STILWELL, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

ATI Nursing Education, the leading provider of online nurse education programs, today launched its ATI Product Grant. Building on the industry need for an increased focus on the development of soft skills in nursing education programs, ATI created the companys new, one-of-a-kind Nurses Touch. The grant opportunity will award two nursing programs one registered nurse (RN) and one practical nurse (PN) with Nurses Touch for one class of students within the school for one year.

We recognize the need to strengthen the soft skills of nurses, which is why we created Nurses Touch, which helps students sharpen the professional and interpersonal skills needed to face the emotional and physical demands that come with being a nurse, said Sheryl Sommer, director of nursing education and curriculum at ATI Nursing Education. We look forward to selecting two deserving programs and working with them to implement Nurses Touch to enhance their current curriculum, benefit the students and gain valuable feedback on the content.

RN and PN nursing education programs can apply online at http://www.atinursestouch.com/grant.html starting today through May 31. Grant recipients will be reviewed by an internal committee of nurse educators. Recipients will be announced in July.

Nurses Touch is the first education product of its kind to address soft skills content. The selected nursing education programs will benefit by using the interactive simulators, tutorials, case studies, and practice and proctored assessments while receiving direct support from the faculty support team at ATI Nursing Education. The content areas covered include:

Nurses Touch also allows educators to measure, assess and track students progress. In addition to student growth, this reporting information can be an accreditation documentation resource.

For more information on Nurses Touch, visit http://www.atinursestouch.com. You also can read the recently published white paper: Soft Skills Research: Aligning Nurses Touch with Best Practices.

About ATI Nursing Education

ATI Nursing Education is the leading provider of online learning programs that are instrumental in improving faculty effectiveness and student and program outcomes in nursing schools across the country. Currently the company works with more than 20,000 nurse educators, approximately 2,100 colleges and universities nationwide, and over 225,000 students. ATI Nursing Education has played a role in helping more than 1 million students pass the NCLEX, the U.S. nursing licensing exam. ATI Nursing Education is part of Ascend Learning. Founded in 2010, Ascend Learning provides technology-based educational, curriculum and assessment solutions for healthcare and other professional industries. For more information, visit http://www.ascendlearning.com/companies/ati-nursing/.

Read the rest here:
ATI Nursing Education Offers Grant Opportunity to Provide Industry-first, Online Soft Skills Education Product to Two ...

As part of our ongoing series, We Tried It, health reporter Catherine Pearson and nutrition and fitness editor Meredith Melnick tried a session at True Pilates studio in midtown Manhattan.

Catherine's Take:

I have long wanted to try Pilates, and not just the mat class, but the real deal. Like, on the machines. They're so intriguing -- How do you use them? Are they as scary as they look? -- and the Pilates afficionados I've met always have the loveliest figures. They're long, they're lean and they carry themselves like ballerinas, only somehow less stiff. Which is all a long way of saying that I went into my first reformer Pilates class with pretty robust expectations.

They were met. In my hour-plus long, one-on-one session, my instructor coached me through the basic sequence -- some time on the reformer, sort of the central piece of equipment, as well as the Cadillac (very roughly, tricked-out monkey bars attached to a mat upon which I did a lot of leg and bum exercises). We did each move only a few times -- the emphasis in Pilates is in quality, not quantity, my instructor explained -- and with exacting attention paid to my form. I was told to squeeze my ribs in and scoop my abdominals, schooled on my posture (apparently, I have no idea what it feels like to actually sit up straight, which was a real eye-opener) and did a few simple leg swirls that immediately help open up my very, very tight hips.

It was challenging, both in terms of working my muscles and also forcing myself to pay particular attention to how every inch of my person was aligned, but I also felt extremely safe in a way I sometimes haven't in yoga classes. The machines kind of nudge and keep you into certain positions, and having an instructor there to watch my every, single move no doubt helped, too. When I left, I was walking differently -- head higher, shoulders pinched back, and much more aware of how engaged and strong I could be in my core. And it lasted. For days after, I've been catching myself slumping over on the subway or at my desk and forcing myself to contract my abdominals and straighten my spine.

The issue for me going forward will be cost. Private reformer sessions are just too far out of my budget, although the instructors explained that a few sessions can help build the muscle memory you need to really be more aware of what your body is doing in larger (and less pricey) mat classes. I think I will give that a go. The exercise just really speaks to me -- it's challenging, while also encouraging gracefulness and helped me be more aware of my body. But seriously, would that I were a millionaire, I would go to private reformer sessions all the time.

