Health, Sports & Fitness 2013 e_sub

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Healthy Hudson Valley FEBRUARY 28, 2013

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HEALTH, SPORTS & FITNESS

Your 2013 yoga guide Want to buy a bowling alley?

Charley Rosen’s last comeback — part 1 The perfect pillow

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28, 2013 2 | February Health, Sports & Fitness

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ow ironic that the task of being the editor of this special section on Health, Sports and Fitness should arrive as the process of collecting necessary materials hits high gear in my preparation for hip replacement

surgery. So my hip mentor, Charley Rosen (who writes in this issue about his last comeback — part 1 — on the basketball court, with his own new one implanted) has provided me with pertinent hardware, to wit, a walker (I challenged my 92 year old mother in law to a race, even though she’s got wheels on hers), a cane, and a raised toilet seat (you can’t crouch low enough without it after the operation, for a while.) The other stuff? Still need crutches (the Woodstock Rescue Squad Loan Closet will help); a shoehorn with a long handle, because you won’t be able to bend down to tie your shoes for a few weeks; one of those long grabbing tools to reach for things; slip on shoes, etc. Astonishingly, I’m told that the surgery lasts only an hour, with the good Dr. Lombardo of Orthopedic Associates of Dutchess County presiding (the operating room is only booked for an hour and a half ); it’s followed by three days in the hospital (surgery on a Tuesday, home by Friday), with a gradual emergence from medicated haze taking place as a slowly evolving rehab schedule gets under way. I’ll be getting a Zimmer hip, with a ball and a socket, to replace parts long worn out. I first felt something maybe eight years ago, in my mid-50s. Years of playing basketball, often on outdoor hard courts, or even harder indoor ones where the wood is laid right up over concrete, might have had something to do with it. A right-handed player lifts most often off of his left foot and, indeed, it is the left hip that’s being replaced. Like most folks, the surgery got put off as

long as possible, though everyone questioned seems to say that they were sorry they didn’t have it sooner. But I gauged the discomfort over the years, watching it slowly increase, until this year it became inevitable… Now you know how you watch some things in your body and when you finally agree with yourself to see the doctor and set it up, the symptoms seem to subside? Well, forget it. As soon as the surgery was scheduled, the sumbitch started hurting like crazy. I must have let my guard down. And of course you wonder, what would you have done before medical science could perform such miracles? Shut up and suffer, probably…And of course you understand how privileged we are to be able to have such things in our midst, when many in the world have no access to joint replacement, or even to fresh water. John Hoyt told me that his son, a Ph.D. biochemist, has said that the first person who will live to be 500 years old is alive today. My immediate reaction was, great, you get 60 years of being young and 440 of being old…but imagine how many cool new parts you’d get… And so this issue contains a sort of compendium of many of the things I want to do when my full ambulatory state is restored — work out, bowl, maybe golf a little, even just shoot around on a hoop court, a little Yoga…and maybe you’ll be informed and inspired also to improve your overall fitness, and keep those parts from getting too worn out. Cover photo by Dion Ogust

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True rollers Bow Bowling makes adjustments, maintains its place in ma American life Am Violet Snow Viole

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ant to buy a bowling alley? The eight-lane Margaretville Bowl, located 45 miles west of Kingston on Route 28, is on the market for $289,000. Owner Michael Finberg says the 52-year-old business is still thriving. Across the industry, league bowling, once the mainstay of the alleys, is down, but he says the advent of Cosmic Bowling (also known as Rock ’n’ Bowl), featuring loud music, light shows, and glow-in-the-dark pins and balls, is bringing young people back to recreational bowling. The appeal of bowling, says Finberg, is that it’s social, and you don’t have to be an expert to enjoy it. “Bowling is not an aerobic sport, but it requires balance and timing. You have to learn the markings, how to pick up the spares. Someone not as strong can have a lightweight ball, but with accuracy and practice, they can score well. This opens the sport to many more participants.” Not having bowled in more decades than I care

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28, 2013 4 | February Health, Sports & Fitness to estimate, I decided to bowl a game at HoeBowlon-the-Hill in Kingston, just to refresh my memory. And the memories came back with a rush — the multi-colored shoes, the rumble of the balls on the lanes, the clatter of pins, hefting various balls to find one light enough for me, but with big enough finger holes — and especially the little fan at the ball return to dry the sweat off your fingers. All these details brought back rainy Saturday afternoons at the Mardi-Bob Lanes in Poughkeepsie, where as a child I threw many a gutter ball. Of course, there have been technological changes since then. At the HoeBowl, the balls return in a few seconds, without that impatient wait to see your sphere spit out by the rotating machinery before you throw the second ball of each frame. Scoring no longer relies on pencil, paper and mental arithmetic. Scores appear automatically on screens overhead, calculated by a machine that detects how many pins have been left standing. Because I made a mistake working the keypad that starts the scoring, my initial spare was not recorded, and I never got another one (or a strike). I bowled a 77, which I considered not bad. In my early teens, as an intermittent bowler, I broke 100 only a handful of times before abandoning the sport to other social interests. A perfect game of 13 strikes is 300, and pro bowling scores generally land in the 200s. At the age of 19 — back when the drinking age in New York was 18 — I had a job as a cocktail waitress at a bowling alley in Wappingers Falls. In addition to its 36 lanes, the alley had a little night club where a band played rock ’n’ roll on Friday and Saturday nights. It was an okay job, with a classically gravel-voiced Italian bartender named Carmine and lots of customers around my age. My Sunday evening shift was less appealing, when I had to leave the dark cave of the lounge and serve drinks to the loud, blustery middle-aged guys on the bowling leagues. But they sure seemed to be having fun. The former Holiday Lounge is now advertised as a sports bar, but it still offers live music on weekends, and it’s still connected to Holiday Bowl. Other alleys in the Mid-Hudson Valley have persisted as well, including the Mardi-Bob. Catskill has the Catskill Lanes, and Kingston has two alleys, the HoeBowl on Route 9W and Ferraro’s Mid-City Lanes, near Broadway on Cedar Street.

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n a Friday night in February, MidCity’s 26 lanes were all devoted to league bowling. At 6:15 p.m., bowlers were gathering, chatting, changing their shoes and taking balls out of bags. A few women were present, some with strollers and baby carriers by the tables along the concourse. The alley’s manager, John Ferraro, was in the

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workroom beside the pro shop, preparing to drill a ball. Michael Webster had just bought a new ball, and Ferraro was calculating the placement of the finger holes. “It’s all angles, a lot of math,” he said, explaining that he customizes hole position for the hand size and bowling style of each bowler, based on the situation of weights within the ball. Markings on the outside indicate where the heaviest part of the ball is located. Webster, who has been bowling for seven years, was induced to join a league by his brother Bruce, involved in the sport for 20 years, since he was a kid. “Ever bowl a perfect game?” I asked. Michael shook his head, but Bruce smiled and nodded. Ferraro finished his measurements and took the glossy blue ball over to a machine, where he secured the ball in position beneath the drill bit and turned on the motor. Curls of resin spiraled from

hole as the bit descended toward the core. When he was finished, Michael Webster tried the ball and agreed that his thumb needed a little more space. “We’ve lost population in league bowling,” said Ferraro as he beveled the thumb hole with a file, “but recreational bowling is up. We’re trying to get kids. On band nights we pack 160, 170 people in the place.” Mid-City is part of the industry-wide trend toward Cosmic Bowling, which features a danceclub atmosphere and a light show, often with lasers and blacklights that catch the glow-in-thedark paint on pins and balls. Additives in the lane finishes also show up under the UV lighting, and some alleys even have fog machines and DJs. On the other hand, says Ferraro, “League bowling has been here forever — it’s like a family. We go to 20 or 30 tournaments together around New

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February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness York State. Now we’re having one here. Around 180, 190 teams come here throughout the two months it runs.” The Dave Ferraro Team Tournament is named after Ferraro’s father, a champion bowler who won the 1990 Firestone Tournament of Champions and nine Professional Bowlers Association tour titles. In 1994, he became the twelfth player in PBA history to crack the million-dollar mark in career earnings, and in 1997, after retirement, he was inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame. In a Sports Illustrated interview after his Firestone win, he told a reporter that he didn’t like touring and couldn’t wait to get home to Kingston. John Ferraro said it was his great-grandfather who got the family into the bowling business by building the HoeBowl lanes in the 1970s. Later he sold it, and the family acquired Mid-City, which was already in operation. Dave started bowling when he was two, according to SI, and bowled a 156 at the age of four. While on the road as a pro, unlike most of his competitors, he jumped rope every day — 3500 jumps in 25 minutes. John followed the family tradition, bowling on a

college team and then professionally. He retired for a while due to an accident, but now he’s back on the lanes and running the business at the age of 24.

