand Haven Tribune