Mountain Views News          Saturday, June 27, 2015

Mountain Views-News Saturday, June 27, 2015 10 HEALTHY LIFESTYLES Mountain Views-News Saturday, June 27, 2015 10 HEALTHY LIFESTYLES 
THE JOY OF YOGA 
INSPIRATION 
Why do we feel great after a yoga class? It’s simple. We changed our Prana.

Prana is life force energy or our inspiration and enthusiasm. It is often

referred to as the Breathe of Life, associated with respiration. Prana is whatbrings animation to our ideas, thoughts and deeper desires. It’s a powerful tool. 

Awareness of prana is the first step toward a positive outlook and greater insights into what’shappening in our life. For example, where are we spending all of our energy? Are we actually doing thethings we love to do? Do we feel creative and friendly? 

Once we are aware of prana, we can assess where we might be losing energy or possibly the need formore. It’s often the case when we feel run down and depleted, we are in need prana in some area of thebody or mind. Whether it be grounding, motivation, or just pure joy and inspiration. 

To cultivate your awareness of prana, start with a fundamental breath exercise. Close the eyes. Begininhaling from the opening of the nostril up the bridge of your nose, directly to the third eye (spacebetween the eyebrows). Envision prana, vital life force energy, riding in on the breath. Exhale back downthe bridge of the nose, air leaving the nostrils. Continue breathing that way, collecting prana at the thirdeye. Envision this collection of prana enlivening the third eye, the place of intuition and wisdom. Settleinto an experience of waking up your own inner space. 

Enjoy friends and namaste, 

Keely TottenRYT 500,Yoga & Meditation Instructorwww.facebook.com/keelyyoga 


HOW TO PROTECT YOUR SKIN 
AGAINST SUN DAMAGE


we have to make sure we are eating foods thatwill keep us protected. Antioxidants do just that.
Antioxidants are powerful natural UV protectants.
Some can be very helpful for protecting us againstaccelerated skin aging due to UV exposure.

There is evidence that the spices turmeric andginger, both antioxidants, have protective effects onskin health. Both of these spices are a wonderfulways to add flavor to meals but they can both betaken as supplements too. White tea, one of the least 
processed varieties of tea and high in antioxidants,
has been shown to be protective against earlywrinkle formation. 

Any plant food that is a natural source ofvitamin C or E is also an antioxidant. Most fruits 
and vegetables contain some amount of Vitamin

C. Some great sources vitamin E are sunflowerseeds, almonds, spinach and avocado. Lycopene,
a compound found in tomatoes, has been shownto be protective against free radicals brought onby too much sunlight exposure. Studies show thatorganic tomato paste appears to have higher levelsof lycopene than raw tomatoes. Tomatoes alsocontain a number of other antioxidants, includinga high amount of vitamin C which complementslycopene’s protective action.
My advice is to make sure you get somesunshine on a regular basis and at the same timemake sure you are consuming nature’s natural sunprotectors! 

Dr. Tina is a tradi-
tional naturopath andnutritionist at Vibrant 
Living Wellness Center 


Who doesn’t like 
the feeling of warmsunlight hitting theirskin? Depending onthe time of year thisfeeling can be pureheaven. Without the 
sun we would not 
exist. It has the most 
wonderful life givingpower. The sun helpsus to produce vitaminD, a hormone 
necessary for bone 
health and optimalimmune function. 

Too much of any good thing can become a badthing. This is true of sun light. Too much sun 
affects our skin’s elasticity which promotes earlyaging of the skin. Now we have this dilemma, 
how do we get the life giving, health promotingbenefits from the sun but avoid premature agingor permanent skin damage? Unfortunately, thisdilemma causes many people to be frighten fromgetting any sun at all.

The way best way to protect against sun damageand to maintain healthy skin is from the inside out.
Research shows that what you put into your bodymay be just as important, as or more important thanthe protection you place on your skin. Basically 


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