Wonderfully Made

Originally published in the Catholic Times, Jan. 31, 2016.

"I praise you because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are your works!” Psalm 139:14.

This Scripture passage is on my mind a lot as I talk with people about ways to build new healthy habits in the new year.

The human body is an amazing gift from God. 

Sometimes, it can be easy to dwell on the things we don’t like about our physical bodies, and harder to be grateful for all that our bodies can do. The human body is amazing vessel for us to serve God and the people in our lives; to be his hands and feet in the world.

With 640 muscles, 600,000 miles of blood vessels, 300 million capillaries, 270 bones, and our incredibly complex brain, this magnificent gift is beyond comprehension. 

We can develop healthy habits to honor our body any time of the year. Here are 5 simple ways get started:

• Move More - Prolonged periods of sitting can cause tightnesses in the back, legs, hips and shoulders. When we work at a computer, setting the alarm to remind us to get up and move every hour or so is invigorating! Moving our joints throughout the day and praising God for our ability to do so is a healthy practice. Mobilize the neck, shoulders, thoracic spine (middle back), elbows, wrists, fingers, hips, knees, ankles. Include your family in this fun activity.
   
• Use Safe Technique - If we have a physical job, or enjoy physical hobbies, we should be careful how we move, reach, bend, lift, carry and stand with a load. We can use a hip hinge, for example, when we pick up something heavy off the floor, rather than shifting forward overloading our knees. Packing our shoulders and carrying heavy loads close to the body helps prevent harming the low back.
   
• Flow 5 Minutes Every Day - 5 Minutes of gentle moving and stretching, and pairing this with our daily prayer time, is a great way get blood and nutrients flowing into your muscles and joints to prepare us mentally and physically for all that God is asking us to do that day.
   
• Have Good Posture When Standing and Sitting - It is recommended to stand upright and align the ears, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles for good posture to help prevent tightnesses, asymmetries, pain and injury. This also improves breathing capacity and heart function. When sitting, think 'heart up to heaven' with an upward chest instead of hunching forward over a phone or computer. A posture correction can also be a 'God pause' that reminds us to offer up  a little prayer thanking God for the many blessings in our day..
   
• Practice Getting Up and Down Off the Floor - This skill is vital to independent living and helps prevent falls. We can enlist the help of a movement coach or medical professional to safely practice this skill to build strength and confidence in our bodies.

Let us pray to the Holy Spirit for help in developing healthy habits, practicing good self-care and for a spirit of gratefulness for being wonderfully made in His image and likeness.

Always and Everywhere

Originally published in the Catholic Times, Feb. 28, 2106.

A few weeks ago, I had only one student for my evening strength class. I was a little disappointed that more people didn’t make it to class, even though I understand that work, traffic, family plans or simply being tired after working all day can make it hard for people to make it to class.

However, this turned out to be a great opportunity for me to work one-to-one with this student on his weight-lifting technique. 

I ended up training as well because it makes it more fun for the student, and it can be helpful, especially if the student is a visual learner.

We had a great time challenging each other to moving well and lifting strong. 

Our conversation shifted from training to a new topic when the student revealed a struggle he/she was having in daily life. I listened and offered encouraging words. I felt blessed to know this student who has been working to develop new healthy habits over the past few months. 

By the end of class, we were both feeling energized from talking, laughing and training.

As I was driving home, I said a little prayer for my student. Life can be hard and praying for each other is so powerful. I am really proud of my student’s progress inside and outside the gym; I prayed that this child of God will continue to be strong and active in his/her faith in daily life.

I started thinking about how God felt so present to me, through this student, in the gym while we were training. I am always a little surprised that God’s presence is so clear to me in my workplace -- in the middle of what I do every day.

But why not? God is always and everywhere -- which surely means he is where we are in the midst of our ordinary activities. How often do I miss seeing him because I am too busy? 

The one-to-one time with my student was an important reminder to me that God reaches us through the people and events in our daily lives just as powerfully as he does in our quiet prayer time. But if we are moving too fast, we’ll surely miss the little miracles.

