The Meditating Brain

The Meditating Brain: Express Version By Wray Herbert

in the Journal of the Association of Psychological Science

I have been experimenting with mindfulness meditation recently. Originally a Buddhist practice, mindfulness meditation focuses on moment-to-moment awareness, of one’s body and its sensations and one’s immediate surroundings. When thoughts intrude on this aware state—as they always do—you gently let them go as you return to the moment.

It’s very calming—and really hard. It’s hard because the mind does not want to stop churning out thoughts. I’m told that with time and practice, meditation becomes easier, and what’s more that it brings a variety of emotional and health benefits. Those testimonials are why I’m doing this, but I confess the prospect is daunting. Expert Buddhist practitioners log some 10,000 hours of training, and even neophytes should expect to log 70 or more hours of training, over months, before seeing any noticeable benefits. So imagine how encouraged I was to come across a recent study that seems designed for impatient souls like me. Psychological scientist Christopher Moyer, and a large group of colleagues at the University of Wisconsin—Stout, designed a brain study to see if there might be at least some benefit after a very brief period of meditation training. It’s a small study, and the first of its kind.

The scientists recruited a group of volunteers, ranging in age from 18 to 73, all interested but inexperienced at meditation practice. The volunteers completed an emotional inventory before starting the study, and they also closed their eyes and tried to meditate for 18 minutes on their own. All they were told was to focus on their breathing, and if thoughts intruded, to re-focus their attention on their breathing. During this trial, they were hooked up to an EEG, which measured their baseline brain activity. The participants had volunteered in exchange for training by experienced instructors, and half were immediately enrolled in such training. The others were wait-listed; they received training later on, but served as controls for the brain study. In the actual study, the meditation trainees were offered nine 30-minute sessions over five weeks, each session consisting of a short lesson and five to 20 minutes of “sitting.” After the five weeks, all of the volunteers—trainees and controls—repeated the 18-minute meditation trial, again hooked up to the EEG.

The results got my attention. As reported on-line in the journal Psychological Science, the trainees ended up averaging fewer than seven sessions, and meditated at home just a couple times a week—so they only got about six hours of training and practice in all over the five weeks. That comes to minutes a day, not hours. But even with this very modest commitment of time, the novices showed a significant shift in brain activity from their right to their left frontal hemispheres over the course of the study. Such brain asymmetry is associated with a shift to more positive emotional processing. In short, the promised benefits of meditation may be much more accessible than previously thought. It’s not clear from these results whether these brain changes are lasting, or if they are limited to actual meditation and its immediate aftermath. I also anticipate that some purists will object to the whole idea that beginners would want to get something for nothing. But really, for newcomers to a practice so unfamiliar, even evidence of a temporary shift away from negative emotions is something to build on, and keep us coming back.

Wray Herbert’s book, On Second Thought, is out in paperback.

Excerpts from his two blogs—“Full Frontal Psychology” and “We’re Only Human”—appear regularly in The Huffington Post and in Scientific American Mind. Published September 21, 2011Tags: Brain, brain asymmetry, health psychology, meditation, positive emotions

Ride a Bike!

Cycling is good for you. Start now, even if you’ve done nothing for years says Lloyd Lemons, author of Cycling Nirvana blog.

I’m not a light-weight guy, but I am lighter than I was, say five years ago, because of cycling. Thirty pounds lighter. I’m not getting any younger either. But today, I feel like I’m the fittest I’ve ever been in my life.It’s not easy to start exercising when you’ve done nothing for years. It’s tough… damn tough. And cycling is no different. I witnessed a conversation a couple of years ago when I was working in the local bike shop. The sales clerk, a tall, slender, athletic looking woman, who probably weighed about 105 pounds soaking wet, was helping this middle-aged guy make his first bike purchase since he was a kid. He was average height, and looked like he might weigh about 230 pounds. He was not an athlete. He looked tired, overwhelmed by the technological advances made in bikes over the years, and somewhat intimidated by the environment he found himself in. He knew he was out of shape, and wanted to do something about it. But here was this svelte young woman trying to sell him a high-end road bike, while preaching to him about the benefits of cranking it up every day. He walked out of the store that day without buying a bike and I’m guessing, today he’s still overweight and tired, because he saw his quest for fitness as insurmountable.

Your fitness goals are not insurmountable. You just have to take one step at a time—your step—not a step patterned after someone else. Here are a few tips to get you started on the bike, even if you haven’t exercised in years. There’s nothing scientific here, just a method that has worked for many. If you’re not sure of your health, see your doctor first and take her advice.