Meredith's Take:

Although it was predetermined from the time my mesomorphic parents decided to have children, it didn't occur to me until age 15 or so that I would never have a dancer's sinewy physique. Mine is more of a soccer player's build. And since that discovery, I've relegated certain fitness behaviors to an off-limits category called 'What Dancers Do." These include: point work, foot taping, highly-restricted dieting and, well, Pilates -- especially reformer Pilates. So it was with detached curiosity that I approached the True Pilates studio in east midtown.

The swanky two-story gym had the calm warmth of a spa -- and a price tag to match. (Certainly a special treat on a journalist's salary.) A series of reformer machines -- with names like "the guillotine" and "the ladder" -- were laid out across each of two sunny studios. We were introduced to two knowledgeable and patient instructors, who (I was pleasantly surprised to note) looked like us: fit people with some meat on their bones.

As is customary for private sessions, our instructors spent the entire hour adjusting us as we moved through a series of repetitive, isometric exercises. Each one required small muscle movements, but a great deal of realignment. We tucked our tailbones, elongated our torsos through the rib cage and "scooped" our stomachs. I felt my body's bones stack up in a totally novel way.

See more here:
Meredith Melnick: We Tried It: Reformer Pilates

The Kentucky Derby has been the focus of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum's horse racing efforts for over a decade.

The ruler of Dubai is known for his avid thoroughbred breeding and racing, and while he has emerged victorious from many of the world's top horse races, he has yet to win a Kentucky Derby, NBC News reported.

"The Kentucky Derby is a more difficult race to win than I first believed," Sheikh Mohammed told ESPN.

But he vowed to return to the classic horse race, which kicks off on May 4, every year until he could win and many believe that this could be his year. The Daily Racing Form(DFR), a website devoted to covering the horse racing season, began speculating in January that the Sheik could have a shot at Churchill Downs this May.

More from GlobalPost: Video of starved horses prompts investigation by the New Mexico Livestock Board

The sheikh's Derby strategy has always been to ship his horses in from Dubai to Louisville, NBC News reported. This year, however, he has kept his Derby hopeful Alpha in the United States with the horse's original trainer, Kiaran McLaughlin.

Alpha has done well so far this winter, NBC News reported, taking impressive wins in the Count Fleet and Withers races at Aqueduct in New York.

"You couldnt blame Sheikh Mohammed if he woke up Sunday morning with the feeling that he has his best chance yet of winning the coveted first leg of the US Triple Crown," wrote DFR's Mike Watchmaker after the Aqueduct races.

The Sheik's passion for horse-racing knows no financial boundaries: He is consistently one of the top buyers at horse sales across the globe, ESPN reported. In September of 2006, for example, he spent $58.6 million in three days at the Keeneland yearling sale.

For the Middle Eastern leader, winning the Derby is a matter of pride and heritage, as NBC News pointed out. His 20-year-old racing unit, Godolphin, is named after a breed of thoroughbred that originated in the Middle East, according to NBC News.

Excerpt from:
Kentucky Derby: Dubai's Sheikh Mohammed sets his sights on a victory at Churchill Downs

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIagXzxLcA0

30-04-2012 20:06 Having some fun and getting a work out done

Read more:
Excercise - Do the Peter Griffin - Video

Vietnams No.1 tennis player Do Minh Quan lost 6-3, 6-7, 6-7 to Thai player Wachiramanowong in the second round of the Vietnam Futures F2 tournament in Ho Chi Minh City Wednesday.

Quan missed several chances to beat the young Thai player.

After winning the first set 6-3, Quan continued to play very well in the second and had a chance of a match point when he was leading 5-4 and 40/15. However, the only Vietnamese hopeful at the event let the Thai player level the score and eventually win the set 7-6.

In the decider, Quan had a great start again and led 4-1 for a time, but then lost the set 7-6 and bowed out of the competition.

Vietnams former No.1 player Tran Duc Quynh said Quans efforts were a good example for other young Vietnamese players to follow, but he was not determined enough at important moments. It was partly because Minh has not had many chances to compete at international contests, said Quynh.

Follow this link:
Tennis ace suffers home defeat

Yoga enthusiasts are invited to the Wichita Art Museum, 1400 W. Museum Blvd., to learn the art of stretching.

The museum is taking reservations now for a May 19 yoga class in the museums Farha Great Hall under Dale Chihulys Confetti chandelier.

The class, open to all ages and all levels of yoga, will be lead by registered Vinyasa yoga teacher Amanda Assaf. She will use positions inspired by artwork in the museums collection. Participants will need to bring their own mat. Doors will open at 8:15 a.m., with the class from 8:30 to 9:45 a.m.