“Bowling is not an aerobic sport, but it requires balance and timing. You have to learn the markings, how to pick up the spares …”

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hen Margaretville Bowl was built in 1960, its claim to fame was “the modern lanes,” said Finberg. “At that time, there were five lanes above the Granary Building in Margaretville, with pin boys to pick up the pins,” whereas the new alley on Route 28 had the recently invented automatic pinsetters, which produced a boom in bowling alleys. In 1975, the newly married Finberg, a schoolteacher, was persuaded to go into the bowling business by a group of investing partners who asked him to run the alley. Now ready to retire, he said, “I like the fact it’s a community business, a local source of recreation. Bowling alleys in general offer a chance for in-

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teractive recreation. In winter, if one isn’t skiing there’s not a lot to do here, outside of bars and restaurants.” The alley still has league play several nights a week and open bowling on Saturday. Finberg also rents the place out for wedding rehearsal dinners, family reunions and birthday parties. To supplement the bowling, he has installed an Internet jukebox, a decent sound system, a rec room with video games and a pool table, a locker room for league bowlers, and a room to have parties catered. Aside from the scheduled hours, he can open by arrangement. “Someone will call and say, I have family coming up, will you be open? If the numbers are sufficiently large, I open. Summertimes we have camp kids. Sometimes we get a wedding party looking for something to do before the wedding.” Though Finberg is in the process of installing Cosmic Bowling, which will transform the appearance of alley in some ways, he’s keeping the retro look that is, like the return of bowling shirts in menswear, so appealing in the modern world. He never replaced the original maple benches with molded plastic, and outside, there is still an eight-foot revolving bowling pin. Finberg says, “It was cut out of one piece of plywood by a local guy.”

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28, 2013 6 | February Health, Sports & Fitness

Now I lay me down to sleep How to pick a pillow Jennifer Brizzi

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our perfect pillow should provide a comfy good night’s rest, but what to get? Cuddledown of Maine sells an “heirloom” cream silk pillow filled with eiderdown hand-collected from abandoned nests in Iceland and Scandinavia, for $6199 for a king-size (yes, for one pillow!), or you can just stuff a couple of folded old towels under your head. Or you can choose something in between. That covers a lot of territory, as there are multitudinous kinds, stuffed with everything from wool to water, from buckwheat hulls to fake down. Which one is right for you? “It depends on the sleeper,” says Bob, from Sleepy’s at 1140 Ulster Avenue in Kingston, who asked that his last name be left out of this article. Everyone has different needs for that nighttime or naptime head pad. “For example, if they have pains in their shoulders and if they’re a back sleeper,” Bob added, “we ask if it hurts more when they lie flat or if their head is elevated a little bit.” When you sleep, your head, neck and spine should be in a natural neutral alignment. That back sleeper needs a thinner pillow to make that happen, so a medium-density pillow with neck support is ideal. The side sleeper needs something a little thicker and firmer. For that good alignment, the space between your neck and the bed should be filled. A plump pillow, on the firmer side, is what you need. And stomach sleepers need a very thin pillow, super soft, barely there. “People should really come in and test them out. It’s a very personal thing,” says Bob. Sleepy’s has beds to try out, but if you’re in a store without

… an “heirloom” cream silk pillow filled with eiderdown hand-collected from abandoned nests in Iceland and Scandinavia, sells for $6,199 for a king size …. them, you can put your body up against the wall in your sleeping position and test the pillow out. It should feel comfortable, and your head, neck and spine should be straight, with minimal bends.

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ow that you’ve got your perfect pillow’s thickness and firmness figured out, what should it be stuffed with? Latex is the latest darling of the pillow world, über-firm, mold and dust mite-resistant and relatively long-lasting. What’s not to love? A wool pillow, also mite- and mold-resistant, hypoallergenic, natural, firm, warm and long-lived, is another good choice. It keeps you cool in summer and warm in winter, a favorite of firm-o-phile side-sleepers. A little less pricey is cotton, with all the same natural attributes and a bit softer. Dense, spongy memory foam, or Tempur-Pedic, pillows adjust to the shape of your head, reducing pressure, but it’s a love/hate thing. Some people can’t sleep on anything else, while others complain that the material gets too hot, changes texture unpleasantly in warm weather, and can outgas nasty smells. On the cheaper end of the scale are short-lived flimsy polyester-blend pillows, but on the plus side some can be thrown in the washing machine. Some chiropractors and physical therapists recommend water pillows, which can be customized for firmness. Cool pillows filled with beads that wick away head heat are pleasant for some. Buckwheat hull-filled pillows can be noisy but venti-

February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness

PHOTOS BY ALAN CAREY

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pricier. Goose down is not feathers but the fluffy bits from the birds’ breasts and underbellies, softer and lighter than air and a perfect insulator. But it’s not cheap. A firm pillow for side sleepers filled with Hungarian white goose down in a 430-thread count cover from the Company Store is $224 on sale. Combinations with 50 percent or 90 percent feather are generally more affordable. If a down or feather allergy is keeping you from these pillows, the artificial down Primaloft is cheaper and shares some of the same attributes, but keep in mind Primaloft pillows don’t last long before they get scrawny. When pricing pillows, keep in mind that different materials have varying life spans. Cheap ones may last only 12 to 18 months, while those buckwheat hulls last seven years and a quality feather/down somewhat longer. In the meantime any dust mites that take up residence can be deflected by using impermeable covers, or putting the pillow in a plastic bag and freezing it for a while. Skin cells and dust worm their way inside pillows, too. Washable pillow protectors help. We’ve come a long way from the hard stone or wooden head pedestals the ancient Egyptians rested their heads on, or the clay water-filled ones used by the Chinese. Some peoples in the world today use mats, furs, cloth or leaves to sleep on. But we’re lucky; we can choose foam or feathers to cradle our sleepy heads. All we have to do is figure out which.

late well, keeping your head cool, conforming to your head and holding their shape all night long. Touted as curing headaches, neck and back pain, snoring and night sweats, they are all-natural, chemical-free, and last longer than pillows filled with other materials.