I see in my neighbor the Person of Jesus Christ. - St. Gerard Majella

Rest

The Apostle John resting with Jesus at the Last Supper.

I love Sunday, but sometimes I feel a little guilty about resting. The Third Commandment asks us to rest on the Sabbath, and to keep it holy, but is this still relevant in our culture? 

Yes, of course, and perhaps more than ever, because so much is gained from rest -- even more now in our open 24/7, online, always open, technology-driven culture.

I don’t want Sunday to feel like the other days and I hope you feel that way too.

After Mass, I typically do peaceful things that I enjoy like reading, napping, praying, stretching, getting outdoors, and spending time with me family. 

I use author and speaker Matthew Kelly’s phrase ‘carefree timelessness’ in regard to Sunday activities. I want to enjoy the people and activities without too much focus on time and accomplishment.

So much good happens when we rest.

With our physical bodies, rest is a time for muscle repair and replenishment. Exercising our muscles causes little micro-tears in the muscle that allow it to grow and get stronger, but that can only occur when we rest.

Taking breaks from working, thinking, and doing, along with adequate sleep and stress management provide us with renewed energy and strength. This rest and activity cycle helps us to get stronger. 

Rest can also help us renew our spiritual lives. 

Caring for a family, working, volunteering and all the other wonderful activities that fill our week, while rewarding, can sometimes cause little ‘micro-tears’ in our spiritual lives. Rest can help provide a renewal of the heart and body and refreshes us spiritually and physically and gives us strength for the road ahead.

I depend on Sunday to be a reset where I can slow down, spend more time with the Lord, pray and be gentle to myself and those around me. When I am able to do this, I start the week with more calm and more Christ-centeredness and it helps me maintain healthy habits of prayer and action during the busier weekdays. 

Are you someone whose job requires you to work on Sunday? Thanks be to God for you as we need medical pros, police, fire, etc. to be there for us! Setting aside another day as your rest day is fine (I heard a priest share this advice.)

Rest can mean different things to you and to me. There is no clear definition of rest -- and that can make it challenging to live out. 

But Jesus is always inviting us to rest with him and He is waiting for us to jump into his arms and be renewed with his never-ending love.

Come to me all you who are burdened and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

St. Peregrine

I recently had a melanoma removed that had formed on a mole on my leg. I've had several basal cell spots removed in the past, but this was my first melanoma (cancer.)

I was a competitive swimmer, swim coach, swim lesson teacher and a lifeguard as a teen. Every day of summer was spent at the pool. Unfortunately, we didn't know then what we know now about the dangers of sun exposure without sunscreen. 

“If we only knew the precious treasure hidden in infirmities, we would receive them with the same joy with which we receive the greatest benefits, and we could bear them without ever complaining or showing signs of weariness. ”

— ~St. Vincent de Paul

When the mole biopsy came back, the nurse called me to schedule a minor in-office surgery to remove more tissue to make sure they got all of the cancerous cells. She was surprised how calm I was. It sounded manageable, but I think it was the reaction of others that affected me a little.

The word malignant melanoma -- the C word -- sounds scary. Believe me, I didn't take it lightly, but I felt very lucky that we caught it early and it could easily be addressed.

This happened at the start of Lent, so I saw this as a good offering and decided to dedicate my prayers for those who are fighting more serious cancer than my own and for their caregivers as well.

I prayed to be grateful for the blessings in my life and take this opportunity to grow closer to Jesus. I asked to see the good that comes out of something that our human minds perceive as bad.

I was very limited in how I could move and lift for awhile and I wouldn't be able to demo all the movements (no squats, high impact or ballistic kettlebells lifts) for my classes.  I wouldn't be able to train the way I normally do, so I had more time for prayer and spiritual reading.

Adjusting my training seemed like a small thing, and a good Lenten offering, but I struggled with it more mentally than physically.

There were a couple times when I moved in ways that didn't feel good, so I learned from that, adjusted, and moved forward more cautiously.

St. Peregrine is the patron saint of persons with cancer.

