Seniors: Improve Blood Flow & Circulation In Your Legs

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Dr. Doug Weiss, a physiotherapist (and thus: a doctor of physical therapy), has advice on how and why to increase blood flow and circulation in your legs, keeping yourself healthier for longer and avoiding a lot of potential unpleasantries.

The exercises

The exercises here are not complex; they are as follows, and he suggests 3 sets of 10 reps of each, daily:

  • Sitting ankle pumps: sitting on a chair or the edge of a bed, lift the toes up, then heels up, squeezing the muscles.
  • Sitting knee extensions: sitting as before, kick one leg up until knee is straight, then switch legs.
  • Heel raises: standing this time, with a sturdy support such as a countertop, raise on toes as high as possible, then lower heels back to the ground
  • Pillow squats: placing pillows on a chair, cross hands on chest, and simply stand up and sit down—similar to the “getting up off the floor without using your hands” exercise, but an easier version.

For visuals on these, and more details including the specific benefits of each, enjoy:

Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

Want to learn more?

You might also like:

4 Tips To Stand Without Using Hands ← this time it’s the full movement, from the floor, and this is a really important movement to be able to do, as it’s a big indicator of healthy longevity

Take care!

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  • Compact Tai Chi – by Dr. Jesse Tsao

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    A very frustrating thing when practicing tai chi, especially when learning, is the space typically required. We take a step this way and lunge that way and turn and now we’ve kicked a bookcase. Add a sword, and it’s goodnight to the light fixtures at the very least.

    While a popular suggestion may be “do it outside”, we do not all have the luxury of living in a suitable climate. We also may prefer to practice in private, with no pressing urge to have an audience.

    Tsao’s book, therefore, is very welcome. But how does he do it? The very notion of constriction is antithetical to tai chi, after all.

    He takes the traditional forms, keeps the movements mostly the same, and simply changes the order of them. This way, the practitioner revolves around a central point. Occasionally, a movement will become a smaller circle than it was, but never in any way that would constrict movement.

    Of course, an obvious question for any such book is “can one learn this from a book?” and the answer is complex, but we would lean towards yes, and insofar as one can learn any physical art from a book, this one does a fine job. It helps that it builds up progressively, too.

    All in all, this book is a great choice for anyone who’s interested in taking up tai chi, and/but would like to do so without leaving their home.

    Check Out “Compact Tai Chi” on Amazon Today!

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  • Spiced Fruit & Nut Chutney

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    ‘Tis the season to make the chutney that will then be aged chutney when you want it later! And unlike supermarket varieties with their ingredients list that goes “Sugar, spirit vinegar, inverted glucose-fructose syrup,” this one has an array of health-giving fruits and nuts (just omit the nuts if you or someone you may want to give this to has an allergy), and really nothing bad in here at all. And of course, tasty healthful spices!

    You will need

    • 2 red onions, chopped
    • 1½ cups dried apricots, chopped
    • 1½ cups dried figs, chopped
    • 1 cup raisins
    • ½ cup apple cider vinegar
    • ½ cup slivered almonds
    • ½ lime, chopped and deseeded
    • ¼ bulb garlic, chopped
    • 1 hot pepper, chopped (your choice what kind; omit if you don’t like heat at all; multiply if you want more heat)
    • 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup (omit for a less sweet chutney; there is sweetness in the dried fruits already, after all)
    • 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
    • 2 tsp sweet cinnamon
    • 1 tsp nutmeg
    • 1 tsp black pepper
    • ½ teaspoon allspice
    • ½ MSG or 1 tsp low-sodium salt
    • Extra virgin olive oil

    Method

    (we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

    1) Heat some oil in a heavy-based pan that will be large enough for all ingredients to go into eventually. Fry the onions on a gentle heat for around 15 minutes. We don’t need to caramelize them yet (this will happen with time), but we do want them soft and sweet already.

    2) Add the ginger, garlic, and chili, and stir in well.

    3) When the onions start to brown, add the fruit and stir well to mix thoroughly.

    4) Add the honey or maple syrup (if using), and the vinegar; add the remaining spices/seasonings, so everything is in there now except the almonds.

    5) Cook gently for another 30 minutes while stirring. At some point it’ll become thick and sticky; add a little water as necessary. You don’t want to drown it, but you do want it to stay moist. It’ll probably take only a few tablespoons of added water in total, but add them one at a time and stir in before judging whether more is needed. By the end of the 30 minutes, it should be more solid, to the point it can stand up by itself.

    6) Add the almonds, stir to combine, and leave to cool. Put it in jars until you need it (or perhaps give it as gifts).

    Alternative method: if you don’t want to be standing at a stove stirring for about an hour in total, you can use a slow cooker / crock pot instead. Put the same ingredients in the same order, but don’t stir them, just leave them in layers (this is because of the pattern of heat distribution; it’ll be hotter at the bottom, so the things that need to be more cooked should be there, and the design means they won’t burn) for about two hours, then stir well to mix thoroughly, and leave it for another hour or two, before turning it off to let it cool. Put it in jars until you need it (or perhaps give it as gifts).

    Enjoy!

    Want to learn more?

    For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

    Take care!

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  • The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck – by Mark Manson

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    You may wonder from the title: is this book arguing that we should all be callous heartless monsters? And no, it is not.