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28, 2013 8 | February Health, Sports & Fitness

DION OGUST

Charley’s last comeback, Part 1 Charley Rosen

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t age 72, I hadn’t played a game of basketball in seventeen years. Ah, how well I remember that last game. Indeed, that last play. A sturdy 6’4’’ youngster and I were intent on rescuing a loose ball, but he

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had me beat by about a half-step and 45 years. In an attempt to slow him down, I resorted to the Elbow of Experience, my infamous Sternum Smash. Wham! I connected in precisely the right spot — the soft cartilage just below his breast bone. Alas, not only did he ignore the contact, but my elbow immediately started to swell. Take me out, coach. Fast forward to last July at the Omega Institute,

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during the 29th meeting of Beyond Basketball. This is a weekend workshop incorporating oncourt instruction and competition with the spiritual aspects of the game. Through the years, I’ve co-led the workshop with the likes of Phil Jackson, Darryl Dawkins, and for the past four summers with Scott Wedman, a former NBA All-Star, hot shot and defensive ace. We’d usually have about 15 hoopers to work

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February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness with, but because that particular session coincided with the Olympic Games the enrollment only numbered eight. Of these, one was a middle-aged woman who had never played the sport before and was understandably reluctant to participate in the three-on-three games. For the most part, Scott gave her personal instruction on the basic elements on an unused basket. Another putative player was a shy preteen who was simply too embarrassed and too vulnerable to join the fun — and who didn’t show up until our Sunday session. So there it was: Six players executing the patterns Scott and I had installed — pass to a wing then pick away, or pass to the wing and then follow the ball to receive a handoff, and so on. Gradually, the guys were getting the hang of things, and their nonverbal communications allowed them to run through the various options without making announcements. No matter what the level of competition, when played correctly basketball is a joy not only to play but also to behold. Think of ballet with defense. Then, suddenly, one of the players went down. He could hardly breathe. There was enormous pressure on his chest. His left arm was tingling. Uh-oh ‌ We immediately called for an ambulance which arrived within minutes. After some preliminary testing, the quickie diagnosis was a heart attack. So Scott rode with the fallen warrior to the hospital. (Note — the guy underwent some kind of standard procedure and was A-okay. His daughter drove up from Philadelphia and he was back home on Monday. Before he left, he gave Scott a message for the rest of us: He’d be back next summer!) Okay. That left five players ‌ and me!

I

mmediately, my long-dormant Jones kicked in. Never mind that I’d had a total hip replacement only nine months before, or that I’d only

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touched a basketball once a year during the workshops, or that I hadn’t played in so long. Hey, I weighed five pounds less than I had in college, and I worked out diligently at the Kingston YMCA. Besides, the hoop was still ten feet high, the foul line hadn’t been repositioned, the ball was round. Without even think about stretching, I plunged into the action. Unfortunately, I felt like I weighed 900 pounds. I couldn’t jump, bend, or move in any other vector but straight lines. Even worse, my opponent was a tough Russian imigrant in his late 20s; not a very accomplished basketball player, but an incredible athlete with super-quick feet and hands. He easily intercepted the very first entry pass aimed my way. And the second, and the third ‌. Finally I held him off with an elbow neatly (and relatively softly) placed against his throat. At least, that got me involved in the action. On the plus side, I managed to hit a driving hook shot, block a layup, and toss a pair of nifty passes to a back-door-cutting teammate.

Otherwise, my picks were grossly illegal, executed with the form and force of a fullback putting a block on a linebacker. Brutal yet effective. And, of course, since I was the “guru,â€? nobody dared call a foul. Plus, one of my throat-seeking elbows missed the mark and drew a trickle of blood from the chin of the courageous Russian. I played for 30 minutes, and was starting to feel a slight pull in my left calf. Then came my last shot: A ten-foot wide-open jumper that was two feet short and three feet wide. Take me out, coach ‌. Oh, that’s me ‌. So, I thanked and apologized to the other five guys snd made a limping exit stage left. They played two-on-two for the duration. What next? If I’m not totally brain and/or limb dead, and somewhat alive and ambulatory, I can only hope to make another comeback in another 17 years. Author, pro basketball coach and longtime denizen of the local courts, Charley Rosen insisted on calling this Part I, because, well, you never know.

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28, 2013 10 | February Health, Sports & Fitness

Yoga for unity of body, mind and spirit A guide to finding the right path for you Jennifer Brizzi

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oga has evolved in our culture from being perceived as a mystical mysterious counter-culture practice to a mainstream, doctor-recommended and common way to keep your psyche and physical self in good form. And it was born not in the 1960s but many millennia ago in India. Yoga is based on breathing, meditation and poses, or asanas. Meaning

“union,” from the Sanskrit yuj or “to yoke” (as in mind and body joined), yoga is by now well established as beneficial and healthful, and fortunately there is no shortage of local spots where you can learn as a beginner or develop your experience. But what kind? Should you study vinyasa, kundalini, ashtanga, iyengar, svaroopa, bakhti, hot or “sleeping” yoga, upside down in a headstand or sitting in a chair? There’s something for everyone, with many different approaches and options, with differing paces, purposes and emphases on different body systems. Classes vary in price and location, too, but a place that’s easy for you to get to is key, to ensure you will be faithful to it, once, twice, three times a week, or more. Euphoria Yoga has been in Woodstock since

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2009, founded by Corinne Gervai. In this intimate space on Tinker Street you can study various levels of vinyasa yoga, from slow, basic and less vigorous to a kind that’s more flowing from posture to posture, with breath awareness, to a more advanced level. Also featured are classes in dharma, to warm the body, bring flexibility to all muscles and joints, and wake up the nervous system, with gentle yet powerful balancing, stretching, back bending, twisting and inverted postures, and Jivamukti Open classes, classical yoga supported by chanting, breath awareness, flowing vinyasa sequences, alignment exploration, handson assistance, relaxation and meditation. Or try Led Ashtanga with poses from sun salutations to standing and seated poses, inversions and back-

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February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness bends. A mixed-level community class with a reduced fee is available as well. Find Euphoria Yoga at 99 Tinker Street in Woodstock, 679-6766 or www.euphoriayoga.org. Also in Woodstock is the Woodstock Yoga Center, formerly called the Bliss Yoga Center. Owners Linda Winnick and Barbara Boris offer a wide range of classes from Very Beginner — geared toward those with injuries or lacking in flexibility, through Fundamentals of Yoga, for beginners as well as those who’d like slower yoga work, with emphasis on body mechanics and alignment. Intermediate focuses on dynamic and unique sequencing in the shakti yoga style. There are also classes in the Iyengar method, with varying levels as well, developing strength, endurance, body alignment, flexibility and relaxation, leading to backbends, shoulder stands and headstands. You’ll also find classes in restorative yoga (gentle, using props), kundalini (movement, breath, meditation and sound current), yin yoga (contemplative and targeting ligaments, joints, bones and fascia, complementary to other more dynamic forms) and Sanctuary/Community yoga (pay-asyou-can drop-in). The Woodstock Yoga Center is at 6 Deming Street in Woodstock, 679-8700 or

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28, 2013 12 | February Health, Sports & Fitness www.woodstockyogacenter.com. Co-owner Linda Winnick also runs Shakti Yoga, with three different locations, in Woodstock, Saugerties and Kingston. Goals are to guide students in increasing flexibility, strength, alignment and confidence. It too offers Very Beginner, good for newbies as well as those who have had a long break from yoga or have injuries, plus Fundamentals, Mixed Level and Intermediate, with elements of vinyasa and shakti, to Advanced, developing steadiness. A Sanctuary class with reduced prices is available as well. Shakti Yoga’s Woodstock location is at 1685 Sawkill Road., 679-0706 or www. shaktiyogawoodstock.com. The Saugerties location at 67 Partition Street can be reached through the same phone number and website. Shakti at The MAC is at 743 East Chester Street (9W), 3382887. Woodstock’s senior recreation program offers a

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gentle kripalu yoga class emphasizing movement and stretching at the seniors’ own pace, with poses for strength and balance. It is on Wednesdays from 9:15 to 10:15 a.m. at the Mescal Hornbeck Community Center on Rock City Road. Go to http://woodstockny.org/content/Parks/View/3. IXL Health and Fitness in Saugerties offers 75-minute classes for members, with gentle, active, flow and restorative classes. Find them at 3139 Route 9W or 246-6700. A schedule of classes is at www.ixlhealthandfitness.com/saugertiesschedule8.html.

