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Robin Timm
Prepare for Planting One of our most important and one of the most difficult winter chore is keeping our bodies flexible. For three seasons we don’t need to look for ways to keep in shape. Our farm work demands that we keep moving. Just getting to the gardens requires a walk up a hill and that happens numerous times a day. As winter hits, we settle in for daily dog walks and Scrabble. Unfortunately, one walk a day is not going to help me jump into spring planting. Over the years, I have had a sporadic yoga practice. I took my first yoga classes with my mother when I was in junior high. Off and on I do some stretches and take a refresher class. This year a number of changes have occurred in our lives that make regular practice more desirable. First let me tell you about the pain in my neck. I could try to blame it on our boxer, Lady, but it’s been around longer than she has. The big muscle that goes across my shoulder and up the side of my neck ached. In the past the pain would go away during our busy summer season proving movement can be good for pain. This past summer I couldn’t get the stiffness out of my neck. I tried stretching and massage but couldn’t relieve the ache. I also noticed I couldn’t turn my head very far to the left. I get a winter tune-up (physical). This year I told my doctor that I was feeling older than my years. He felt it was time for professional help and sent me to physical therapy. I’ve had 4 weeks of treatment and feel wonderful. I now can look over my left shoulder without a wince. It seems I was working the wrong set of muscles. My therapist gave me some exercises to help strengthen the muscles in my neck and improve my posture. Many of the exercises are in yoga books. At our last session he said I will probably have to do the exercises for the rest of my life. Since the exercises actually relieve my pain, I am happy to do them. Another incentive for regular practice is Jayne. Last December she developed some lower back pain that lasted a couple weeks. After a massage, her therapist suggested Jayne do some yoga to loosen the tight muscles in her back. Having struggled with lower back pain a number of years ago, I had incorporated some yoga stretches for back pain into my practice. Jayne came home from her massage and asked if we could do yoga together. It is fun having a “student”. Helping Jayne learn the postures is improving my own practice as I find myself correcting my bad positions, focusing on breathing and going slow. We also encourage each other. If one of us isn’t in the mood, the other usually is. Let me share with you some of our simple stretches. It is important to remember that yoga is not competitive. Move at your own pace, pay attention to what your body tells you and don’t push yourself to pain. Another important aspect of yoga is breath awareness. As you move, focus on your breathing. Try to do diaphragmatic breathing: breathe in through your nose and fill your lungs. Let your abdomen rise up: the lungs can fill the upper part of your abdominal cavity, if we let them fully expand. Let the breath out slowly. Do a couple deep breaths, before you start your movements. Concentrate on filling your lungs and blowing out toxins. When you do the stretches remember to breathe in when you expand, like in a back bend and out when you contract, like bending forward. If you stay in a pose, breathe normally. Try not to hold your breath. We start at the top with our necks: turn your head to the right as far as you can and stretch your eyes to the farthest corner. Then turn through the center to the left, as far as you can again stretching your eyes to the corner. Repeat 2-3 times. Next bend your neck to the side, letting the right ear fall to the right shoulder. You can use your right hand to pull gently on the top of your head, for a little more stretch. Remember gently. Don’t bounce but do a steady pull. Then bring your head back to center and go to the left. Repeat 2-3 times. Now we do some shoulder rolls: Standing straight with eyes looking forward, bring your hands to the shoulders. Rotate your shoulders; 3 times backwards and 3 times forwards and finish by dropping your arms to your sides. Repeat this 2- 3 times. The side bend is one of my favorites. I do this all the time; even in the garden when I am stiffening up. Standing straight, raise both arms out to the sides then up over your head. Clasp your fingers together. Now bend sideways, with your hands over your head. Be sure to keep your torso straight; don’t bend forward at the waist. Feel the stretch down the side of your body. Come back to the center and then bend to the other side. Again watch so you don’t bend forward. Repeat 2 - 3 times. Now we will do a front-back