Maggie Downie, Author at Personal Euphoria: Pilates & Fitness Classes in CT

About Maggie Downie

Thank you for giving your time to stop and read my blog. I hope it encourages you to keep moving. Move and the body will be happier. And when you're moving you can hike, run, swim in Jell-O, race over non-Newtonian fluids, travel the world or build igloos--if that's your thing. If not, you can watch me do it. This is just a spot to try and feel good about life.

Learn to Love Moving & Be A Part of the Movement Movement!

Your mindset can make all the difference as to whether or not you stick to a new plan. So let’s try to change some common misconceptions about moving. Let’s learn to love movement.

I Don’t Have Time

This is never really true of anything. We have the time. It’s about how we prioritize our time, and it this case whether we prioritize movement. Most of us have the ability to reorganize our schedule. If you get together with friends you could ask to go for a walk instead of meet up for food or coffee. If you sit down in front of the couch you could get up and march in place. When you pump gas you could do some exercises. On a phone call at work you could do some exercises. But we often feel embarrassed to move in front of others. Screw them. They aren’t moving. And if they aren’t they don’t feel as good as you when you move. Most likely they are just jealous that you don’t care. And, you might even inspire someone else to move.

As a side note, even if you think you don’t have time, you can tweak little things. Park far away […]

Learn to Love Moving & Be A Part of the Movement Movement!Maggie Downie2018-01-13T16:39:42-05:00

Plank Story: Frozen Pipes

While it’s been a mild winter so far, we did have one frigid day a couple of weeks ago. I was reminded of years ago, probably a decade ago, when Matt and I lived in a condo. I woke up one morning to find no water coming out of the faucet. Matt was asleep, so I decided to mention it later. Then I forgot. We had to run out and when we returned home and got out of the car you could hear what sounded like a waterfall inside our house. When we opened the front door a pipe had burst and was spraying freezing water, already inches deep.

We tried to close the water shut off valve but it was painted opened, underwater, and we were freezing. As the water sprayed at us, Matt yelled, “Bail!” I ran from the room to find a bucket. He thought I had bailed, leaving him there to handle the situation alone. I returned with a bucket, caught the spraying water and immediately tossed it out the front door where it hit the walkway turning immediately to ice.

The water company claimed they couldn’t help us […]

Plank Story: Frozen PipesMaggie Downie2017-12-29T21:51:32-05:00

Just a Spoonful of Sugar

As I write this, I’m snacking on some popcorn, which I can gladly say has zero grams of sugar. Since I did the ten day detox (no grains, sugar or dairy) last month, I’ve been very mindful of how much sugar I eat. Note: I still eat it. I’m just trying to be aware.

I’ve always known that there is added sugar in everything, but I’d never stopped to really think about where or how much I should or shouldn’t consume in a day. In prepping for the detox, I read that Prego Sauce has the same amount of sugar as two Oreo cookies. Based on both their websites today, Prego actually has a bit more than two Oreos (a serving of Prego: 10-grams of sugar, a serving of Oreos (which is three cookies) 14-grams of sugar). Just two cookies and you’re actually getting a little less sugar than if you have the sauce. This surprised me, and I was annoyed. I don’t even eat Prego, but the idea that all sorts of food are adding unnecessary sugar annoyed me. I make a delicious spaghetti sauce without any sugar. I don’t want […]

Just a Spoonful of SugarMaggie Downie2017-12-29T21:52:41-05:00

Six Reasons You Might Be Cramping…Consider Electrolytes

Foot cramps, toe cramps, Charley Horses, even back spasms—they are all a form of muscles cramping.

Have you ever wondered where the term “Charley Horse” comes from to describe a cramp in the leg? It first pops up in newspapers and magazines around the 1880’s always referring to something terrible that afflicted baseball players. There is speculation that there was actually a horse named Charley that had a role on the baseball field. Or perhaps, a ballplayer had grown up with a lame horse named Charley. When players got cramps in their legs they walked around like the horse and the player said they looked like his horse, Charley.

While we don’t know the full etymology of the term, we do somewhat better understand what it going on when we get a muscle cramp. Here are science’s best assumptions on cramping right now:

Puberty, pregnancy, menopause—they can all cause you to wake in the night with a cramp in your leg. So if your body is changing first consider that as a possibility.
If you aren’t properly hydrated you are more likely to cramp. So make sure you are well hydrated for exercise, but also throughout the day. If you have chronic back pain, […]

Six Reasons You Might Be Cramping…Consider ElectrolytesMaggie Downie2017-12-29T21:54:13-05:00

Detox Debrief

So, you may recall that right before Christmas, I did a Detox that basically eliminated grains, dairy and sugar (except in fruit). Here are the highlights of how that turned out:

I could not have done it alone. Having some people on board made a big difference, especially in the beginning. It was good to have people to keep me on task or to talk to when I wanted chocolate cupcakes.

Though the book I’d read swore I wouldn’t be hungry, and I think I was eating a lot, I was starving the entire time. I’d wake up hungry in the night. I’ve never felt such a bottomless, constant pit of hunger. If I ever get on Survivor I will do this detox before to help prepare myself.

In ten days, I lost six pounds. Since then, I’ve put three back on. That much weight that quickly is never healthy.

On day seven for the first time in my life I actually did stop craving sugar and carbs. I’ve heard people talk about cravings stopping, but I’ve never actually experienced that myself. I usually give up sugar in the form of dessert in February, never all types of sugar. I’ve never stopped craving it […]

Detox DebriefMaggie Downie2018-01-13T16:46:49-05:00

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