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n Kingston, Mudita Yoga Center offers some extras beyond gentle basics, open yoga, restorative yoga, flow, restorative flow, meditation and moving meditation and a community class. There are also special events like a class this past Sunday in yoga nidra, a deep relaxation or “yogic sleep,” done in a prone position, as well as monthly stress reduction workshops, kids’ yoga classes that incorporate dance, storytelling, games and music making with yoga poses, plus a restorative weekend retreat at a local ashram. Mudita Yoga is on the third floor at 243 Fair Street in Kingston, 750-

6605 or muditayogacenter.com/ongoing_classes. html. Also in Kingston is The Yoga House, with a few twists you won’t find everywhere. Try Spiritual Warrior, a Jivamukti class that’s fast paced to keep you moving and into shape, Happy Hour, upbeat yoga to Western music, or catch your breath with chair yoga, geared toward seniors or those with injuries, arthritis, or inflexible or heavy bodies. Also offered is a vigorous sweaty advanced class, anusara (tantric philosophy meets emotional healing and more), a community class, core vinyasa to strengthen and tone your abdominals, obliques, spine, pelvic floor and shoulder girdle. Look for prenatal classes, a slow gentle therapeutic class, and warm vinyasa in an 85-degree room to aid stiff joints and muscles in loosening up. Find The Yoga House at 57B Crown Street in Kingston, 706-YOGA or theyogahouseny.com Turning up the heat a notch is The Hot Spot at Signature Fitness, with a room heated to about 105º with about 40% humidity. Hot yoga is claimed to detoxify the tissues, to allow people to go deeper into postures without injury, increasing flexibility, and to make the lungs work harder for oxygen, turning the yoga class a cardiovascular

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February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness workout. Claims include weight loss, stress relief and more energy and strength. Participants are advised that they may feel dizzy or nauseated for the first few classes and should arrive well-hydrated, and to replenish electrolytes after class with sport drinks, vitamin C packets, banana with sea salt or powdered kelp. On the cooler side is prenatal yoga claimed to benefit the processes of conception, discomforts of pregnancy, and delivery. The Hot Spot is at 33 North Front Street in Kingston, 750-2878 or hotspotkingston.com. The specialty at Yoga with Jamie is sound-oriented yoga, with “gong baths� and gong-aided meditation, claimed to lower blood pressure, stress, pain, foster healing and provide help with mental focus and clarity, the movement combined with sound currents helping allow the spirit to flow freely. Kundalini yoga is claimed to stimulate nervous and immune systems, improve stretch and flexibility, and provide relief from back pain, stress, addiction, depression and insomnia, and help with weight control. Vinyasa classes and Spirit Baby Yoga for the Under Three set are on offer as well. Yoga with Jamie is located at 190 Albany Avenue, 917-450-0548 or www.yogawithjamie.com.

Ignite Fitness in New Paltz is another gym with classes, theirs in yoga and vinyasa yoga (the dancelike one that flows in sequence). Reach them at 246 Main Street (Cherry Hill Plaza) in New Paltz, 255-9355 or www.ignite-fitness.com. The Ashtanga Yoga Studio of New Paltz offers a quiet space with classes focusing on the eightlimbed path of ashtanga, synchronizing the breath with a progressive series of poses to produce an internal heat that detoxifies muscles and organs, leading to improved circulation, a light and strong body and a calm mind. Basic, advanced and community classes are offered, as well as some focusing on special goals like alignment of the body, or core to strengthen the postural muscles. The Ashtanga Yoga Studio of New Paltz is located at 71 Main Street. Find them at 430-7402 or www. ashtangaofnewpaltz.com. The Living Seed Yoga & Holistic Health Center in the same town offers a big assortment of classes, like slow, calm Gentle Yoga with restorative poses and props or a six-week beginners’ course that promises awareness, strength, flexibility, a positive mental outlook and a renewed vitality. There is also Slow Flow, Mixed Level with cleansing exercises designed to focus energy and enliven

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specific chakras, core strengthening and self-massage, vinyasa focusing on sun salutations, and an ashtanga-influenced class with music and lots of jumping back and forth. The Living Seed is at 521 Main Street, 255-8212 or www.thelivingseed.com Jai Ma Yoga Center, also in New Paltz, offers Anusara yoga, concentrating on the science of alignment, with various levels of Anusara, including a gentle therapeutic version, and vinyasa, the flowing form of yoga that links breath to movement, as well as a prenatal class and children’s yoga to help children relax and increase strength

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28, 2013 14 | February Health, Sports & Fitness and self-esteem. They also have a free open chanting group. Jai Ma Yoga Center is at 69 Main Street, New Paltz, 256-0465 or www.jmyoga.com

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cross the river in Rhinebeck is Satya Yoga Center, open since 2005, co-directed by Sondra Loring and Jessie Lee Montague

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who invite guest teachers, musicians, artists and lecturers. Classes in gentle and restorative yogas, basics, mixed-level, rigorously-paced vinyasa and hot yoga in a 90-degree room are supplemented by chair yoga at the nearby Starr Library and special programs for kids. Satya is at 6400 Montgomery Street in Rhinebeck, 876-2528 or satyayoga-

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center.us. Across the street is the newer Clear Yoga, specializing in Iyengar, a type of hatha yoga promoting strength, flexibility, stamina and mental focus, with an emphasis on highly trained teachers who customize classes for students’ individual needs. You’ll see straps on the walls of the airy second floor studio; those and blocks and bolsters assist stiff beginners to get into poses. Beginners progress though levels from basics to advanced, with a progressive system rather than mixing all levels in one class. Clear Yoga is at 6423 Montgomery Street, #17b, 876-6129 or clearyogarhinebeck. com. Nearby Omega Institute has many workshops every year on many aspects of yoga. Yoga and Psyche, Boomer Yoga, Bhanda Yoga, Freedom Style Yoga and Yoga with Weights are only a few of those offered. See the list at www.eomega.org/ search/global/yoga or call 877-944-2002. As in its Saugerties branch, IXL Health & Fitness’ Rhinebeck gym has yoga classes for members. There is an open all-levels class, a gentle yoga class, flow yoga and an active yoga class promoting endurance along with flexibility. The gym is at 3752 Route 9G in Rhinebeck. See the schedule at www.ixlhealthandfitness.com/rhinebeckschedule8.html or call 876-4100. Last but not least in our line-up is The Sacred Space at Metta in Red Hook, a yoga and healing co-op, with many types of yoga and other spiritual practices not found everywhere. Yes, there’s the dynamic ashtanga, the vigorous vinyasa, and a gong, but you’ll also find several levels of kundalini, claimed to improve the workings of the nervous, circulatory, endocrine and muscular systems, ease mental suffering, expand your lungs, purify your body and make you happy fast. And there’s Svaroopa yoga, which eases tensions in the body with deep relaxations and breath work, and more, including feeling peace and bliss. Also find Aquarian Sadhana, a session of 4 a.m. chanted prayer, with kundalini and chanting meditation. The Sacred Space at Metta is located at 17 Glen Pond Drive in Red Hook, 758-5507.