bend. Standing straight, raise your arms straight out at the sides and then move them behind you and clasp your fingers together. Now bend backwards as if your arms were pulling you back. Then reverse and bend forward, with your arms going up towards the ceiling. I love this stretch too. Be careful not to stretch too far. If you feel pain in your shoulders, stop before you reach that point. You may want to do more shoulder rolls, after this exercise. Stand still and take a few deep breaths, checking over your body to see how you feel. Next we do some floor exercises for our backs. Lie down and bend your knees with your feet on the floor. Pick up your pelvis toward the ceiling. You will roll back on your shoulders and your body will make a slide, from your knees to your chin. Work up to 10 pelvic tilts, holding each tilt a few seconds. Now lay flat on the floor, with your legs straight. Pull your left knee up to your chest, then relax and repeat with the right knee. Relax and now pull both knees to the chest. This exercise stretches out those lower back muscles that tighten up when we sit all day or crouch in the garden. While you have both knees at your chest, you can roll to each side for a little massage. Work up to 10 repetitions. This exercise is called the gas passer as it also massages the abdominal muscles and intestines. The last stretch we do is lying on our backs, arms out at the sides with knees bent. Keep your feet on the floor, as best you can. Let both knees fall to the left, keeping your shoulders flat on the floor and turning your head to the right. Bring the knees back to center and repeat on the other side. Work up to 10 repetitions. Our routine only takes about 20 minutes. We don’t do it every night but try for a few times a week. It’s a great way to wind down after work or play and keep those joints young. Here are a couple recipes that I tried using frozen vegetables. All turned out tasty and the loaf was especially colorful. Beet Loaf 2 cups cooked beans (kidney, Vermont cranberry, Navy, etc) 1 cup walnuts 1/3 cup olive oil 2 medium beets, sliced 1 medium celeriac, sliced 1 large onion 1 large clove garlic, pressed 1 cups sliced mushrooms 1-2 Anaheim peppers, chopped 1/4 cup wheat germ 1 tbsp Old Bay spice 1/4 cup chopped parsley Chop walnuts in a food processor. In a skillet, heat olive oil. Sauté beets, celeriac, onion, garlic, mushrooms and peppers until soft. Add beans and cooked mixture to food processor and chop until you get a fine consistency. Stir in wheat germ, spices and parsley. Place mixture in a greased pie tin. Heat oven to 375° F. Bake loaf for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Serve with boiled potatoes and green salad or coleslaw. Serves 4 Eggplant Caviar 1 medium eggplant 1/4 cup walnut pieces 1/4 cup minced onion 1/4 cup minced parsley 1/2 hot-finger chili pepper, minced (remember to wear gloves when handling hot peppers) 1 clove garlic, minced 1/2 tsp salt Freshly ground black pepper to taste 2 Tbsp olive oil 1 Tbsp lemon juice (You don’t need to follow this recipe exactly to have it taste good. The important ingredients are the eggplant, nuts of some kind, onion, some kind of hot pepper and the garlic. I rarely have parsley on hand and it’s always a question of what kind of peppers I might have to use. Oh-the oil and lemon juice, salt and pepper are also important) Prick eggplant several times with a fork. Cook uncovered on a plate in the microwave for about 10 minutes, until soft and collapsed. Let cool. Arrange walnut pieces on a plate. Microwave, uncovered for 2 or 3 minutes, until fragrant and toasted. Scrape eggplant flesh into a bowl; chop until coarsely pureed. Stir in walnuts, onion, parsley, chili pepper, garlic, salt and pepper. Slowly beat in oil and lemon juice. Adjust seasonings to taste. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Serve on crackers, toast points, zucchini rounds or whatever. Bev Johansen, CSA member
Ginger Squash Soup The fresh ginger gives zing to this warming winter soup.
2-1/2 to 3 pound winter squash (butternut, acorn, pumpkin) 1 Tbsp olive oil 1 large onion, chopped 1 rounded Tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped 2-1/2 to 3 cups water 1 Tbsp Kikkoman soy sauce Wash off squash, puncture skin with a sharp knife. Put on a plate and microwave on high, until done; about 10 minutes. Remove from microwave and cool. Scrape flesh from skin. You will have about 3 cups mashed squash. While squash is cooling, sauté onion and ginger in olive oil until soft, about 5 minutes. Add water and soy sauce and bring to boil. Add squash and return to boiling, then simmer for 10 minutes. Puree soup with a stick blender, in a food processor or blender. Serve hot.
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