Inner-U

(Photos by Will Mebane, graphic by Priscilla DeCastro)

People tend to lump all of the abs together. But your abs are actually a relatively complex series of distinct muscle groups, each with different functions in the body. They include your deep core muscles (transverse abdominis), side abs (obliques), and six-pack muscle (rectus abdominis).

Most abdominal exercises predominantly work one of these groups. Planks, for example, primarily train the deep ab muscles. Traditional crunches target the upper part of the six-pack muscle.

How to do this workout: Perform 12 reps of each exercise on both sides of the body, then immediately jump into the next exercise with minimal rest. After one round (all three exercises), rest for up to a minute; repeat for a total of three rounds. Do the workout three times per week on nonconsecutive days.

1. Power Plank:-

This is not just your average plank...

Start in a plank position with your elbows on the ground beneath your shoulders and your forearms pressed against the floor. Your body should form a straight line. Lift your hips and draw your knee to your chest; pause, then return to the plank. Alternate knees with each rep. Perform 12 reps per leg (24 total).

2. Under The Bridge:-

This move hits multiple ab muscle groups at a time...

Lie on your left side. Stack your feet on top of each other. Prop yourself up with your left hand and raise your hips so that your body forms a straight line from head to toe. Raise your right arm to the sky. This is the starting position. Rotate at your waist to thread your right arm underneath your body; reverse the movement to return to the starting position. That’s one rep. Complete all of the reps on one side, then switch.

3. X Dog:-

This particular move trains your abs in a way similar to how you naturally use them in real-life settings...

Get down on your hands and knees. Reach your left arm toward the wall in front of you; straighten your right leg and reach your foot toward the wall behind you. This is the starting position. Bend your right knee and windmill your left arm behind you to touch your fingertips to your shoe (or get as close as you can). Reverse the movement. Perform all of the reps on one side, then switch sides.

By: Amy Rushlow

*(Amy Rushlow is a National Magazine Award-winning editor and a certified strength and conditioning specialist)*

Angelique Kerber battled back from the brink of defeat to beat Caroline Wozniacki, conquer the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix and keep her clay court winning streak alive....

STUTTGART, Germany - It wasn't easy, but Angelique Kerber kept her perfect start to the clay court season alive Sunday, edging Caroline Wozniacki in a nail-biter to win the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.

Kerber and Wozniacki had played some phenomenal tennis to get to the final - they were responsible for taking out the Top 2 seeds en route to the final, Kerber taking out No.1 seed Maria Sharapova in the second round and Wozniacki outlasting No.2 seed Simona Halep in an almost-three hour semifinal.

And they brought out their best tennis again on Sunday, with Wozniacki drawing first blood by taking the 32-minute first set, 6-3, then Kerber retaliating with a runaway 25-minute second set, 6-1.

There was all kinds of drama in the third set, with Wozniacki jumping out to a 3-1 lead, then Kerber catching up to 3-all, then Wozniacki again leaning ahead 5-3, and coming within two points of victory at 30-15, but again Kerber digging out of it, breaking to get back on serve then holding for 5-all.

In the end Kerber's momentum was just too strong, and she managed to win the last four games of the match to close out the No.4-seeded Dane after two hours and four minutes, 3-6, 6-1, 7-5.

"It was small things today that made the difference," Wozniacki told the crowd. "I had 5-3 in the third set and 30-all, and it could have gone both ways, but she took her chances and it went her way.

"We're great friends, we hang out a lot and practice a lot together, and it's always nice to play a friend in a final. You obviously want to win, but if you don't win, it's still nice that your friend does."

"A few days ago I said clay is actually not my favorite surface, but right now I think I will change my mind," Kerber said. "I've played very well on clay the last few days and weeks. I feel good that I have had so many matches on clay, and now I'm looking forward to the next tournaments before Paris.

"Of course I'm a little bit tired - I've had a lot of matches the last few weeks, and also a lot of travel. So that's why I'm for sure taking the next few days off, just relaxing a little bit before I go to Madrid."

Kerber is now 11-0 since the tour switched to clay a few weeks ago, and this is her equal-biggest title too - she also won Premier titles at Paris [Indoors] in 2012 and Charleston two weeks ago.

Source:- WTA Tennis

“Stop beating yourself up. You are a work in progress; which means you get there a little at a time, not all at once.”  ~Unknown

I’ve been practicing yoga, on and off, for fifteen years.