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Carolina dreaming In the dead of winter, a golfer’s thoughts turn to Myrtle Beach George Pattison

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hey call it the Grand Strand — a 60-mile stretch of South Carolina coastline, by turns scenic and seedy, where a visiting golfer can find just about anything he wants, from the area’s world-class courses, set amid stunning southern marshland, to the tacky strip clubs, discount outlets, and watering holes that line the main drag, Highway 17, in and around Myrtle Beach. Myrtle Beach is on my mind at this time of year, as I long to trade my snow shovel and cabin fever for a sand wedge and a few sunny rounds on the Strand with my hometown golf buddies. For at least 15 years, beginning in the mid-Eighties, you could set your clock by our late-winter schedule: at the end of February we’d be shoving off from Woodstock, bound for four days of dawn-to-dusk golf (and, most likely, some frat-style high-jinks) in MB. The foursome consisted of me and three longtime pals, all members of the Woodstock Golf Club. To preserve a shred of their privacy, let’s call the other guys Betdoc (a brainy physician who could keep track of our complicated golf wagers), Topcat (a psychotherapist, genial eccentric, and my partner in the local men’s golf league), and Marlow (a restoration carpenter, originally from England). We all loved golf — except when we hated it, as after a triple-bogey — had flexible tastes in food, and enjoyed a drink or three after a round. That’s a recipe for compatibility on a golf trip, and it worked for us. The annual drumbeat started around Christmas. Betdoc, relying on a printed catalogue and the telephone in the pre-Internet era, would arrange a package deal — lodging and golf — through a hotel or condo. We’d convene at a local bar, usually the Bear, to pore over the plan and let our fantasies fly. This was the year, we’d bluster, when someone would finally tame the 17th hole at Marsh Harbour, a spectacular par five, or birdie the 15th at Oyster Bay, a devilish par three featuring a downhill tee shot to an island green. With such pinpoint shotmaking all but assured, we’d hardly need more than a few golf balls apiece. We’d buy three dozen anyway, just in case. Some other purchases might be in order — a new golf

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club, maybe, or a waterproof rain suit, although our luck with the weather defied all odds. In an area that’s susceptible not only to rain, but also to an occasional hurricane or tornado, we often played in sunny, short-sleeve conditions. Over all those years, only a couple of rounds were canceled or curtailed due to bad weather. At long last our departure day would arrive. For several years, before we opted for air travel, we drove to and from MB, piling our golf bags, suitcases, and relatively svelte selves into Betdoc’s Saab. We’d set sail from Woodstock in the late afternoon, make our way to I-95, and spend the night somewhere in Virginia or Maryland. The next day we’d play a round of golf, usually in North Carolina. It was there that Topcat once threw a rural diner into a tizzy by ordering softboiled eggs (hold the grits) for breakfast — apparently uncharted territory for a greasy spoon deep in Nascar country. On another occasion he stumped a twentysomething barmaid by asking if her roadside tavern, which seemed to specialize in Bud Light and moonshine, served highland or lowland Scotch. That was Top-

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Teeing it up Most of the hundred or so courses arrayed along the Strand and in the Calabash area of North Carolina, just over the state line, are perfectly decent, and we sampled lots of them. After a while we came to prefer the so-called premium courses, which add a surcharge to the package rate, raising the cost of an 18-hole round (mandatory cart included) to $100 or more. Since we usually played 36 holes a day, our premium

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cat: earnest, inquisitive, a little offbeat; a true Woodstocker. We’d roll into MB just in time for cocktails and an early dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant (whose name, along with those of the seafood and sushi establishments we visited every year, escapes me). Then we’d stock up on staples at a supermarket and head for our hotel or condo. While inexpensive, the lodging was always comfortable and sometimes downright plush, with amenities ranging from screened porches and multiple TVs to in-room Jacuzzis. Golfers on package deals in MB — meaning, in most cases, American men stuck in adolescence — tend to live large.

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28, 2013 16 | February Health, Sports & Fitness habit got pricey, but the lodging was cheap and this was a once-a-year splurge. We went for it. Within the niche of premium courses, we favored layouts designed by the golf course architect Dan Maples, whose MB-area creations include Marsh Harbour (now sadly closed), Oyster Bay, the Pearl, and the Witch. Also on our must-play list were Heather Glen, a Willard Byrd design; Glen Dornoch, created by Clyde Johnston; and the Dunes, fashioned by the noted architect Robert Trent Jones. Until we switched to airplanes, our final-day MB schedule called for a morning round at the Dunes followed by a drive straight home to Woodstock, with Betdoc and me sharing the wheel while Marlow and Topcat slept off their sunburns in the back seat. The landscape surrounding these and other courses along the Strand is astonishing — the endless marshland, teeming with wildlife; the live oaks and loblolly pines that frame fairways, tees, and greens; the sunbathing alligators, seemingly sleepy but reportedly fleet of foot (prompting the joke, from one golfer to another, “I don’t have to be faster than the gator, just faster than you”); and the meandering Intracoastal Waterway, reflecting a pastel sunset at the end of an afternoon round. Life, sometimes, is just good. Which is not to say that the golf (mine, anyway) was always good. The MB courses were invariably longer and trickier than our home track in Woodstock. Among the challenges were tee shots that had to carry a broad expanse of water or swamp (schmutz in our Yiddish lexicon); ungroomed sand traps, known as “waste areas,” along the fairways; and huge, slick greens that could make putting a nightmare. Meanwhile, we hadn’t played golf in four months. Betdoc, the best golfer in our group, performed respectably most of the time, but Topcat, Marlow and I generally struggled to shoot in the range of our mid-teens handicaps. But we had our moments. Once, near dusk at Marsh Harbour, we arrived at that famous 17 hole, a 510-yard, double-dogleg par five with a shimmering, panoramic view of marshes, coves, and inlets. None of us had ever parred the hole. I was sharing a cart with Topcat, who had a relatively high handicap but also the perfect temperament for golf and a capacity for sudden brilliance. Here’s the daunting deal on that hole. First, you need to hit a tee shot that’s straight and fairly long, but not so long that your ball carries through the fairway and into a schmutzy ravine, where you can kiss it goodbye and forget about making par. That’s what happened to my ball, so I assumed the role of cheerleader for Topcat, who had hit

The par-4 13th hole at Oyster Bay.

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beckoning green, about 120 yards away and to the right; the second dogleg. My old golf partner hit a pitching wedge on the screws. We watched in wonder as the ball arced above the marsh and settled on the green, just twelve feet from the hole. Could he sink the putt for the birdie of a lifetime? Yes he could, and yes he did.

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Betdoc, Marlow and topcat in Sligo, Ireland, 2002. a flawless drive and now faced the scary second shot: a long, downhill layup, over the yawning ravine, to a landing area on the left; the first of the hole’s two doglegs. Topcat rose to the occasion, flushing a 7-wood to a safe spot in the landing zone. One challenge remained: an approach shot, again over an expanse of reedy schmutz, to the

Lots of laughs Whether the golf was good or bad, we had plenty of laughs, on and off the course. Here are some moments that come to mind. In the middle of a round on some course or other, a marshal pulled up in a golf cart as we were about to hit our tee shots. (Golf clubs employ marshals, who are usually retirees, to keep things moving out on the course.) The elderly gent told us, somewhat curtly, to pick up our pace of play. Then he drove away, in the direction we were aiming. Believing that the marshal was safely out of range, Marlow hit his tee shot — a screaming line drive that loudly whacked into the back of the man’s retreating cart, which had traveled only about 80 yards from the tee. Take that! We’ll play at our own pace, thank you very much! the shot seemed to declare. While we collapsed in laughter, the marshal just kept going, never slowing down, looking back, or otherwise acknowledging the direct hit. He’d undoubtedly seen it all — up to, and now including, four idiots from Woodstock, New York. After dinner one night, we set out to buy trin-