1. Cleanse the mind Get rid of all the imagery you may have of the strong, skinny, fit people that haunt your subconscious. Also, forget about all the cool new equipment that’s on the market today.
2. Get a bike Virtually any bike will do. It doesn’t have to be fancy. It can be ugly. It can be rusty. It could be a model designed for the opposite sex. It doesn’t matter at this point. Borrow one, buy one from the police auction, buy one from eBay, rent one, but get a bike that fits you comfortably, and ride it.

3. Ride your bike 3 times a week Wear a helmet, and ride around the neighborhood for 20 to 30 minutes. Don’t push it, ride at a pace you’re comfortable with, and (this is important!), pay no attention to the skinny/fast cyclists passing you. How’s that feel? Makes you feel like a kid again, doesn’t it?

4. Go farther By the third week you will be able to ride longer. Maybe 45 minutes to an hour. Try to pedal more and coast less. Try to push your limit a little. You’re feeling stronger already. You’re sleeping better. Weigh in. You’ve probably already lost a pound or two. You’re even considering a venue change from the neighborhood to an area with more open spaces, and you’re already thinking of getting a better bike.

5. Don’t stop now! By the fifth week, you’ve added a longer weekend ride to your regimen. You ride to the coffee shop on Saturday morning, and meet some friends who share your fitness intentions, and you talk about bikes, safety and rules of the road. And you can’t explain it, but your mind seems to be thinking a little clearer these days. You’ve been looking at the bikes owned by other riders and you’ve learned a lot. There are all types of bikes for all types of riding, and you’re getting close to finding one that suits you better than your old clunker.

6. Have fun! You’ve discovered that cycling is good, and good for you. After two months of your bicycle adventure, you’ve discovered that you’re really having fun. You’re riding dozens of miles a week. You’ve lost weight, you’ve met some really nice folks… and you’re old bike just isn’t keeping up with your adventurous spirit. And that’s a good thing. Now is the time to visit a respectable bike shop. (Your cycling friends gave you a recommendation.) Explain to the sales person the type of riding you want to do. Share with him your cycling ideas for the coming year, your fitness objectives, and the budget you’ve established for your new bike. A good shop will measure your body and sell you the bike that best suits your wishes. He may offer a class on safe riding. Take it. He may offer a class on bike maintenance. Take it too, both are invaluable.You are now a cyclist. Go ride with your friends. Conquer the roads and trails. Your couch potato days will soon be a distant memory. And remember the wise words of the Chinese philosopher, Lao-tzu: A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Sign up now for Early Evening Bicycling through Community Education.

15-minute daily exercise is 'bare minimum for health'

Moderate exercise does not have to be a long jog, it could be a brisk walk to work or taking the stairs

Related Stories

• Can watching TV make you die younger?


• 'Do an hour of daily exercise'


• Advice on exercise for under-5s

Just 15 minutes of exercise a day can boost life expectancy by three years and cut death risk by 14%, research from Taiwan suggests.

Experts in The Lancet say this is the least amount of activity an adult can do to gain any health benefit.

This is about half the quantity currently recommended in the UK.

Meanwhile, work in the British Journal of Sports Medicine suggests a couch potato lifestyle with six hours of TV a day cuts lifespan by five years.

The UK government recently updated its exercise advice to have a more flexible approach, recommending adults get 150 minutes of activity a week.

This could be a couple of 10-minute bouts of activity every day or 30-minute exercise sessions, five times a week, for example.

You can get good gains with relatively small amounts of physical activity. More is always better, but less is a good place to start”

End Quote Prof Stuart Biddle, an expert in exercise psychology at Loughborough University

Experts say this advice still stands, but that a minimum of 15 minutes a day is a good place to start for those who currently do little or no exercise.

The Lancet study, based on a review of more than 400,000 people in Taiwan, showed 15 minutes per day or 90 minutes per week of moderate exercise, such as brisk walking, can add three years to your life.

And people who start to do more exercise tend to get a taste for it and up their daily quota, the researchers from the National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan, and China Medical University Hospital found.

More exercise led to further life gains. Every additional 15 minutes of daily exercise further reduced all-cause death rates by 4%.

And research from Australia on health risks linked to TV viewing suggest too much time sat in front of the box can shorten life expectancy, presumably because viewers who watch a lot of telly do little or no exercise.

England's Chief Medical Officer Sally Davies said: "Physical activity offers huge benefits and these studies back what we already know - that doing a little bit of physical activity each day brings health benefits and a sedentary lifestyle carries additional risks."

Exercise recommendations

• Under-fives (once walking independently): three hours every day


• Five to 18-year-olds: at least an hour a day of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity, plus muscle strengthening activities three times a week


• Adults (including over 65s): 150 minutes a week of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity, plus muscle strengthening activities twice a week

She added: "We hope these studies will help more people realise that there are many ways to get exercise, activities like walking at a good pace or digging the garden over can count too."