It’s helped me through and out the other side of infertility, kept me company on the long and winding road of adoption, and helped walk me out of the shadows of depression.

It’s a big part of my life, part of who I am—a faithful friend, the kind that welcomes you back with open arms even after you’ve been inattentive.

In fact, I’d say yoga always gives me what I call an “Alaskan welcome”—the kind my dearly departed dog used to give me whenever I walked into the house, as though I’d been all the way to Alaska instead of around the corner to the shops.

Yoga is always willing to give, but it’s a slow-burning love, and while it has rewarded me richly, I’ve had to wait for its gifts.

I have just completed yoga teacher training, at forty-six, proving the truth that you are never too old to teach (or learn).

While I’m pleased with my pace of learning, ironically, despite my age and experience, there is still so much yoga has to teach me.

And that’s okay, because I am realizing more and more that some of the best things, in yoga and in life, come to us slowly.

Here’s why I think slow is the way to go and why staying power is the most powerful kind.

1. Slow teaches us patience:-

And patience is its own gift, especially during times when things are out of our control and we have no choice but to wait it out. When we bring patience to gently moving toward a goal, we have it in reserve for when roadblocks get in the way (as they inevitably will).

2. Slow hones acceptance and gratitude:-

When we rush headlong into what we want to achieve, we can get easily frustrated with any hurdle or slight delay. (And frustration is unlikely to get us to our goal more quickly).

We also miss the opportunity to accept and be grateful for the small steps we take, those incremental achievements, and for where we are right now—for the good and the bad of everyday life.

3. Slow allows for small mistakes:-

Rush at something and we run the risk of messing up big-time. Take it slow and we get the chance to experiment with small mistakes, helping us to grow so we can hopefully avoid bigger mistakes in the future. We have to earn our lessons, and we don’t learn until we allow things to sink in.

4. Slow makes room for other stuff:-

When we want something fast we can become obsessed with that thing, as though the goal has taken on a life of its own.

While it’s great to prioritize what we really want, it doesn’t make sense to create imbalance in our lives with one overwhelming obsession. Who knows what (and who) you might miss out on if you do.

5. Slow builds resilience:-

The lyrics “It’s better to die on your feet than live on your knees” might ring true, but I’m betting you’d still like to be around for a long life.

Slow is about building legacy, and along the way, resilience. That can only be won through endurance.

Fast is great for igniting passion and showing courage, but who do you think is braver and more passionate—the person who sprints out of the starting block or the one who keeps going over the long distance?

6. Slow is seasonal:-

Taking things slowly recognizes that sometime we need to sit and deliberate (by a fire or by the beach). We need to wait in faith for the universe rather than selfishly expecting our own desires to take precedence.

We need to look to nature to realize that the seasons cycle at their own pace, and we should always be willing to take things slower (and faster) as required.

Slow doesn’t have to be timid, or lazy, or less-than-smart. Slow isn’t a marker for fear and procrastination, nor apathy and indecision.

There’s a yoga asana (posture) that many people find difficult at first. The Sanskrit name is Supta Vijrasana, also known as Reclining Hero pose.

Unlike the standing Warrior postures, which are strong and forceful, the Hero pose calls for quiet strength as you kneel down and then surrender backward.

When I first got seriously back into yoga two years ago, after a sporadic year of practice prior, my knees would groan and my ankle joints scream when I tried to just kneel down and sit my bottom back between my heels.

I certainly couldn’t recline backward onto my back, while keeping my knees bent and touching each other and my feet close by my hips. But now, having taken it slowly, I can feel a little like a yoga hero.

I can realize the benefits of slow that have snuck up on me in their own sweet time. And I am most grateful.

Slow isn’t dull and boring, but contemplative and considered. Slow is the yin in a very yang world.

Slow is the strength of surrender, and surrender can be the most powerful kind of victory.

By : Kathy Kruger

Visit her at : www.yinyangmother.com

Novak Djokovic celebrates his fifth win in Miami....

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic claimed a piece of tennis history on Sunday at the Miami Open presented by Itaú.

With his seventh straight win over World No. 4 Andy Murray, the Serb captured a fifth crown in South Florida and became the first player to complete the Indian Wells – Miami title sweep three times. He also joins Roger Federer as the only player to accomplish the feat two years in a row.