February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness

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That’s a savvy Woodstock golfer for you, I mused, capable of managing complex transactions even when slightly impaired. I had no doubt that Marlow and Topcat, wherever they were, had also got the job done. Somewhere on the back nine at Oyster Bay, the hole we were playing required a difficult approach shot, over a pond and uphill to an elevated green. The normally reliable Betdoc botched the assignment, plunking his ball into the water halfway across the pond. We were about to commiserate insincerely when, all of a sudden, the ball leapt from the pond and climbed the hill, settling just off the green. At the same time we spied an agitated alligator swimming furiously from the spot where Betdoc’s shot had entered the water. The good doctor, ever resourceful, had banked his 8-iron off a gator that was idling on the pond’s surface. Perhaps needless to say, he chipped his next shot onto the green and made the putt for an unforgettable up-and-down par. And so it went, year after year. Eventually, in search of even balmier weather and some fresh scenery, we abandoned MB in favor of Florida’s Gulf Coast, where for a couple of years we stayed and played around Naples and Sarasota. I don’t remember much about the courses or the area. I suppose they were okay, but no match for MB’s peculiar, enticing blend of natural beauty, manmade glitz, and party-time atmosphere. In 2002 our golf travels peaked with a trip to the northwest coast of Ireland. Based in Sligo, we played some of the area’s magnificent courses (Rosses Point, Donegal, Lahinch), hit the pubs with gusto, and took a break from the action to visit W. B. Yeats’s grave in nearby Drumcliffe churchyard. We were fully in our element, but that’s a story for another time. Our beloved friend Topcat passed away in 2009. He lived a great life, some of which — those road trips, those diner stops, that Marsh Harbour birdie — we were lucky to share. Now, for the rest of us, a new golf season, and whatever it may bring our way, awaits.

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kets for our wives, although they hated the stuff we brought home and urged us to desist. As we entered a labyrinthine shopping mall called Barefoot Landing, Marlow, Topcat, and I (but not Betdoc) accidentally inhaled some reefer smoke that must have issued from a passing teenager. We promptly veered off in different directions and lost track of each other; no cell phones in those days. High as a kite (or my afternoon golf score), I stumbled into a sprawling jewelry store. Somehow failing to notice the contents of the display cases that filled the place, I sought assistance from the manager. “Do you have any earrings?” I inquired. She smiled tolerantly and made a sweeping gesture. Lo and behold, there they were, everywhere — earrings by the hundreds, of every kind that a wife wouldn’t want, including a huge selection right under my nose. Mission accomplished!

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28, 2013 18 | February Health, Sports & Fitness

Book review

Keep Your Brain Healthy to be suffering from it. By midcentury, a new case will develop every 30 seconds. Victims currently number up to 36 million worldwide. The worldwide costs of medical and social care, including estimated informal care from unpaid family members and others, totaled $604 billion in 2010 — more than the annual revenue of Walmart. That plaques and tangles begin to build up in an affected brain decades before symptoms emerge, and even in the brains of otherwise healthy people as young as 30.

The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program Ann Hutton

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n the recently released trade paper edition of The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program: Keep Your Brain Healthy for the Rest of Your Life, Gary Small and Gigi Vorgan reiterate the latest prognosis about the insidious disease that steals our loved ones from us — indeed, as it takes away life as we know it from anyone stricken. No, there is still no cure for Alzheimer’s. And diagnosis remains iffy, with detection often inadvertently postponed until frightening symptoms have presented themselves. The hope Small and Vorgan point to hangs on research that has uncovered the possibility of prevention. By becoming aware of lifestyle habits that promote a healthy brain, we can, they proclaim, push back the onset of dementia caused by aging and even offset the potential of genetic predisposition for the disease. For those of us still in possession our mental marbles, this is good news. Solid scientific investigation into the vitality of the human brain indicates that measures can be taken to slow down and stave off the damaging effects of Alzheimer’s disease and the development of those pesky amyloid plaques and tau protein tangles evident in the autopsied brain matter of its victims. These waxy proteins and twisted fibers are the unwelcome microscopic evidence left in areas of the brain that control memory and functions such as language,

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decision making, and personality. What isn’t known is whether they are the byproducts or the causes of the ailment, but by studying what goes on in the brain as it ages, researchers have found that healthy lifestyle habits — a wholesome diet, regular physical activity, and robust cognitive engagement — might be key in preventing cognitive decline. In an otherwise upbeat report, The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program outlines some of the more sobering statistics of Alzheimer’s disease. Every 70 seconds, another American is diagnosed

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s director of the UCLA Longevity Center and professor of psychiatry at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine, Small works to determine what can be done to help people forestall becoming a part of those statistics. From coordinated studies and clinical protocols conducted over the past decades, he and his colleagues have formulated conditions under which normal deterioration of brain matter can be slowed down. With a combined measure of humor and hope, he presents these possibilities — along with more than a few of the concerns and drawbacks people might have in facing the ramifications of the disease. Indeed, the emotional impact of the illness is a grave one, and fear of losing one’s mental faculties often causes people to avoid even thinking about dementia. The dreaded word “cancer” used to be referred to in hushed tones as “the Big C.” Now the prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease among the baby boomers has many of us wanting to bury our heads in the sand before we become self-aware of symptoms. Small describes the fear factor that has us avoiding mention of this terrorist disease by telling the story of a friend who couldn’t find his car in a mall parking lot. “He felt his memory was going — and fast. A security guard drove him around the lot’s several levels looking for his Mercedes, but he still couldn’t find it … started panicking. Just then the security guard said they’d had several upscale cars stolen in the last month …. My friend almost cried with relief — his car had been stolen! Thank God!” Anyone of a certain age who can’t think of someone’s name — a famous actor or an old school friend or the neighbor down the block — or who has walked into their kitchen, faced the refrigerator and wondered why they are there, or who can’t recall by dinnertime what came in the mail that afternoon, has experienced the disconcerting sensation of fear such incidents provoke. They don’t, fortunately, always indicate the presence of “the Big A.” Small lists stress as a prime factor for an overburdened brain to malfunction now and then. And certainly the fear of developing Alzheimer’s can be stressful. “Chronic stress not only diminishes our quality of life, but it increases our risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease,” he states. “We

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February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness

Alzheimer’s 101 at Vassar College

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n informational workshop for caregivers, helping professionals, and those affected by and interested in Alzheimer’s disease will take place 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 3 at Vassar College at the AULA. The program will feature a video documentary and lecture segments by various experts in the field, including Vassar Professor of Psychology, Carol Christensen, who will speak on “Lifestyles That Are Relevant to Alzheimer’s Disorder,” Vassar Professor of Psychology, Bojana Zutan, who will give a talk on “The Neuroscience of Alzheimer’s,” and Director of Communications and Public Policy, Local Chapter, Michelle Muir, with “Advocacy and the Healing Power of Art for those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.” The local Director of Alzheimer’s Association, Meg Boyce, will talk on “Caring for the Caregiver.” This program is being sponsored by the Vassar Bookstore, Human Resources, the Psychology Department, and the Alzheimer’s Association. All Vassar employees and students are welcome. This event is free and open to the public. John Schoonbeck, former Director of Vassar’s Blegan House and author of the book Twenty Odd Tales, will speak 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on April 10 on campus. When diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s, Schoonbeck penned this memoir of his Dutch Reformed heritage. For more information about either program, contact suvinett@vassar.edu or 845-437-5870.

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moderate consumption of coffee and wine is recommended! — and cross-train it with a variety of neuron-stimulating mental exercises. Small’s seven-day program explains what to eat, when to exercise, how to stimulate the brain, and how to incorporate new habits into one’s life for the best results. He also emphasizes how important continued social interaction is as we age. In The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program, Small offers information about the latest means of detecting compromised brain function, including genetic testing, along with current trends in medicine that address the symptoms of sufferers. As well, he cites encouraging examples of how employing these simple habits — brisk walking, good eating, and committed engagement in life’s great and small puzzles — has proven positive results in people young and old. It’s never too late to improve your brain’s health, he maintains, and at the same time enjoy vibrant overall health and longevity. “Serving the community since 1961”

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can learn to manage our stress triggers better and lower their impact on our neuronal stability.”

