Happy Thursday, readers!

We’ve made it through the first month of 2013, and I hope it’s been a great one for you!

I’m writing this post to let you know that as of today, Your Body, Your Mind is taking a brief hiatus.

Psych Central and I began Your Body, Your Mind nearly one year ago with the goal of providing a place for people to learn more about how what we do for our bodies (food and fitness) goes hand-in-hand with what we do for our minds.

We’ve covered a lot of topics this year, including –

• Interviews from fitness experts. (Remember what personal trainer Jackie Burgmann taught use about beating the stress and anxiety associated with working out, and how yoga instructor Kyczy Hawk taught us about using yoga for addiction recovery?)
• Product reviews. (Check out the Yoga Meltdown workout DVD and the Hungry for Change documentary.)
• Resources on learning more about and combining diet, exercise, and mental health. (Be sure to bookmark 5 Tips for Combining Diet, Exercise, and Mental Health and 7+ Resources to Learn More About Diet, Exercise, and Mental Health.)
• Using food for mental health. (We’ve covered everything from emotional eating and the fast food cycle to good mood foods and gluten-free diets. Oh, don’t forget all the ways to keep your diet simple!)
• Fun stuff! (Get info on exercising with pets! Also, I still laugh at this Yoga for Sale Craigslist ad!)

– and we hope to cover a lot more in the future!

For now, we’d love your suggestions on what YOU’D like to see in future Your Body, Your Mind posts.

Do you want more expert interviews? Product reviews? Information on the latest research?

Sound off in the comments below and we’ll be sure to tackle everything we can as we plan the return of Your Body, Your Mind!

Have you watched Hungry for Change yet?

A few Saturday nights ago, I had nothing better to do than sit in front of Netflix (sad, I know, but let’s stay on topic here). As I flipped through the new releases, a documentary called Hungry for Change caught my eye.

I suppose it was the documentary’s cover image, a happy chick holding a grocery bag full of whole foods wrapped with a measuring tape, that caught my eye.

Because my grocery bags have been looking more and more like that lately (see Can Clean Eating Help Restore Hormonal Balance?), it seemed potentially up my alley.

So, what’s Hungry for Change all about?

You can’t get too good an idea from the documentary’s description:

HUNGRY FOR CHANGE exposes shocking secrets the diet, weightloss and food industry don’t want you to know about; deceptive strategies designed to keep you coming back for more. Find out what’s keeping you from having the body and health you deserve and how to escape the diet trap forever.

Exposes shocking secrets! Deceptive strategies! Escape the diet trap forever!

As someone who makes her living with words, this all sounded pretty gimmicky to me.

However, like I said, I was bored on a Saturday night, so I watched the documentary anyway – and I’m so glad I did.

From the makers of Food Matters, Hungry for Change is a documentary that:

• Explains the vicious cycle of processed foods and how they’re pretty much killing us.
• Shares real-life transformation stories from people who were extremely overweight and physically and mentally diseased due to their diets.
• Suggests the way to feel confident and good about ourselves is to get healthy from the inside out, and not simply strive to look like today’s idea of attractiveness (re: billboards, lingerie magazines, bikini models).

Understand that Hungry for Change does not:

• Tell you how to “get skinny” or even promote “getting skinny.” You’ll learn how 400+ lb. people dropped a bunch of weight by changing their diets, but you won’t learn how to Lose 20 Pounds in Time for Bikini Season!
• Advocate dieting. Hungry for Change wants you to change your diet (the noun), not diet (the verb).
• Tell you that you have to use a certain product for success. Some books and methods (like juicing) are mentioned in the documentary; it makes sense, as the people teaching us are the people who created these products. However, during the documentary, these people don’t tell you “this is the way to go, buy it now!” You can visit the website to learn more about the products and methods that are BRIEFLY mentioned during the film, but overall these folks just want to teach why it’s so important to reevaluate your diet NOW.

Hungry for Change is 89 minutes long, so, you’re looking at about an hour and a half of your day. Please find that extra time to watch this film.

Netflix has Hungry for Change available for instant viewing, and if you don’t have a Netflix account, Amazon makes it available as an instant rent.

