Happy Holidays!

Although your holiday season may look a little different this year, I'd like to send you my warmest holiday greetings!

The next week or so may be filled with modified family traditions and connecting with friends from afar. Thanks goodness for all the technology we have at our fingertips!

My intention for today is to say thank you for being apart of my community and allowing me to share my life's work and passion every week with you!

Since this is the season of giving, I am sending you - hot of the press - my brand new FREE online mini course, ASSESS. No one else has seen it as it will be launching in 2021! I wanted to give you one gift just for you to put under the Christmas tree!

​If you already have signed up for my education platform, The Physical Activity Academy, then you know the drill. If not, you'll need to make a profile on the platform to gain entry into the free online course.

I'll make it easy peasy banana squeezy by simply clicking the button below which will take you directly to ASSESS' sign up page. Simply enter your details and you will be sent a confirmation email with instructions on the next steps.

​With all of this said, take some time for rest and restoration over the holiday season. That's my plan! And when you are ready, this mini course is meant for you to start planning what your physical activity will look like in 2021!

Wishing you the best of this holiday season! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Stay well and happy moving, 
Lisa

Did you know giraffes have seven vertebrae in their neck? 

Just like the human body too. Most all mammals have seven. Yet, for the giraffe, the size of each vertebrae is about 10 times larger than a human vertebrae!  

Picture the giraffe's long neck and how it compares to ours. Their neck is needed for essential actions such as eating that we simple can get our hands to help us with. Yet if we think about it, how much demand do we put on our necks? 

We need our necks to function in day to day tasks as well as provide a supportive stand for arguably one of the most important organs in our bodies, our brain.

The neck, although very sturdy (it provides movement in all three planes of motion), it can be a place of discomfort and immobility.

A couple weekends back, I taught a yoga workshop about the shoulders and the neck. We took a deep dive into the skeletal system that makes up the neck (i.e., the top part of the spine) but also the key nerves and muscles that allow us to move.

I won't go into the details here. But with all this information swirling around in my head, I thought how this time of the year may be harder on our necks than we would like.

Over the holiday season demands might include:

1. Craning the neck forward to address and write out all your Christmas cards
2. Straining your head forward as you make online purchases on your smart phone. My eyes are squinting sometimes too! 😆
3. Tensing the neck when lifting heavy snow with a shovel
4. Knocking your head back to get the star sitting just right on the top of the tree or hanging that last decoration up above your head
5. Holding tension in your shoulders, then into your neck as you try and navigate a virtual Christmas on your computer or tablet


Why not give yourself the gift of a healthy neck?

Watch the video below to find out three new exercises for your neck and one bonus trick from me!

Although the giraffe is built to crane its neck. We need to take time for some TLC with our necks. I hope these exercises prove helpful for you over the holiday season!

Stay well and happy moving, 
Lisa

As with last week's newsletter, I hope you've taken time to think through your Back Pocket Plan.

I've taken my Back Pocket Plan one step further this week. I've jumped onto some virtual workouts over Zoom. This was a big step for me as I'm pretty headstrong when it comes to my exercise plan. Did you get that in last week's email?! 😉

Yet, it was so refreshing this week to leave the planning to someone else. I tried virtual boxing, Pilates and Yin yoga. They were all great and different Back Pocket Plans.

One Back Pocket Plan A LOT of people ask me about is Nordic walking. I was fortunate to teach a lovely group of local ladies this Fall. After our session, I created a video about all the types of poles out there as well as the key pieces of what to look for in a set of pole. Essentially the anatomy of the pole.

Enjoy learning a bit more about Nordic walking poles. Just click the image below!

If you are interested in growing two more legs this holiday season, check out Urban Poling's Holiday Combos for you or someone you know who needs Nordic walking as a Back Pocket Plan.
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Now back to find more virtual workouts.

Stay well and happy moving,
Lisa

P.S. This is not a sponsored newsletter. I just love my Urban Poles!

P. P. S. Know someone who would benefit from the content I share every week? Be sure to have them sign up today! ​

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I'm a back pocket kind of gal. I've planned for 'A' but I've got plan 'B' through 'D' played out in my mind already. Particularly when it comes to meal planning, entertaining the kids and of course my exercise routine.

Planning you say?

Yes, planning. There are very few things in my life that are not done without a plan. Ask my husband, he can tell you all about it!

Now thinking about planning, it makes me think of all the ways I teach others about planning. I usually call them your Back Pocket Plans. Let me explain…

It can be challenging to be physically active over the winter months. We are more inclined to kick up our heels and sit with a cozy blanket and read, watch a movie or scroll on our phones and tablets.

When this is the case, it is even more important to have a plan.

But what if the plan doesn't work?

What if it is blizzarding outside and your plan is to go on your regular outdoor walk?

That's where the Back Pocket Plan comes in.

If walking is your mode of choice or preference, what are the alternatives?

Maybe your list looks like this…

#1. Use my forgotten clothes hanger, I mean treadmill, in my dark, musty basement. Ideal - no. Is it possible? Yes. But remember this is only option one.

#2. Throw on your favourite tunes and grab your broom. Nobody is scoring you on your dance moves or cleaning technique. Clean and dance away!

#3. When and if you can safely go walk indoors in public (with your mask of course) finding the right location is key. Where is a suitable place to go? Looking for mileage, head over to any "super" stores and walking the parameter. Or walk up and down EVERY aisle of the store. Most are numbered so make a game of it. Go every odd aisle first then all the even aisles. Challenge your brain too!

*DISCLAIMER - I'm certainly not recommending going out to public places. I myself am not going out so I would never ask anyone go in public to exercise if health recommendations are to stay home (refer back to #1, #2 and coming up #4, #5 Back Pocket Plans until we can be together in public with others).

#4. If your home has stairs, go climb them. Maybe start with only one set and walking around your home then back to the stairs. Still too much? Then try some step ups on the bottom stair to your tolerance.

#5. Jump on to the internet to guide you through your walk. Leslie Sansone has been leading walks at home for almost two decades! Her videos use the beats per minute in a song to count the number of steps. The number of steps (with an assumed stride length) multiplied by time equates into miles walked. How cool is that!

So there you have it! I have five Back Pocket Plans to do if you can't get out on your regular outdoor walk.

I'll let you in on a little secret. I've done all of these! But don't feel like you have to keep these suggestions to just a substitution for walking. My strategy has been to mix up WHAT or the type of physical activity I do. I have built a running list in my head of all the options that I can do. And at anytime can pull from my back pocket.

Guess what just got added to my back pocket list?

Cross country skiing! I was gifted a pair of skis, I picked up some formerly loved boots and I scouted out locations to go.

The beauty of making a plan!

If this is resonating with you and you feel like you don't have a plan or need help with formulating a plan I've got some exciting news. I am offered a new online course in the Physical Activity Academy in 2021! The first thing I will share with you (for free!) is one of the six key modules in the course. Watch for it coming later this month! Think of it as a Christmas present just for you! 🎅🏻

Here is a sneak peak at the name of the full online course!

Sooooo exciting! This has been in the works for well over a year and a half! Woowho!

Alright! Until then, can you start formulating your Back Pocket Plan?

Stay well and happy moving,
Lisa

P.S., In case you are interested in booking "I'm Dreaming of a Yoga Christmas" single yoga class with me, you can find more information on my website. I still have some spots available in December and open to bookings in 2021!