I had to think of physical training as part of my healing, because my doctor still wanted me to  keep moving, but I had to do it with more humility.

I couldn't focus on how much, how often or how fast. So I slowed down, listened and adjusted. Thankfully, this practice has carried into my prayer life as well.

It has been a few weeks now and I am cleared to get back to normal training activity next week.

I have a new appreciation for the ability to move and be able to exercise at all -- and a new gratefulness for my faith, overall good health and for excellent doctors and caring family and friends. 

I know that I am still learning to see God in all things, but this experience has helped me be grow closer to Him this Lent and I am very grateful.

Columbus Catholic Women's Conference 2016

I was able to attend the Columbus Catholic Women's Conference yesterday. 

The theme was Mercy Changes Everything in line with Pope Francis' designation of this year as a Year of Mercy. The day started with all of us praying the Rosary and celebrating Mass with Bishop Campbell presiding.

There were four excellent speakers, music, Eucharistic Adoration with Exposition, Confession (40 priests!) and time for fellowship, shopping and eating.

I can sum up this day in one word: Hope.

There were nearly 3,000 women present from all over Ohio; this is the largest Catholic Women's Conference in the nation .

That gives me hope because that means that 3,000 women made this a priority in their lives and came to grow in their faith, share, learn and refill their spiritual tank to continue to be Cod's hands and feet in the world.

3,000 doesn't count the number of women who listened in on St. Gabriel Catholic Radio AM 820 or who streamed it live on the internet.

The Holy Spirit is working in these women's lives -- all in different, yet beautiful ways.

Today I feel strengthened and renewed to try to do God's will in my own life.

My husband Al will be attending the Columbus Catholic Men's Conference next weekend. I encourage you to share information about these annual conferences with family and friends.

Blessings, Lori

Blessed Frassati Inspires Us to Be Holy and Healthy

I first discovered Bl. Pier Giorgio Michelangelo Frassati when I was working with the Office of Vocations. I thought the image of him would be perfect as the banner on this blog because he was a model of prayer, active in service to others and enjoyed being physically active.

He is known as athletic and courageous. His early death (age 24) from poliomyelitis was thought to be contracted from the sick who he lovingly ministered to. 

Read Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati's full biography here.

One of the hobbies he enjoyed most was mountain-climbing and he used this as a time to share his faith with friends on the mountainside with him. 

“What wealth it is to be in good health, as we are! But we have the duty of putting our health at the service of those who do not have it. To act otherwise would be to betray that gift of God.”

— Blessed Pier Giogio Frassati

He was beatified in 1990 by Saint Pope John Paul II and named "The Man of the Eight Beatitudes," He was known to teach that holiness is attainable for all of us. Saint Pope John Paul II mentioned that Bl. Pier Giorgio was an influence in his life.

He is an inspirational saint on many levels, but what I find so interesting about him is that his athleticism aided his apostolate. In fact, it allowed him to reach individuals who might not have been openly seeking to understand their faith and grow in holiness.

We know that God is always working in our daily activities and sometimes the most surprising opportunities present themselves for us to share how Jesus is working in our own lives. 

I envision Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati and his young friends  climbing and talking about life, religion, dreams, and laughing and sharing their joys and struggles. 

Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati is an example of keeping a healthy (moderate) perspective on the role of athletics in our lives; he was also involved in music, theater, but his main focus of his life was ministering to the sick.

Today it can seem like our entire culture centers around athletics, sporting events, competition and winning. Bl. Frassati reminds us that sport is meant to enjoyed, shared and can play an important, but limited, role in a healthy and balanced life.

Lent is a wonderful time to pray about being overly attached to an activity to the point where something healthy, can become unhealthy.

Athletics are wonderful, and challenge us to develop self-discipline, motivation, courage and other attributes that can serve us well in other areas of our lives. We learn so much about ourselves and others through athletic endeavors.  

I will write more this topic in future blog posts relying on the wisdom from Saint Pope John Paul II who wrote and spoke extensively about the influence of athletics in our lives.

Praying for His Strength,

Lori