After you’ve watched it, head over to the Hungry for Change website and learn TONS more about the food you’re putting in your body and what it’s doing to your body and mind.

Image Credit

This post is part of a week-long yoga series at Your Body, Your Mind.

Happy Friday, readers!

If you haven’t been able to check out the blog lately, you’ve missed out on a week-long yoga series that covered everything from depression and anxiety to sleep and sex, and how yoga can help with it all!

Well, never fear! You have all weekend to get caught up (and maybe get to work on your practice!), and I have the posts listed below for your convenience.

Yoga Week: Depression, Anxiety, Sleep, Sex, and More!

Monday: Yoga for Depression and Anxiety

Learn about the 10 yoga poses that can help you:

• Focus on breathing and relax respiration.
• Boost energy.
• Relieve stress.
• Sooth your mind.
• Calm your body.

Tuesday: Yoga for Sleep and Insomnia

Tuesday gave us information on how yoga can help insomnia, improve sleep, and even which poses to do at 3 a.m.!

Wednesday: Yoga for Men

We all know yoga isn’t for women only, but sometimes it seems like we see more women than men practicing yoga.

On Wednesday, we got information from MindBodyGreen, Mens Health, and About.com on ways men can start learning about yoga and why practicing yoga is specifically beneficial to them.

Thursday: Use Yoga to Improve Your Sex Life

Hey, that got everyone’s attention, didn’t it?!

We all know about the positive effects exercise can have on our sex lives, but what about yoga? Well, Thursday brought us information about that very subject, covering how yoga can boost body image, increase libido, and even intensify orgasms.

Extra Yoga Resources

Yoga Week isn’t the only time we’ve tackled yoga and all its benefits here at Your Body, Your Mind. Don’t forget to grab a few minutes to check out:

• 5 Ways Yoga Helps Addiction Recovery
• Yoga and Recovery: Talking With Yoga Instructor Kyczy Hawk
• Product Review: Yoga Meltdown by Jillian Michaels
• Friday Funnies: Yoga Mat for Sale on Craigslist – Hysterical!
• Mental Health Month Challenge #2: Salute the Sun

Do you have any yoga resources you’d like to share with other readers? Plop ‘em in the comments below!

Image courtesy RelaxingMusic per these Creative Commons Attributions.

This post is part of a week-long yoga series at Your Body, Your Mind.

So far during Yoga Week we’ve learned about how we can manage anxiety and depression with yoga, use yoga to fight insomnia and get a better night’s sleep, and even where to go to find tons of information about yoga for men.

Good stuff, yeah?

Now it’s time to get to the really good stuff!

Most of us know exercise can help improve our sex lives. Exercise can improve libidos for both men and women, help us achieve more satisfying orgasms, and some exercises even prep our bodies for sex.

Plus, you can’t deny that a little boost in self-image never hurts one’s desire to get down!

So, with all that we know about exercise and sex, it’s not too far a leap to assume yoga can provide some of the same benefits, right?

Learn Yoga for Better Sex

• Want Better Sex? Do Yoga: Psychology Today explains yoga as an alternative or complement to traditional ways Western science treats sex problems: psychological counseling, sex therapy, and medication.
• Yoga Poses That Improve Your Sex Life: Check out these 10 yoga poses, complete with descriptions and illustrations, that can help increase arousal and intensify orgasms.
• Yoga Improves Male Sexual Performance: This one’s especially for the fellas!
• Yoga for Sex: 5 Kundalini Yoga Kriyas for a Blissful Sex Life: This Spirit Voyage article describes and illustrates five yoga poses you can do with your partner.
• The Great Sex Yoga Workout: Don’t have a lot of time, but still want to enjoy the benefits yoga can bring your sex life? Try this five-minute yoga workout from Fitness Magazine.

So, what are YOU doing this weekend?

Image courtesy Synergy by Jasmine per these Creative Commons Attributions.

This post is part of a week-long yoga series at Your Body, Your Mind.

Up front, understand that I’m not writing this post assuming that all men have no idea what’s going on when it comes to yoga.

