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.

Going Gluten-Free Gets A Bad Rap

I’m gluten free, and I’ve had a few people mention to me that they read that eating gluten-free isn’t healthy. I found an article in Consumer Reports basically saying as much.

But there is a faulty premise in the article. It presumes that if you are gluten-free you are going to eat a lot of gluten-free products. Of course that’s not healthy. That’s like going sugar free and using fake sugar substitutes or trying a low fat diet and eating foods filled with sodium to give them some flavor. Xanthum gum? Guar Gum? I’ve basically come to the personal decision that I want to stay away from anything that sounds indigestible. Remember when your mom told you if you swallowed your gum it would stay in your stomach for twenty years or something like that? It won’t and neither will guar gum probably, but it doesn’t sound real. I’m going to try not to eat it.

I’m not an advocate for anyone else going gluten-free. If I didn’t have a reason to give it up, I’d still be scarfing down muffins, pies, cakes, bread. Oh, and sandwiches. How I long to be able to pack a sandwich for the day. One that […]

Going Gluten-Free Gets A Bad RapMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:14-04:00

Tips for New Pilates Students

So it’s 2015 and you just signed up for your first Pilates class (or your first Pilates class in a long time). Pilates can be a lot to take in all at once. It’s pretty overwhelming. Just remember no one learns it all the first day. I’ve been doing Pilates for over a decade and I’m still learning about it. Not helping?

Trust me. It’s worth learning.

Know that’s it’s okay to break it up into pieces. Learn the moves. Then learn the breathing.

And if there are a few things you’re stuck on like what is the different between neutral and imprint, check out this video.

Want a review of the basic principles (breathing, shoulder placement, ribcage placement, pelvic placement and neck alignment)? Watch this video.

Tips for New Pilates StudentsMaggie Downie2017-10-25T16:00:00-04:00

Working Out in the Morning is Making Me Fat!

I’m a morning person. Most of my life I would get up early before work to exercise. And it wasn’t a chore. That was my time. I enjoyed it. But as I’ve gotten older my sleep has also become more important to me. So I have a new rule. I won’t get up to exercise if it means I’m setting the alarm before 5:30am. I’ll make an occasional exception.

That means I’m not getting in as many or as long workouts as I used to in the morning. And it’s taken some adjusting. I prefer exercising in the morning. I’ve had to learn to try to fit in exercise in the afternoon. But here’s the thing, I wasn’t feeling good. The workout felt fine (once I get moving I always feel better), but by the middle of the day I was drained.

A friend of mine said, “I think working out in the morning is making me fat.” It may sound laughable, but I related. I was so tired from getting up so early to work out that by midday I found myself snacking on anything I could to stay awake. The snacking was defeating the workout. I have a hard enough […]

Working Out in the Morning is Making Me Fat!Maggie Downie2017-10-25T15:49:50-04:00

Sigh of Relief

This morning I had to have blood drawn. I don’t enjoy this process. I went to the normal lab I love, but the woman I know and like wasn’t there. It was 7:30am. I’d been fasting so in my rule book I had reason to be crabby, but I wasn’t. This new woman behind the counter was. She took my paperwork and sighed with utter exasperation, as if my passing her the paper was putting her over the edge.

“Sorry, it’s been a long day, “she said. I replied, “It’s rough when it’s long before 9am.” But I really didn’t mind. It was unprofessional, but I appreciate people have bad days and it’s not the end of the world. I’m also really into breathing, and I know that sigh when you let all the air out audibly is good. So I naively presume she’s feeling better. She had a good sigh. The world must be back to normal.

Nope. She continues sighing as she fills out my forms. I hope with each sigh that before she gets in the back room with me and a needle she’ll let out all her frustration.

She calls me into the room. And I give my usual […]

Sigh of ReliefMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:14-04:00

Fun with FitBit

I got my FitBit on.

I’ve had a FitBit for years. When I first got it, it inspired me to move more, I think. (Maybe there is a previous blog that would reveal the answer.) I haven’t worn it for years, but then my little sister got me back into it by inspiring me with competition. She must know me.

You can now download and app and invite friends to compete in challenges to move more. This is sort of my dream in life. The competition aspect changes the way I operate. I’ve thrown in an extra walk around the block. I’ve even caught myself pacing while chatting to get extra steps.

Most importantly, I’ve learned I’m not as active as I think. I consider myself pretty active. I teach Pilates, after all. I’m up and down off the mat, pulling and adjusting springs. I feel like in my classes I’m always moving. But after teaching three back-to-back classes Ill only earn 600-800 steps. That’s not great. And it’s brought my attention to how much I sit. Since half my job involves running the business, I’m at the computer […]

Fun with FitBitMaggie Downie2017-10-25T14:26:32-04:00

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