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.

Reader’s Question: How Am I Supposed to Breathe & Keep My Abs Engaged?

I was emailed an important question the other day that I think a lot of people find confusing. The question is: If I’m supposed to keep my abdominal muscles engaged during Pilates or exercise, how do I do that and take a deep, full breath? Arguably, how do I breathe at all with my abs engaged?

The answer is you don’t. Not well anyway. When you breathe your abdominal muscles should move. They should not stay contracted, especially on a deep belly breath. Even on a lateral Pilates breathe it is not realistic to hold your abs in when you inhale.

Not sure you know what the lateral Pilates breath is? Check out this video before you continue reading:

So here are some tips to hopefully help you breathe, but remain connected with the abdominals (or take better advantage of how they should interact with your lungs and diaphragm):

On every inhale allow the abdominals to relax as you take in air. Use the exhale as a reminder and opportunity to reconnect with them. Very often, especially when you are new to Pilates you should hear an instructor cue you: “Inhale. Engage the abs, exhale and move.” That’s the order it should come. Our […]

Reader’s Question: How Am I Supposed to Breathe & Keep My Abs Engaged?Maggie Downie2017-10-25T15:49:49-04:00

Components of a Paleo Post-Workout Meal

The following post is a guest blog from my cousin, Laura Scaviola. Hope you enjoy the great tips, fabulous photos, and yummy recipes all thanks to Laura and her blog Mangia Paleo.

You know that feeling after you eat a giant bowl of pasta or a few slices of cheesy pizza? It makes you want to go lay down after eating, right? Well the paleo diet doesn’t allow that feeling. The diet suggests eating food (read: nutrition!) that our body truly needs to function. Look at it this way – eating should be to fuel your body. Your post-workout meal should be a response to the workout you just did. The paleo food pyramid is much different than the staple USDA food pyramid. The paleo food pyramid puts lean meat on the bottom, veggies after that, and fruit/fat in the smaller areas. It’s something helpful to keep in mind when thinking about portions.

Generally a balanced plate is important. A proper rule of thumb for a balanced paleo plate is this:

1. Lean protein

2. Starchy Veggies

3. Nutrient-dense greens

In that order.

PROTEIN, IT’S NICE TO MEAT YOU

Components of a Paleo Post-Workout MealMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:12-04:00

PLANK STORY: The Competitive Spirit Starts Young

We met friends in the Poconos last weekend. Their seven-year-old daughter is a blast and abnormally easy going for a human being. But I saw a whole new side of her when we rode Go-Carts, an activity I haven’t done in years, but highly recommend. It’s so much fun. Evelyn had to ride with an adult, so for the first ride she picked Uncle Matt. We drove the course. Matt and Evelyn did well. On our second ride, she opted to go with me. I told her that if she wanted to win she should join Uncle Matt or her father. After a brief consideration she opted to stay with me.

Picture this one in hot pursuit of every single go-cart that zoomed passed us.

We get in the car. Keep in mind I’m changing from the single passenger to a double. Before the race starts they have you drive out of the shed and stop. I pull out behind the other doubles, but when I need to break, the pedal is so much farther away on the doublewide […]

PLANK STORY: The Competitive Spirit Starts YoungMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:12-04:00

My Never Ending Struggle With Meditation

I’m a terrible meditator. Though I need it (I guess), I resist it. Whenever I settle down into a routine of meditation, which usually lasts four days, I feel like a phony. Which is why I suspect a couple of friends recommended the book 10% Happier by Dan Harris. He describes feeling phony when he started meditating. While the book wasn’t as helpful as I hoped, it was worth reading for one meditation nugget that very possibly provides the only chance I have of success. He suggested making meditative moments a game. Basically, make meditation self-competition. Sold. Basically, this is the game:

Inhale & Exhale
Pay attention and notice the sensation somewhere in your body (nose, stomach, chest, etc.)
Think the word “in” when you inhale and “out” when you exhale.

Now, here is the real challenge.

Keep count. With each breath count, one, two, until you get to ten and then reset.

The first week I tried, I couldn’t complete two breaths without getting distracted. Seriously. I’m apparently that much of a spaz. Thinking of the monotony of meditation like a game really helped me. Because now I could set a goal that wasn’t just to fill a minute. If you’ve ever wanted to stop […]

My Never Ending Struggle With MeditationMaggie Downie2015-07-29T06:28:00-04:00

The Diary-Free Saga

Gluten has been out of my life for nearly three and a half years, but who’s counting. So it was a sad day when I got some allergy testing back for IgG and IgA antibodies and the results suggested an allergy to dairy and mushrooms. I agreed to give up both in addition to the gluten for three months. I still have high hopes of cheese, milk and ice cream in my future.

Some days are worse than others, but really it’s not as awful as I imagined. The first two weeks were really tough, and I felt awful. So bad that I tried to convince myself that I must actually really need dairy and my body was dying without it—only slightly dramatic. But I held strong, and I do feel better this week.

It helps to have Divine Treasures in Manchester. In addition to my favorite chocolate (which is all gluten and dairy free) they also make gluten-free, dairy-free pizzas and cheese. The pizzas are good. They also have d-free, g-free ice cream! And I’ve started to notice there are places I don’t miss it. For example I often have a fried egg for breakfast. I used to always put […]

The Diary-Free SagaMaggie Downie2015-07-22T10:38:43-04:00

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