Wouldn’t that be a little silly, given that yoga’s history reaches back thousands of years, and it’s even believed that Hindu monks are responsible for introducing the Western world to yoga?

Still, here in the 21st century, we tend to see more women practicing yoga (throwing on a pair of yoga pants for a late-night run to the grocery store doesn’t count!) in popular media.

My yoga DVDs all feature female yogis, most of my favorite yoga sites are splattered with females demonstrating Locust poses and Downward Dogs, and I see yoga gear marketed more toward women than men.

Where are all the men?

Maybe all of the female-oriented marketing and advertising (whether on purpose, such as clothing and DVDs, or by accident, such as yoga classes predominately filled with women) makes some men a little hesitant to try yoga.

Yoga Resources for Men

It might seem like there’s a shortage of men on the yoga mats, but there’s definitely no shortage of information about yoga for men!

If you’re interested in getting started with yoga but aren’t sure how to begin or where to go for help, try these resources:

• MensHealth.com’s Yoga Center: The MensHealth.com Yoga Center is a one-stop shop for men and yoga. Find articles about yoga for beginners, the best yoga poses for men, and even yoga geared toward specific sports. MensHealth.com even provides an interactive 30-Day Quick Start Guide that not only helps keep you on schedule but also explains the When, Why, and How of each pose you’re assigned.
• MindBodyGreen’s Yoga for Men: MindBodyGreen has an entire section dedicated to yoga for men, which features articles and guides like I Was the Only Dude at a Yoga Teacher Training, Crashing the Yoga Barrier for Men, and 5 Reasons to Take Your Dad to Yoga Class.
• About.com’s Yoga for Men: About.com Guide Anne Pizer outlines how men can get started with yoga, explains the kind of equipment and other gear they might need, and points them in the direction of several yoga-related worthy reads.

Of course, you don’t have to try to learn it all by yourself. Men are just as welcomed in yoga classes as women; however, for those guys who’d be more comfortable with other men, they can look for classes like Seattle’s The Yoga Den, New York’s Le Male Yoga, and the various Broga (cute) classes throughout the country.

Are there any men reading today? Do you practice yoga, and if so, what advice can you offer men who don’t but are interested in starting?

Image courtesy Ostrosky Photos per these Creative Commons Attributions.

This post is part of a week-long yoga series at Your Body, Your Mind.

Over the past few months, with a heavy emphasis on the past month, I haven’t been able to sleep much at all.

I have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep, and although I’m sleepy during the day, I can’t seem to fall asleep for a nap, either.

I’m not really sure why this is happening, but I’m definitely in the process of trying to figure out just what’s going on (?!).

In the meantime, maybe I’ll try some of these yoga poses for insomnia.

What do you think?

• Poses for Insomnia: Yoga Journal‘s Leslie Peters thoroughly explains several yoga poses for insomnia, including how your body and mind should begin feeling throughout the sequences.
• Beat Your Insomnia With Yoga: Prevention outlines 13 steps – starting with meditation and ending with the corpse pose – for achieving sleep through yoga.
• The Insomniac’s 3 A.M. Yoga Routine: This Oprah.com piece covers yoga poses for nearly every mental and emotional thing keeping you up at night, including “The Position to Interrupt the Horrifying Video of All the Worst-Case Scenarios That Could Happen to the People You Love.”
• Yoga for a Better Night’s Sleep: About.com’s Yoga Guide, Ann Pizer, shares yoga poses for insomnia as well as explains how yoga can help you sleep and how you can start incorporating yoga into your bedtime routine.
• 7 Yoga Poses for Insomnia: HuffPost Healthy Living writer Riddhi Shah used The Woman’s Yoga Book and Yoga Therapy For Overcoming Insomnia as reference for this list of seven yoga poses to help you sleep.

Have you ever tried yoga for insomnia? Or, is yoga already a part of your regular bedtime routine?

Share with us in the comments below!

Image courtesy RelaxingMusic per these Creative Commons Attributions.

This post is part of a week-long yoga series at Your Body, Your Mind.

