Another running season is now upon us! If you’ve been thinking of trying running for fitness or fun (or both!) this is a great time of year to start.

Some very basic advice for the beginner:

- Always warm up before a run. This can be something as simple as going for a short walk and stretching.
- Make sure you have proper running shoes. You don’t have to spend a ton on them, but they should be shoes made for running and not for cross-training, walking, or any other sport. Not sure where to get shoes? For basic shoes, any sports store will do – just make sure you take the time to try on several pair and walk around in them to see if they’re comfortable. If you’re looking to spend a bit more, my favourite shop in Toronto is The Runners Shop, located on Bloor Street West, across from the ROM.
- Keep hydrated, especially if it is hot outside. It is best to drink some water before you go for your run, and then drink small sips of water during.
- Don’t push yourself too hard! Just start out with a nice, easy pace, and take a short walk break when you need to.
- The Running Room has great clinics for both beginner runners (Learn to Run is particularly popular) as well as seasoned runners who are looking to train up to a new distance and/or improve their time.

Think you might want to try competing? It’s a ton of fun and often the events are fundraisers for great charities. Just a small selection of the runs coming up in Toronto this year:

May: Sporting Life 10K
June: Toronto Challenge 5K run/walk
July: Acura 10 miler and 5K
August: Toronto Women’s 10K and 5K
September: Toronto Waterfront Marathon/Half/5K
October: Goodlife Toronto Marathon/Half/5K/Relay

Just wanted to let everyone know of a fun, fitness-related event taking place on Family Day (February 15th).

MP Olivia Chow and Friends of Christie Pits Park are having their yearly Family Day skating party. There will be games, activities for kids, free hot chocolate and pizza, and of course lots of skating! It’s from 1-3pm.

If you go, enjoy it!

I always like to pass along information on what my fellow Halcyon Health practitioners are doing, so here’s an update for you all.

Melissa Melnitzer, our physician who specializes in psychotherapy, has started a new blog called Oprah and Beyond. She was inspired by both O Magazine and Oprah’s announced departure from television, and wanted to have a place to post light and fun reflections with a bit of a pop culture twist, complementing the concept she has developed with her 15 minute beginnings blog.

Tiina Veer, our yoga instructor and fellow RMT, will be continuing to teach her Yoga for Round Bodies class in the new year. She is likely going to offer it as a weekly class starting in January. All the details will be available on Halcyon’s website in the new year.

Tiina and Melissa will also be doing a one day self-care retreat on Saturday, January 30th. This workshop involves both reflective writing and guided relaxation and helps you work towards personal well-being for 2010! All the details are available here.

And finally, Halcyon now has a variety of yoga classes available to you, including Iyengar and Restorative.

Hope you all enjoy your New Year’s holiday plans and hope to see you in 2010!

I’m excited to announce an Iyengar yoga teacher has been added to the list of practitioners at Halcyon Health. She’s starting a 6-week intro course this upcoming Tuesday night!

6-week introductory course with Kari Romaniuk

Tuesdays, 6:15-7:30pm
November 3 – December 8
$90 for the 6-class series

“Iyengar Yoga is a precise, systematic method of Yoga as developed by BKS Iyengar of Pune, India. The primary focus is on concentrated movements to fine tune the body and to increase mobility, stability, strength and alignment. The intense concentration draws the attention inward, quieting and integrating the mind and body. Iyengar Yoga is yoga for health. It involves techniques for the well-being of both body and mind.”
~Yoga Centre Toronto, www.yogacentretoronto.ca

“Iyengar Yoga is characterized by great attention to detail and precise focus on body alignment. [B.K.S.] Iyengar pioneered the use of “props” such as cushions, benches, blocks, straps, and even sand bags, which function as aids allowing beginners to experience asanas more easily and fully than might otherwise be possible without several years of practice… Standing poses are emphasized in Iyengar Yoga. They are said to build strong legs, increase general vitality, and improve circulation, coordination and balance… Iyengar teachers complete at least two years of rigorous training for the introductory certificate. They may complete subsequent… levels of certification, potentially entailing a decade or more of training.”
~www.wikipedia.org

Come and experience Iyengar yoga for your health and well-being, and welcome Kari to Halcyon!

Click here to register – choose ‘Classes and workshops’, go to the November calendar, then choose ‘Iyengar Yoga – 6 week intro – KARI’.

Sorry for not writing in my blog for the last few weeks – things have been a bit nutty, but I’m back now and updating you all with a quick fitness post.

As always, Octopus Garden Yoga has several events going on, but what I really wanted to highlight was their weekend yoga retreat coming up in July. The retreat takes place at Sugar Ridge Retreat Centre, just north of Barrie. This is the fourth year they’ve done this retreat, so it probably sells out fairly quickly. If you might be interested, check out the info on their website.

The Toronto Cyclist Union will be hosting ‘Bike First Fridays’ starting this Friday, June 5th. The idea is to meet for breakfast and then head off to work on your bike from there, in the hopes of promoting cycling as both transportation and fitness. For details, visit their website.

The Running Room has several of their running clinics starting soon. If you’ve ever wanted to learn to run, or wanted to improve on your distance/time, these clinics are very helpful. For details and locations, just take a look at their website.

Axe Capoeira has another beginner session starting towards the end of June. Their beginner classes seem to sell out early, so if you’ve wanted to try Capoeira, now is a good time to sign up. Details are over here on their website.

For those who are looking for a core strengthening program, Body Harmonics Pilates has a new class called ‘Core Essentials’, available on Tuesdays and Thursdays at a variety of times. Just check out their website if you’re interested.

Whatever you do, have fun!