The 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-0 win marks Djokovic’s third triumph over Murray in 2015, including victories in the Australian Open final and the BNP Paribas Open semi-finals. He now owns an 18-8 FedEx ATP Head2Head record over the Scot.

"I'm trying to enjoy the moment and also utilise this time of my career where I'm probably playing the tennis of my life, and I'm feeling confident and physically fit," he said. "I'm trying to use that. That's what I'm thinking about right now... I am aware that this cannot go forever. There is going to be eventually a change of generations, some players that are going to start playing better and be stronger."

The first set of the final was anything but straightforward, with both players tallying two breaks each before Djokovic clinched the tie-break. Murray temporarily turned the tide, taking the second set with a break at 5-4. Ultimately, Djokovic's momentum, a culmination of his recent performances against Murray and his stellar start to the season, was too much for the Dunblane native to overcome in the final set.

"It was just a physical battle between the two of us that play similar game," Djokovic said. "We haven't served that well, so we haven't had that many free points, as a matter of fact. With first or second serves, we needed to earn every single point, to work for it. That's why this particular match was very tough."

The 27-year-old top seed converted on five of 18 break points en route to the two hour, 36-minute triumph, maintaining a perfect 33-0 record after winning the first set in Miami. Even with a 6-0 final set, Djokovic won just seven more total points than his opponent.

"I just have to try and keep working hard and see if there are a few things I can do differently, which might help," Murray explained. "It's tough, because it was obviously pretty brutal conditions out there. He was stronger than me at the end, for sure."

On Monday, Djokovic will tie Rafael Nadal for the sixth-most weeks at the summit of the Emirates ATP Rankings (since Aug 23, 1973) with 141. With 4,000 points separating him from Federer at No. 2, he has set himself up well to finish at World No. 1 for the fourth time in five years.

With his victory on Sunday, he is just one ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title short of Federer's total of 23. Nadal leads the pack with 27 trophies at that level.

Source:- ATP Tennis

First two tournaments, first two titles - Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza continued their dream start together, adding the Miami Open title to their BNP Paribas Open title....

MIAMI, FL, USA - They were in a lot of trouble early on, but Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza battled back to beat Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina on Sunday to win the Miami Open doubles title.

The No.2-seeded Makarova and Vesnina came out strong, storming out to a 5-2 lead, but the No.1-seeded Hingis and Mirza came alive from there, reeling off eight games in a row - even staving off a set point - to surge ahead, 7-5, 3-0. They barely looked back to close out the Russian pairing, 7-5, 6-1.

"The most important thing is that we never stopped believing we're a great team," Hingis said of the early deficit. "They played a great set to get us to that position, 5-2 down. Then we just tried to stay in there and get our chances. We just built on every point, which is what we did well last week too."

The Swiss-Indian duo talked about how an on-court coaching visit helped them turn it around.

"Today the coaching really turned it around - your dad came on court," Hingis said to Mirza.

"We just tried to keep telling each other to enjoy the struggle," Mirza said. "Last week everything came very, very easily to us - we didn't lose more than four games in a set. Over here we were down, and we were panicking. It was like, 'Oh my God, we're not playing well.' We just weren't used to that.

"But it's good to fight through those matches and believe, and come out now and be like, 'At 5-3 I was gutsy to hit a big serve,' or she made a huge move at 5-4, if that makes sense. So it's good."

It has been an absolute dream start for Hingis and Mirza - the two Premier Mandatory events in Indian Wells and Miami were their first two tournaments playing together. They're now 10-0 together, and even more impressively, they haven't lost a single set along the way - they're 20-0 in sets together.

Hingis now has 43 WTA doubles titles to her name, which matches the 43 WTA singles titles she's won in her career. Meanwhile, Mirza took home the milestone 25th WTA doubles title of her career.

Both teams will also make big moves up the Road To Singapore doubles leaderboard, the year-long journey to the doubles event at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. Makarova and Vesnina will go from No.2 to No.1, while Hingis and Mirza will go from No.9 to No.3.

Source:- WTA Tennis

(Photos by Will Mebane, Graphic by Priscilla DeCastro)

Perform each exercise for 30 seconds, followed by 30 seconds of rest, then move on to the next exercise. All three exercises are one circuit. Perform three circuits. (You can also perform 45 seconds of the exercise with 15 seconds rest, or do each move for a full minute back-to-back, depending on your fitness level).