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proactive stand — taking one’s brain health into one’s own hands — can actually serve to improve the odds for its health and longevity. Small identifies pertinent areas that can contribute to mental clarity and ongoing brain function, which include: the brain’s dietary needs, with ten brain-protecting foods; stimulation with memory-increasing techniques and exercising both the right and left hemispheres; and stress reduction through meditation and other relaxation strategies. These sound like standard recommendations for preventing and treating any number of ailments — heart disease, cancer, diabetes, mental health and obesity, among others. Is it surprising

to learn that our very organ of intelligence, consciousness, and identity — the cerebrum — is affected by and responds to these basic requirements, too? The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program gives readers easy-to-comprehend-and-follow steps that help strengthen memory, both short-term learning and long-term recall; increase aerobic activity to nourish the brain with oxygen-rich blood; feed it with anti-oxidant foods and vital nutrients — this writer was pleased to learn that

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28, 2013 20 | February Health, Sports & Fitness

The true believer How the author became convinced of the healing powers of essential oils Erin Quinn

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he oldest remedies often turn out to be the best. Take, for example, “Thieves,” a blend of clove, lemon, cinnamon bark, eucalyptus and rosemary essential oils used by graverobbers during the bubonic plague, which decimated much of Europe and Asian in the 14th century, wiping out almost entire populations. “Thieves” allowed the grave-robbers to secure the wealth of deceased victims without contacting the disease themselves. They were protected so well that courts would order them to provide their secret weapon: nature’s oils. Given our modern pharmaceutical enterprises, that tale could sound foolish -- the stuff of legend. But when I was introduced to essential oils almost six years ago by my mother, a veteran counselor and workshop leader, I took her advice to heart. She had many ties in the traditional and not-sotraditional worlds of therapeutics. She had workshops and certifications. And she had accumulated a vast network of alternative-healthy, life-loving friends. Her clients were astounded that what she swore by was “hot water and lemon,” via Deepak Chopra and essential oils. Besides, she’s my mother. How could it hurt if I followed her advice? So I used lemongrass to offset the onslaught of bugs during the recreational baseball season, and basil to help cure the itch of bug bites and poison ivy. Prone to panic, I found that lavender essential oil, placed on my temples, sternum and palms of my hand, helped me sleep and relax. Tending to three active children who are usually running cross-country or swimming when they’re not doing homework kept me busy. It was a fulltime chore for me just to keep them fed, not to say vitamin-sufficient. Subscribing to the age-old remedy of essential oils, every night I would anoint my children every night with Thieves, purification and alternate amino-power. The result? No one got sick. The strep throat which had plagued our swim-family abated. Though we avoided the flu shot, there were no sicknesses. Though my experience has been almost entirely anecdotal, I’ve become a true believer. The stuff works for me. I look around only for corroborating evidence. And guess what? I find it. I loved the oils so much that I began to take them for granted. Most kids are hopped up on antibiotics, anti-viral meds, anti-fungal, anti-acne meds, I told myself. Not mine. Introduced to the essential oils by my mother and her professional friends, I accepted. How could they hurt? I began putting on lemongrass oil on myself during Little-League baseball to keep the bugs at bay. They went nowhere near me. Sad to say, they did go near my kids and my kids’ best friends, many of whom had intense reactions to bug bites. “Basil,” my mom said. “It takes the itch away and helps heal the bite.” My friends used my oils. It worked. “My son was intensely allergic to mosquito bites and poison ivy, and the basil oil was magic,” testified Jane Fallon of Hyde Park. Basil oil calmed the swelling, the itch. “Even though I felt like I was cooking the entire week, the smell was well worth it.”

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was instructed by my mother to place Thieves on the feet of my kids every night, to have them breathe it in, one nostril at a time. The potent smell became a source of comfort in our house. The kids began to expect it, ask for it. One day three months later, I ran out of the stuff. Three months went by. My kids would ask for the oils. I told them that the order was on the way. It became a ritual or them to ask before they

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went to sleep. While I was waiting for that order to come from an organic farm in Oregon, our oldest son, always vibrant and without illness, became sick, very sick. Bronchitis was the first diagnosis. He fought through it. I regretfully did not respond to his months of low-grade fevers, aches, pains and other symptoms. Finally, he was diagnosed with severe mononucleosis. A few months later, sans oils, he suffered a spleen rupture after playing baseball. The oils could not have prevented the errant wild pitch, but I cursed myself for not having the oils on hand. Ever since then the oils have been in place. Thieves, immuno-power, basil, lemon grass. Friends that sleep over willingly give up their feet to be patted down with the oils. We all love the smell of health and nature. Fast forward to this past month. I’ve been begging my mom to place an order. Her essential-oil gurus were on vacation in Italy studying. Very recently, one of our children said his chest hurt when he ran or swam. He’s not a complainer. I placed a 911-OIL call to my mother, who lives less than a mile away. She put oils on his feet and rubbed his chest with eucalyptus. By morning he was solid and sturdy, ready to go. “I think Thieves speaks for itself,” said Robin Stapley, a massage therapist. “I use it every day because I come in contact with so many people and several of them are sick. If it worked for graverobbers who did not catch the bubonic plague, then I believe it does me great justice.” Stapley wasn’t always an essential-oil user. “My children and grandchildren live in New Mexico and Florida, and every time I’d visit them I’d get sick from that recirculated air on the plane.” Once she discovered Thieves she would smell, dot and drink a tincture of the oil when traveling. For the past eight years she said, she has never gotten sick, even while working on clients who are ill. She thinks of essential oils as similar to antibiotics, but paying a bonus by boosting the immune system, preventing illness and curing many things that modern medical drugs cannot.

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he gave a few examples of how lavender essential oil “helps to heal burns, any skin condition, and relax my clients who are anxious.” If overwhelmed herself, she puts a drop or two in the bathtub to “soothe and relax myself. It works immediately.” I can relate to that. I douse myself in lavender oil when necessary and put it in the bath, on the pillows. If I could find a way to get it airborne, I would use it to “relax” our three energetic children. Basil is a big one. “I have so many clients who come in with all kinds of bug bites and poison-ivy rashes,” said Stapley, “and the greatest antidote is basil oil, as it prevents itching. It won’t cure the problem, but it will help dramatically in easing the need to itch and spreading it further.” Purification is another blend consisting of lemongrass, rosemary, Melaleuca, lavandin and myrtle that Stapley swears by. “That is a great blend for little cuts or infections,” she said. “My daughter suffers from MRSA [Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus]. According to the Mayo Clinic, that infection is caused by a strain of staph bacteria that’s become resistant to the antibiotics commonly used to treat staph infections. Stapley suggested her daughter put a drop of the essential-oils blend on her washcloth after a shower and rub her entire body down with it. “She hasn’t had a case of MRSA in five years since she started doing that,” reported the massage therapist. Robin also used Purification on a client who suffered from terrible boils in her armpits that no doctor could effectively treat. “She’d done everything modern medicine had to offer and was slated to get a skin graft when a friend of hers asked me if there was an alternative,” Stapley said. After the treatment, “The boils went away, she does not need a skin graft, and she’s not had a problem since then.” You can probably intuit that the oils have convinced me and others of their powers. “Essential oils are the original antibiotics and incredibly effective,” repeated Stapley. “They kill bacteria, germs, soak right into the blood stream. And each one has its own beautiful scent and healing or preventive qualities.”

“I have so many clients who come in with all kinds of bug bites and poison-ivy rashes, and the greatest antidote is basil oil, as it prevents itching ….”