Exercise, mediation, massage therapy – these are all complementary (and, for some folks, solitary) ways to

Halogen TV, which describes itself as “the only television network focused on socially conscious entertainment,” recently presented a piece outlining yoga poses we can use to better manage our anxiety and depression symptoms.

(SEE ALSO: 5 Resources for Depression and Complementary Health Practices)

The article, 10 Yoga Poses to Fight Depression and Anxiety, lists, describes, and show pictures of 10 yoga poses fit for anyone, regardless of experience level.

Those poses include the:

• Lotus position, to help focus on breathing (especially important during anxiety and panic attacks).
• Viparita Karani, which can provide both an energizing and a soothing effect.
• Fish pose, a position that opens up the chest and helps unclog the tension in our cores, thus relieving stress and easing respiration.
• Bridge (or Setu Bandha Sarvangasana), said to help calm the mind while also energizing the body.
• Cow pose and cat pose, used together to help relieve stress and tension in the back.
• Locust pose (or Salabhasana), which can help with everything from low energy to digestion and poor posture (both are often affected by depression), and the upward facing dog (or Urdhva Mukha Svanasana) to flow out of Locust.
• Child’s pose (or Balasana ), which calms the body and mind and helps you focus on your breathing.
• Corpse pose (or Savasana), a still time that allows your body relax and process the information it’s recieved.

When it comes to relaxation and managing anxiety, my favorite yoga poses from above are the cow and cat poses, the locust pose, and the child’s pose.

How about YOU, readers? Do you have any experience managing depression and anxiety symptoms with yoga? If so, which poses work best for you? If not, do you think you’ll try it out now?

Let us know in the comments below!

Image courtesy AmandaD_TX per these Creative Commons Attributions

We’re fortunate enough to have a guest post today from Dr. George Drinka, child psychiatrist and author. Dr. Drinka’s upcoming book, When the Media Is the Parent, is posed to educate parents about the massive role media (think television, video games, and the Internet).

Today, he’s talking with us about the role media plays in childhood obesity, fast food advertising geared toward children, and how, in time, the media might even help promote healthier eating.

Two recent articles document a troubling childhood trend. In the US, one third of all children are obese or over-weight. Meanwhile, in Chile one quarter of all kids are now obese. In short, the trend toward childhood obesity has gone worldwide.

The causes involve a medley of factors, but perhaps the most central seems kids eating junk food in abundance. This means high caloric, fatty, sweet and salty dishes, consumed by kids to their heart’s content. A bad pun indeed, since the risk of heart disease in obese children is a specific source of worry.

Since most kids watch a lot of TV, they are manipulated by fun commercials that market much of this unhealthy fare. For instance, a 2006 study by the Center for Science in the Public Interest found that 88% of food ads on the Nickelodeon channel feature unhealthy foods. Naturally, these commercials work marvelously well. Why else would the fast food companies keep making them?

But kids are not aware of this unhealthy reality and so they daily clamor for these foods, wearing down their frazzled parent. Parents may have glimmers of insight into the problem, but they’re distracted by their rapid paced lives and rely on the fast food to get sustenance on the table.

The two articles [linked above] document divergent approaches to turning the tide on this trend. In the US, where we favor a free enterprise approach, Birds Eye Food is working with the Partnership for a Healthier America on developing TV ads on kids TV to encourage them to eat vegetables. The idea is to make vegetables seem very, very tasty. But the question is whether a chaste carrot can go toe to toe with a greasy French fry and come out on top.

Meanwhile, in Chile the government has legislated regulations that ban the packaging of glittery toys, usually ones associated with TV shows and film characters, with fast foods. The idea is that, once the cheap toys are removed from their pairing with the unhealthy food, kids will clamor of the food less eagerly.

These two approaches—free market driven and government regulated—seem the only ones imaginable now. Yet both seem fraught with pitfalls. In Chile, McDonalds and other fast food conglomerates are refusing to comply with the law and fighting back in court. Since these companies are very rich, they can hire the best attorneys. In terms of Birds Eye, we are seeing a small dent in a massive problem and a core causal agent–TV advertising unhealthy foods. Is such a meager approach just cosmetic? Is this healthy food advertisement really an attempt of one large company, Birds Eye, to steal market share from others like McDonalds?

