Compass Chiropractic

I have a confession… I don’t really enjoy shopping. Maybe it’s because I don’t like seeing my paycheck disappear. Or maybe it’s because I get tired, impatient, and hungry before finding any good deals. Or maybe it’s draining for me because I have to try on armfuls of the same garment in a variety of sizes just to see what will fit. Either way, my mom always thought she drew the short straw by having 3 kids that don’t like shopping.

Recently, I read an article that introduced a new concept for me called “vanity sizing.” This is a trend created to satisfy buyers’ wishes to feel thinner and better about themselves, made possible due to a lack of standardization of sizes. For example, a woman who is true to a size 12 but can find pieces that fit just as well yet is tagged at a size 8 will most likely buy from the store that tells her she is only an 8 as it is a self esteem booster. As designers and retailers have picked up on this, the stores get away with charging much more for their pieces because of their “lower” tags. There was even a study done in 2003 that measured over 1,000 pairs of women’s pants and concluded just that… more expensive brands tended to be smaller than less expensive ones of the same nominal size.

A designer quoted in the New York Times investigated this way of sizing and found that in Sears’s 1937 catalog, a woman with a 32 inch bust would have worn a size 14 dress. In 1967, that same body would have worn an 8, and surprisingly, in 2011, she would wear a zero! Marilyn Monroe, whose voluptuous body required a size 16 in the ’50s, was actually more of a 6/8 by today’s standards. Because sizes continue to decline, a need for 00 and additional sub-zero sizes has emerged. Whether vanity sizing has arisen from marketing schemes, a rise in obesity, a lack of size standardizing, or just to make people feel more ok about their size, I would encourage you to consume a healthy diet, get regular exercise, and not to find your worth on the number on your clothing tag.

We at Compass love helping out other local companies, and one of those is the Blue Mile (formerly know as the Running Company). We recently heard about a shoe drive that they are doing in partnership with an organization called Changing Footprints. Blue Mile is accepting gently worn shoes to help Changing Footprints stock their warehouse to in turn give to individuals who are homeless, disaster-stricken, or underprivileged. Blue Mile is even graciously offering $10 off a pair of shoes bought there at Blue Mile!

Click here to find some more specifics about how to help!!

Bruce Feistein’s 1982 book,  Real Men Don’t Eat Quiche introduced the term quiche-eater, meaning a man who is a dilettante, a trend-chaser, an over-anxious conformist to fashionable forms of ‘lifestyle’, and socially correct behaviors and opinions, one who eschews (or merely lacks) the traditional masculine virtue of tough self-assurance. Although in mainstream the term has been replaced with Metro-sexual, the quiche-eater expression survives in computer programming circles, where it means a person far removed from practice and concerned only with academic matters, unwilling to “get their hands dirty.”

If you are a man concerned about how others view your masculinity and you still live in 1982 every time you see the word Quiche replace it with “egg pie.”  Otherwise enjoy this great recipe!

Crustless Veggie Quiche

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 cup sliced yellow onions
• 1/2 cup green pepper
• 1/2 cup broccoli
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme (1teaspoon dried thyme)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 large eggs (cage free if possible)
• 1 1/4 cups half-and-half
• 1/2 cup grated Gruyere
• A pinch of cayenne pepper, more if desired
• 1/4 pound mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
• 3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a large skillet melt the coconut oil over medium heat and sauté onions, stirring, for 6 minutes. Add green pepper and broccoli and continue cooking for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, continue stirring one additional minute. Add the basil and thyme, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and let cool.

In a bowl, beat the eggs and half-and-half together. Add the salt, pepper, grated Gruyere, and cayenne.

Spoon the vegetable mixture into the prepared 9×9 or 8×8 glass dish, spread sliced mushrooms on top of veggie mixture, pour in the egg mixture, and crumble the goat cheese on top. Bake for 35-40 minutes until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes before serving.

In an recent article, Mens Health Magazine did a study on the most sedentary cities in the USA. Their criteria consisted of how often people exercise, the percent of households that watch more than 15 hours of cable a week and buy more than 11 video games a year, and the rate of deaths from a condition linked to excessive sitting. 100 cities were evaluated, and ours, Indianapolis, IN, was ranked 99^th out of the 100! In hopes to turn that around become less sedentary, we at Compass are putting forth a challenge… and we hope you’ll join us.

Through the month of August, we will be doing a step challenge by using pedometers (Pedometers are small units that can be clipped onto clothing and count each step you take). At the end of each week, we’re giving a free massage away to the person with the most recorded steps! This competition is open to current patients and friends of patients.  Each patient can pick up one pedometer for themselves and one addition for a friend.

So stop by our office at some point in July to sign up and pick up your free pedometer, clip it on your belt, and begin walking!

By Dorinda Pena,  LMT

If you’ve had the opportunity to receive therapeutic massage treatments at our office you’ve heard …”Try to drink some extra water today and tomorrow” …not just the first time or second, but most of the time. I sometimes feel like a broken record but it’s more important to me that our patients know the great benefits of hydrating in their wellness path.

A particular analogy I like to use sometimes is, “Think of a little stream not too much water but just enough to have a steady flow. Bits of leaves, grass, insects and other effluvium are constantly rushed downstream leaving the stream relatively clear. If water is restricted to the stream, debris can build up and slow down it’s original strength.”

Our bodies are like that stream and need consistent amounts of water to keep us running at our optimal best. But with demanding lifestyles, our priorities don’t always include staying properly hydrated. During the summer months with increased outdoor activities it’s important to know a few things to keep yourself and loved ones safe.

Drinking water daily is a first obvious choice but many wonder how much is enough? 6-8 8oz of water is a good approximate amount to consume by most of the population or another calculation is to divide your weight (in lbs.) by 2 and the number you get is how many ounces to consume. Athletes and anyone performing strenuous activities will be losing sodium in their sweat at a greater rate than usual those salts and minerals. When we deplete ourselves of water and salts, we can begin to feel a gamut of symptoms such as:

Lethargy

Headaches

Fever

Dizziness

Dry mouth

Dark urine

Low or no urine or tears

The way I ensure I stay hydrated without too much effort is keeping a thermos with me at all times and having fruits like apples or watermelon to snack on. Enjoy the local fruits of our local farmers and have fun this summer!

The Department of Metropolitan Development has some money to spend and their planning on spending some of that money in Meridian Kessler, but they want feedback from the residence of our neighborhood.  Please take the time to review this and make your voice heard.

To Download the survey — click 2012 Neighborhood Survey