I have another blog post up at the Aspire Project today. (Those of you who are local can expect to see it in a print edition this week.) It's about self defense as a parenting paradigm. Check out In defense of oneself. In other news, one of my co-editors at Safety Net posted an interesting article on her own blog: Telling on Tattling. It's an important reminder about keeping the lines of communication open with our kids and why "telling someone you trust" is an essential self-protection skill.

A few weeks ago I had the privilege to sit on a panel of experts at a Town Hall meeting on bullying in Norhthampton, MA.

The forum was co-hosted by WHMP who provides audio coverage of the entire two hours on their website here.

The event was also sponsored by The Daily Hampshire Gazette. Gazette editor Larry Parnass has made good on his commitment to keep the conversation about bullying in the public eye by creating The Aspire Project. With weekly print-edition essays and frequent blog updates, the Aspire Project gives voice to diverse perspectives in our community and encourages hope and action in the face of violence.  I’m proud to be part of it

My first blog entry addressed how to nurture a spirit of self defense in our kids. This is a great opportunity to share my thoughts on self protection strategies with parents throughout our community. It is an expansion of the writing I'm doing concerning the intersection of parenting and self defense; to read more visit mindbodymama.

If you're interested in scheduling a self defense class for women, teens, parents, a workplace or other group, please contact me.

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Here are a couple of really interesting articles I've been meaning to share for a while:

To Tone Without Bulk: Lift Heavier Weights, Fewer Times
The New York Times confirms that folks who wish to build strength without bulk should lift more weight for fewer reps.  They conclude that: "For people who lift weights to tone up and slim down...a regimen that includes a combination of challenging weights and fewer repetitions can help significantly."

Something I've been telling clients for years!  You can read the article here.

Pelvic Floor Fix for the Post-Partum Mama More recently, my bloggy-friend Kara of mamasweat wrote a stunning expose on kegels as the enemy of pelvic floor health.  She interviewed "biomechanical scientist" Katy Bowman on the post-partum pee problem.  According to Katy, it's your weak, flat butt that's the problem and holding that million-dollar bill with your "kegel muscles" just exacerbates things.  With the tagline "You now have permission to pee in the shower," this is an article not to miss.  Find it here.

"The moral of the story is: I must not be inactive."

"If I loved my back, how often would I do this exercise?"

I just completed a proposal to teach self defense for teen women and their allies at a local agency. I'd love to share the meat of the proposal with you here. The statistics were gleaned from Erin Weed's Fight Back Productions and the Liz Claiborne Foundation's Love is Not Abuse.

If you are interested in bringing self defense training to the teen women in your life, contact me at (413) 527-8317 or email trainer@compassionateconditioning.com.

Teen Women Need Self Defense Training

Teen women are especially vulnerable to violence.

For example:

• 1 in 4 college women experience completed or attempted rape during their college years. (National College Women Sexual Victimization Study, Fisher 2000.)

• College age women are 4 times more likely to be sexually assaulted than other age groups. (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network.)

• College females are 4 times more likely to be assaulted by someone they know than by a stranger. (National Crime Victimization Study 1995-2002.)

Teen women are at risk of sexual and relationship violence earlier than most parents realize. The Liz Claiborne Foundation has conducted extensive research into teens’ (including young teens’ or “tweens’”) experience of and risk for relationship violence.

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A new client was quoting a friend of hers when she said,

"Exercise is awesome--movement changes the mind!"

There is science to back this statement up--or you could just try it for yourself and see how you feel! I feel smarter, clearer and calmer after a good workout.

"I always feel better when I exercise!"

"It is easier to be out of shape."

Easier if you mean you don't have to do this exercise I'm just now describing...but harder if you think of how much harder it is to do everything else (work, play, sleep) when your body is deconditioned.

I invite you to read "For the Overweight, Bad Advice by the Spoonful," a New York Times article by Gina Kolata, one of the most provocative journalists writing on health/fitness topics.

Kolata's summary states:

"Weight control is not simply a matter of willpower. Genes help determine the body's "set point," which is defended by the brain.

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