Its another way to get people who wouldnt normally come into the museum, said Debbie Deuser, museum membership manager. We have a great space for yoga with lots of room.

Museums nationwide, including those in Baltimore, Cincinnati and New York, are hosting yoga classes among their artwork. This is the first time the Wichita Art Museum has offered such a class.

If the class is popular, we will continue offering it, Deuser said. Organizers will consider offering monthly sessions, possibly themed around exhibitions.

Cost for the class is $10. Space is limited, and registration is required. Call 316-268-4985.

Reach Olivia Burress at oburress@wichitaeagle.com.

Go here to see the original:
Wichita Art Museum stretches out into yoga

Here's how these yoga practices will help you keep your cool this summer.

Interestingly, extreme seasons like the summer and monsoons are not a good time to launch into yoga sadhana, if you are new to the whole experience. Yoga also appreciates that the body reacts to extreme seasons with a flush of fever which can get aggravated when it is stressed with anything new, even if it is a healing science like yoga.

If you are already doing an intermediate level or advanced practice, seasonal shifts will not affect you. But if you are indifferent practitioner or a beginner level person, you may wish to contain your enthusiasm on the mat and do practices which will keep you cool.

Some advice along the way for a summer practice: schedule your practice for early morning since it is the coolest time of the day. Use calming pranayamas like anulom vilom, bhramari and ujjayi as the main breathing practices. Even if you wish your practice to be intense, do it meditatively: this will have a cooling, calming effect.

Hold poses long, even if it makes you sweat more, because the end result is that you will be cooler mentally and physically. Importantly, have a longer final meditation or relaxation to cool down properly.

Shameem Akthar, yogacharya trained with the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center, takes you through five yoga practices that will help you keep your cool this summer.

For more of Shameem's yoga writings visit http://jaisivananda.blogspot.com. Shameem's second book Yoga in the workplace, with photographs by ace photographer Fawzan Husain, is now available at online shops and bookshops across the country. It is also available as e-book, with Kindle, Amazon.

Read the original here:
5 yoga poses to keep you cool this summer

Editor's Choice Academic Journal Main Category: Mental Health Also Included In: Sports Medicine / Fitness;Complementary Medicine / Alternative Medicine;Pediatrics / Children's Health Article Date: 30 Apr 2012 - 0:00 PDT

email to a friend printer friendly opinions

Current Article Ratings:

5 (3 votes)

5 (1 votes)

The study involved 51 students from the 11th- and 12th-grade who were registered for physical education (PE) at a Massachusetts high school. Two thirds of the students were randomly assigned to Kripalu yoga classes that consisted of physical yoga postures as well as breathing exercises, relaxation, and meditation, whilst the remaining third was assigned to regular PE classes.

Before and after the 10-week course, all 51 students completed a range of psychosocial tests, including tests to measure their mood and tension and/or anxiety.

The authors also assessed the students' development of self-regulatory skills, including their resilience, control of anger expression, and mindfulness, which are believed to protect against developing mental health problems.

The results showed that students in the yoga group scored better in several of the psychological tests. The authors noted in particular that students in the control group were more likely to have higher scores for mood problems and anxiety, as compared with those in the yoga group whose scores remained unchanged or improved.

Yoga appears to have preventative benefits for adolescent mental health

See the original post:
Yoga May Help Prevent Adolescent Mental Problems

WHEN physiotherapist Lee Ajzenman quit her job at 28 and struck out on her own, it was a leap of faith.

Using most of her and husband Steves first-home savings establishing her new physio and pilates centre, the beginning was tough.

She held her nerve and three years later 600 patients a week go through Core Physio and Pilates in Elsternwick.

I really wanted to go out on my own and offer a service that didnt just treat injuries but the whole person, Ms Ajzenman said.

Core Physio and Pilates runs a physio clinic and pilates classes for all age groups from babies to octogenarians.

Ms Ajzenman, who lives in nearby McKinnon, has son Jamie, 13 months and a baby due in August.

Being a working mum was an adjustment.

I used to bring Jamie with me to the studio but he has just started in daycare.

It was hard (dropping him off) at the beginning when he cried.

But I have a lot of support.

Read the original post:
Exercise in trust at Elsternwick physio and pilates centre

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqJKvggo0A4

27-04-2012 11:37 This is my first video guys, don't make fun. On my next video I will have more stuff in my video and explain a little more, but hopefully anyone thats going through what im going through can see that they are not the only ones.

Continue reading here:
Positivity Excercise 1 - Video