February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness

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Geezer fit? Mike Quinn, 70, trains the young and old Brian Hollander

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nn Horowitz puts down the dumbbells and says she has been working out in a gym for 20 years — slowly. “It’s something to do, everybody’s into it,” she says. “It makes me feel better. This morning I felt like an 84-year-old woman … now I feel like … 82.” Alongside, her trainer, a buff sort of youngster, Mike Quinn, who just turned 70, gently encourages her. “There are more referrals for older people in Florida,” says Quinn, who trains young and old clients for half the year there and the other half in Kingston and MAC Fitness in Kingston Plaza. “I spend half my time in Florida at the YMCA as a trainer. Here I have four or five clients who come two or three times per week. With a trainer you get commitment, encouragement and expertise. People want the commitment. A trainer has to keep coming up with new things. You have to throw a few curves at your muscles ….” Quinn says he had been overweight in high school, but that the Army straightened that out. “I was drafted after college, ended up as a DI (Drill Instructor) in the U.S. Army and had to give a lot of basic training. It got me in the best shape of my life.” Quinn liked the way he looked and changed the way he ate and stayed like that for 45 years. “After the military, I normally just did aerobics to keep in shape,” he continued. “I play a lot of golf and for many years carried my clubs. Ten years ago I decided to try weight training, particularly for my upper body. I used my legs a lot on the golf course. I went into a gym and watched what other people did. I became a personal trainer in Florida. I asked friends who were trainers about certifications. The best place was the National Academy of Sports Medicine. It was a complete program, including anatomy, kinesiology …. it talked about cardio, fixed form resistance training (machines) and free form resistance (free weights), strength, balance, core work, flexibility. It provided a model so you can take someone at any level of fitness and move forward. I came in here [MAC Fitness] and talked to Kerry [Dotson, the director of the training program] three or four years ago. I had certification. There’s plenty of room here and lots of equipment.” Organizing a workout Quinn says that when someone engages him, or another trainer, they’re on the right track because they’ve already made a commitment. “They paid,” he says, “but they come in and have no idea where to start. Most of the people are a whole lot younger than I am. Maybe they want to lose weight, tone up for a wedding …. They have no idea what to do. A good personal trainer will take somebody and work on their balance, their flexibility. My goal is to get them to pass a core strength and stability test. Hold a ‘plank’ [basically a position similar to a push-up posture, only you’re resting on your elbows and forearms instead of your hands] for a minute, then raising each arm and leg for 15 seconds, for a total of three minutes. If somebody Family Practice

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Ann Horowitz trains with Mike Quinn. can get through that maneuver, they have a pretty stable core.” Regardless of age, Quinn starts in the same place. “What a good trainer does is evaluate the client. Find out what’s their reason for coming in. What are their limitations? Goals? What medications are they taking? Then set a plan in progress. Someone who can’t get up off the floor? I gave her leg raises to do in bed before she gets up. A good trainer has to find things to do knowing that limitations are there. “You’ve got to show how to organize a workout. Warm up first on a bike or walking for five or ten minutes. Then stretch problem areas, just to loosen up, not hard stretches. Do lower body, then core, then upper body, chest back shoulders first, then biceps and triceps. Then core specific exercises, then five to ten minutes of stretches. Use stablilty balls so people have to fight to maintain their balance.”

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Cardio-fitness is a big part. “If you just do one thing it’s better than nothing. But if you vary it, with stairs, bike, elliptical, you get muscle confusion. The goal is to have five or six exercises for each muscle group and keep rotating them. You don’t have to be on a piece of cardio equipment to get a workout. And at first light weights, lots of reps (repetitions) to stabilize the muscles. After a couple of weeks, higher weights, fewer reps. This leaves somebody with a good basic road map as to where you want to go. It’s a lot of fun helping people to reach their goals. You’ve got to make it fun instead of a grind.” Horowitz extols Quinn’s virtues. “Mike is a wonderful trainer. He is excellent, knows how to work you to your age. I lift weights, do a lot of water aerobics, stretching As you get older you aren’t as limber, you have to adjust to a different sort of life. I can’t ski any more or ice skate ….”

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28, 2013 22 | February Health, Sports & Fitness

Out with the gluten Bearsville Bakers supplying the goodies Violet Snow

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hen I was first out there eating gluten-free, I found a lot of companies were just swapping whiterice flour for wheat flour,” said Lauren Arcomano, who altered her diet in an effort to address symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis. “I wanted to keep baking with whole grains but without gluten.” This yen for healthful baked goods led Arcomano and her friend Janet Villani Garratt to start Bearsville Bakers, which supplies gluten-free brownies, biscotti, scones, cookies, coffee cake, and other goodies to local farmstands and healthfood stores. The expanding year-old business is meeting the needs of people who find a glutenfree diet helpful in treating food allergies, wheat sensitivity and celiac disease. Arcomano said her rheumatoid arthritis symptoms are much improved by the diet. Garratt, a graduate of the French Culinary Institute in New York, waxed enthusiastic about the creative process of adapting recipes to meet the chemistry of gluten-free baking. “I’ll look at a recipe and think, Okay, what might work here? What can I substitute? It usually takes two tries — occasionally three or four.” Gluten is a binding material that maintains the texture of wheat-based products, and it’s tricky to find a substitute that has the same “gluey” properties. White-rice flour works, but its nutritional value is low, while brown-rice flour has a gritty quality. Another option is certified gluten-free whole oats. “Oats don’t have gluten, but a lot of people can’t eat them because of cross-contamination from growing in fields where wheat was grown,” explained Arcomano. “They are often processed in facilities that also process wheat.” Arcomano and Garratt grind their oats in-house to avoid contamination. They sometimes use more expensive ingredients such as hazelnut and almond meals, ground millet, or flaxseed. Egg makes a good binder, but they have to avoid it in their vegan products, which many customers request.

B

rownies are a little easier. “Cocoa has a non-wheat starch, so chocolate has a binding property,” Garratt noted. Some of their products contain white sugar, which is cheaper than sweeteners such as agave, xylitol or stevia, which they buy for their sugarfree creations. Other vegan treats are made with vegan white sugar. Vegan sugar? But sugar doesn’t contain animal products, does it? “A lot of white sugar is processed with bone char to bleach it,” said Arcomano. “It’s filtered through

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a substance made from animal bones.” Although Arcomano bakes a loaf of gluten-free bread for herself and her family every day, and customers often ask for bread, it hasn’t yet entered their product list. “Bread doesn’t have a long shelf life,” she said. “And it will only rise so high

and then cave in.” She is experimenting with tapioca flour to make her bread spongier. Garratt plans to try her hand at bread soon. “I’m having so much compassion for our customers,” she said. “I want to give them something yummy they can have.”

February 28, 2013 Health, Sports & Fitness

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There’s a boy who comes to their home-based bakery every week to buy two brownies. “It’s hard,” sighed Arcomano. “Sometimes all I want is a buttered roll.” Bearsville Bakers products are sold at Sunflower Natural Foods and Sunfrost Farms in Woodstock; the Hudson V alley Farmers’ Market in Red Hook; Deising’s Bakery and Adams Fairacre Farms in Kingston; The Bakery in New Paltz; The Big Cheese, Emmanuel’s Marketplace and Davenport Farms in Stone Ridge; and their first New York City account, G-Free NYC, a gluten-free grocery store. For more information visit the Bearsville Bakers page on Facebook.

PHOTOS BY DION OGUST

Lauren Arcomano and Janet Villani Garratt.

DR. BRUCE JAY MILNER T 845 679 4000 212 751 6428 F 845 679 4015

269 Route 375, West Hurley NY 12491 57 west 57 th St, suite 1008 NY NY 10019 www.transcenddental.net

28, 2013 24 | February Health, Sports & Fitness

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