    Instead, author Mark Manson advocates for cynicism, but less in the manner of Scrooge, and more in the manner of Diogenes:

    • That life will involve struggle, so we might as well at least choose our struggles.
    • That we will make mistakes, so we might as well accept them as learning experiences.
    • That we will love and we will lose, so we might as well do it right while we can.

    In short, the book is less about not caring… And more about caring about the right things only.

    So, what are “the right things”? Manson bids us decide for ourselves, but certainly has ideas and pointers, with regard to what may or may not be healthy values to pursue.

    The style throughout is casual and almost conversational, without being overly padded. It makes for very easy reading.

    If the book has a weak point, it’s that when it briefly makes a suprisingly prescriptive turn into recommending we take up Buddhism, it may feel a bit like our friend who wants us to join in the latest MLM scheme. But, he’s soon back on track.

    Bottom line: if you ever find yourself stressed with living up to unwanted expectations—your own, other people’s, and society’s—this book can really help streamline things.

    Click here to check out The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, and put your attention where it makes more of a positive difference!

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  • Cherries vs Elderberries – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing cherries to elderberries, we picked the elderberries.

    Why?

    Both are great! But putting them head-to-head…

    In terms of macros, cherries have slightly more protein (but we are talking miniscule numbers here, 0.34mg/100g), while elderberries have moderately more carbs and more than 4x the fiber. This carbs:fiber ratio difference means that elderberries have the lower glycemic index by far, as well as simply more grams/100g fiber, making this an easy win for elderberries.

    In the category of vitamins, cherries have more of vitamins A, B9, E, K, and choline, while elderberries have more of vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, and C. The margins of difference mean that elderberries have the very slightly better overall vitamin coverage, but it’s so slight that we’ll call this a 5:5 tie.

    When it comes to minerals, cherries have more copper, magnesium, and manganese, while elderberries have more calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, and zinc. A nice easy win to top it off for elderberries.

    On the polyphenols (and other phytochemicals) front, both are great in different ways, nothing that’d we’d consider truly sets one ahead of the other.

    All in all, adding up the sections, an overall win for elderberries, but by all means enjoy either or both!

    Want to learn more?

    You might like to read:

    Take care!

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  • Water Bath + More Cookbook for Beginners – by Sarah Roslin

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Whether you want to be prepared for the next major crisis that shuts down food supply chains, or just learn a new skill, this book provides the tools!

    Especially beneficial if you also grow your own vegetables, but even you just buy those… Home-canned food is healthy, contains fewer additives and preservatives, and costs less in the long run.

    Roslin teaches an array of methods, including most importantly:

    1. fermentation and pickling
    2. water bath canning, and
    3. pressure canning.

    As for what’s inside? She covers not just vegetables, but also fruit, seafood, meat… Basically, anything that can be canned.

    The book explains the tools and equipment you will need as well as how to perform it safely—as well as common mistakes to avoid!

    Lest we be intimidated by the task of acquiring appropriate equipment, she also walks us through what we’ll need in that regard too!

    Last but not least, there’s also a (sizeable) collection of simple, step-by-step recipes, catering to a wide variety of tastes.

    Bottom line: a highly valuable resource that we recommend heartily.

    Get your copy of “Water Bath + Pressure Canning & Preserving Cookbook for Beginners” from Amazon today!

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  • Savory Protein Crêpe

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Pancakes have a bad reputation healthwise, but they don’t have to be so. Here’s a very healthy crêpe recipe, with around 20g of protein per serving (which is about how much protein most people’s body’s can use at one sitting) and a healthy dose of fiber too:

    You will need

    Per crêpe:

    • ½ cup milk (your preference what kind; we recommend oat milk for this)
    • 2 oz chickpea flour (also called garbanzo bean flour, or gram flour)
    • 1 tsp nutritional yeast
    • 1 tsp ras el-hanout (optional but tasty and contains an array of beneficial phytochemicals)
    • 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
    • ⅛ tsp MSG or ¼ tsp low-sodium salt

    For the filling (also per crêpe):

    • 6 cherry tomatoes, halved
    • Small handful baby spinach
    • Extra virgin olive oil

    Method

    (we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

    1) Mix the dry crêpe ingredients in a bowl, and then stir in the milk, whisking to mix thoroughly. Leave to stand for at least 5 minutes.

    2) Meanwhile, heat a little olive oil in a skillet, add the tomatoes and fry for 1 minute, before adding the spinach, stirring, and turning off the heat. As soon as the spinach begins to wilt, set it aside.

    3) Heat a little olive oil either in the same skillet (having been carefully wiped clean) or a crêpe pan if you have one, and pour in a little of the batter you made, tipping the pan so that it coats the pan evenly and thinly. Once the top is set, jiggle the pan to see that it’s not stuck, and then flip your crêpe to finish on the other side.

    If you’re not confident of your pancake-tossing skills, or your pan isn’t good enough quality to permit this, you can slide it out onto a heatproof chopping board, and use that to carefully turn it back into the pan to finish the other side.

    4) Add the filling to one half of the crêpe, and fold it over, pushing down at the edges with a spatula to make a seal, cooking for another 30 seconds or so. Alternatively, you can just serve a stack of crêpes and add the filling at the table, folding or rolling per personal preference:

    Enjoy!

    Want to learn more?

    For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

    Take care!

    Don’t Forget…

    Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

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