Prof Stuart Biddle, an expert in exercise psychology at Loughborough University, said a lot of people in the UK now fall into the category of inactive or sedentary.

He said that aiming for 30 minutes of exercise a day on pretty much every day of the week might seem too challenging for some, but starting low and building up could be achievable.

"You can get good gains with relatively small amounts of physical activity. More is always better, but less is a good place to start."

from the BBC - by Michelle Roberts Health reporter, BBC News Aug. 15, 2011

Exercise can restore a sense of power in medical treatment

The last thing people undergoing treatment for cancer may be thinking about is exercise. Maybe they should reconsider.

"A lot of times cancer patients feel they lose control," said Karen Mustian, director of the Physical Exercise, Activity and Kinesiology Laboratory [PEAK] at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

Exercise can restore a sense of power.

"It can help them get through any treatment with less side effects and trouble," said Mustian, who has researched the effects. "They'll be able to adhere to treatment better and recover quicker."

Mustian will talk about the benefits of exercise for cancer patients and survivors at the American Cancer Society's I Can Cope monthly education session at 6:30 p.m. Mondays at St. Thomas' Episcopal Church, 2000 Highland Ave, Rochester NY.

Those benefits can accrue to anyone regardless of where they find themselves in their recovery. "They could have just found out and are trying to figure out what to do or it could be 10 years ago," she said.

Mustian also is assistant professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the Wilmot Cancer Center and assistant professor in the Department of Community and Preventive Medicine. She holds a doctorate in exercise physiology and psychology, and has published extensively in scientific journals on exercise and quality of life and management of side effects for cancer patients.

She was the lead investigator in a nationwide clinical trial of the benefits of gentle yoga for people who had completed radiation and chemotherapy. She will present new, objective data that back up participants' reports of improved sleep and discuss ongoing trials and recruitment criteria.

Meditation beats medication

7 Fascinating Facts About Meditation

The Huffington Post - Riddhi Shah First Posted: 7/15/11

Over the last decade, interest in the science of meditation has skyrocketed. We now know more than ever before about just how meditation affects our minds and bodies. Increased research has led to a plethora of fascinating discoveries: Take, for instance, the fact that meditation can prevent heart disease. Or that it reduces stress. Or that it can significantly lessen ADHD symptoms, and in many cases, beats medication.

Still, much is left to be discovered. We know more but we definitely don't know everything. While we wait for science to catch up with ancient wisdom, check out this slideshow on the complex effects of the simple act of focused breathing.

Quite literally, sustained meditation leads to something called neuroplasticity, which is defined as the brain's ability to change, structurally and functionally, on the basis of environmental input. For much of the last century, scientists believed that the brain essentially stopped changing after adulthood. But research by University of Wisconsin neuroscientist Richard Davidson has shown that experienced meditators exhibit high levels of gamma ray activity and display an ability -- continuing after the meditation session has attended -- to not get stuck on a particular stimulus. That is, they're automatically able to control their thoughts and reactiveness.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/15/7-fascinating-facts-about_n_899482.html#s309243&title=It_Makes_Your

Men's Heart Health: Top Five Tips

Small lifestyle changes can yield big results when it comes to improving heart health. Here are four simple changes you can make today:

• Exercise for 30 minutes. Middle-aged men who exercise vigorously for two hours a week (aim for 30 minutes, four times a week) have a 60 percent lower risk of a heart attack than inactive men.

• Lose the spare tire. If you’re overweight, dropping 10 to 20 pounds lowers your risk of dying from a heart attack. In fact, a 10-year study found that overweight people had heart attacks 8.2 years earlier than normal-weight victims.

• Drink five glasses of water a day. Men who drink that many 8-ounce glasses are 54 percent less likely to have a fatal heart attack than those who drink two glasses or fewer. Researchers say the water dilutes the blood, making it less likely to clot.

• Count to 10. Keeping your cool under stress may keep you alive. Men who respond with anger are three times more likely to have heart disease and five times more likely to have a heart attack before turning 55.

http://health.yahoo.net/experts/menshealth/top-5-killers-of-men

Should I retire?

Retirement is a big step. Take it in little pieces. Learn all you can and begin to search for resources - especially financial resources for retirees.

Here is a group of retirement resources: http://money.cnn.com/retirement/guide/

Hilton CSD Community Education is here to help. Check out any new courses which help you navigate through the options as well as:

• Lifespan in Rochester - services for elders and caregivers




• Eldersource in Rochester - all kinds of eldercare services including a case manager, housing options
  



• InfoRochester/Senior Services - vast list of agencies to help




• Entrepreneurship Resources - starting a micro-business at home?