I suggest that over time, after much legal wrangling, and the making of a handful of commercials to present healthy food as desirable, a generation or two will pass, and the battle lines will grow crystal clear. Like tobacco addiction and alcohol abuse, or perhaps even like gun deaths, the public alarm will grow more and more strident. The issue will pass from being framed as a discussion over free enterprise and free speech into being perceived as a serious public health threat. Fast food advertising to kids will need serious regulation, but not before we have witnessed many human beings suffering severe disabilities and even unnecessary deaths.

George Drinka, M.D. is on the clinical faculty of the Oregon Health Sciences University and in private practice in Portland, Oregon. He has published book reviews in the peer-reviewed Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association. He has also written for the New York Times Book Review.

Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and visit his website for daily updates on parenting and the media.

Happy Friday, sweet readers!

A friend of mine shared this with me a few weeks ago, and I’ve been waiting for the perfect time to share it with you all.

Well, what better time than a Friday afternoon?

It’s almost the weekend, you still have a few hours to go of work or school, and you could probably use a good chuckle, right?

Right!

So head over to MindBodyGreen’s Hilarious Yoga Mat for Sale Ad on Craigslist to find out how one newbie yogi went from being an extremely enthusiastic beginner to a delirious divorcee during a lunchtime yoga class!

Do you have any hilarious fitness or food stories to share? Make us laugh in the comments below!

Happy New Year, readers!

Well, we’re one week into 2013! How’s it treating you so far? Did you have a nice holiday? Are you back to school or work yet?

Have you…

…made (or at this point, broken) your New Year’s resolutions yet?

I know, I know, I know!

New Year’s resolutions are, for many, a joke.

I mean, if you want to change something, just change it. Right? Don’t wait around for a specific month, day, and year – especially not a month, day, and year that puts so much pressure on you.

Yet, New Year’s Resolutions (or, at least, the making of them) stick around for a reason: Fresh starts.

Who doesn’t get excited about the chance at a fresh start?

Traditionally, the New Year is a time for new beginnings. At the start of a new beginning, it makes sense for us to think, “This year I will [do something/start something/change something].”

The problem is (I think, anyway), sometimes our resolutions resemble a year-end, everything-must-go car sale more than they do actual life goals or improvements.

“EVERYTHING MUST GO! NO MORE CHEESEBURGERS! NO MORE LAZY MORNINGS! NO MORE EXTRA 15 POUNDS! NOW, NOW, NOW!”

No wonder so many people give up on their resolutions before the end of January. We either get so excited that the fact that we don’t have results by January 3 is too much of a letdown to go on, or we get so overwhelmed that we don’t even start.

Change isn’t bad, though. Resolutions aren’t bad. A lot of times, they can save our lives. Quitting smoking, for example, or making dietary changes to better manage diabetes or ward off heart disease.

Maybe the way to approach these resolutions, then, is more calmly and generally. Ultimately, specific goals are good (you need a clear idea of what you’re trying to accomplish), but sometimes we get so wrapped up in the specific goal (no more fast food, meditate one hour each day, jog five miles every morning) that we think if we don’t succeed at our “cold turkey” approach, well, then, we’ve failed.

That’s just not the case, though.

Understand that changing your lifestyle is a process.

Achieving your New Year’s resolutions (or whatever you prefer calling them) means making lifestyle changes, and just like everything else that contributed to your current lifestyle, it’s not going to be an overnight fix.

Think about it. You didn’t learn to play football, be a cheerleader, or win a debate overnight. You didn’t earn your college degree overnight. You didn’t develop a marriage-worthy relationship overnight, raise a child overnight, or

So, set your specific goals (if that works for whatever changes you want to make), but remind yourself – hourly, if necessary – that they’re goals, requiring lifestyle changes to meet, which requires a process.

How about you, readers? Did you make any resolutions for 2013? Or, do you have any tips for other readers on how they might better reach their goals? Share with us in the comments below!