The key to really making this workout challenging -- and getting the best results -- is to count your reps for every exercise. During the second and third rounds of the circuit, try to meet or increase your rep count. By competing against yourself, you’ll make the sweat session harder, boost your results, and keep improving with every workout.

1. Ninja

Start squatting down with your hands and feet on the floor in a frog position, your hands underneath your shoulders and your feet outside each hand. Explosively jump up as high as you can, lifting your knees. At the top of the jump, try to touch your hands to your kneecaps. Land softly, returning to the frog position with hands on the floor. That’s one rep.

Tip: If that’s too difficult, eliminate the jump; move from squatting in frog position to standing tall.

2. Plank To Side Plank

Begin at the top of a push-up position. Lift your right hand off the floor as you rotate your body to the right side. Spiral your feet so that the side of each foot rests on the ground. Place your right hand on your hip. Your body should form a straight line from your head to your toes. Raise your top foot toward the sky as high as you can. Reverse the movement to end at the top of a push-up. That’s one rep. Alternate sides each rep.

Tip: To make it easier, don’t lift your foot to the sky.

3. Squat Kick

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, toes facing forward. Bend at your knees and hips, and push your butt back as you lower your body toward the ground. Go down until your thighs are parallel to the ground, or as far as you can. Shift your weight to your right foot as you raise your body up; at the same time, lift your left knee. At the top of the movement, kick forward with your left foot. Place both feet back on the ground. That’s one rep. Alternate the leg you kick with each rep.

By : Amy Rushlow

*(Amy Rushlow is a National Magazine Award-winning editor and a certified strength and conditioning specialist)*

An absolute blinder was required from an India player to pull the semi-final off; that didn’t happen and Australia was the deserving winner

It is always best to be practical and honest. And so it must be mentioned straightaway that while the Indians did wonderfully well in the World Cup, the simple truth is that they didn’t win a single match against the Australians on the entire tour, not in the Test series, not in the ODI tri-series that followed, not even in the practice tie before the World Cup began.

So Australia, certainly had an edge going into the World Cup semi-final, more so with the home conditions. The odds were, thus, definitely against India. It would have required an absolute blinder from someone in the Indian side to pull the semi-final off, that didn’t happen and Australia turned out deserving winners.

Given the Australian dominance, the one factor that could have helped the Indians was the opportunity to bat first. Denied the luck with the toss, and the ideal situation of being able to set a target, they found their opponents capitalising fully.

What one must realise is when a team bats first, even the contributions from the tail can sting, for every additional run means one more run to be chased down.

But when you chase and it comes down to the tail, it means the hopes have already gone. That said no team, no good team that is, relies too much on the toss, for its but a lottery.

As predicted the short ball was part of the strategy for the Indians, after all statistics and data mining clearly indicates that their pacers’ got a major percentage of their wickets with such deliveries. But did India succeed with the short-pitched bowling plans on the day? The answer would have to be yes and no. Yes, as they did get some wickets that way and no because they also went for plenty with the same lengths. Perhaps the skills of the opponents wasn’t taken into proper account while employing the strategy.

To the Indians’ credit, there was a near miraculous comeback into the game, thanks mainly to Mahendra Singh Dhoni whose sharp captaincy did the trick. But then the advantage so gained was nullified by the Aussie tail, who tore into the Indian pacers at the end.

However, my heart goes out to the three fast bowlers, Mohammad Shami, Umesh Yadav and Mohit Sharma who held centre-stage for a long while in the tournament.

I am sure the learnings would have been plenty and going by this experience, I do feel that fast bowling in India is on the right track.

Add Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar to the trio and I would say it’s a healthy place for the team to be in.

We cannot forget Ravichanderan Ashwin’s contribution. We didn’t see much of him during the early part of the tour but as they say class will always win. From when he came back into the Indian XI, the class has been very apparent.

While Ashwin’s fine skills are undebatable, the jury has to be still out as far the Indian batting on the day is concerned. It's rather difficult so say whether it was plain ordinary batting on view or if the poor showing with the bat was caused by high class bowling from the Australians.

In an era where the bowling is normally decimated, the old adage of bowlers wins matches, was held to be true by the likes of the two Mitchells - Starc and Johnson. The pitch was flat but no one seemed to have told Starc or Johnson about it.

The rules have been against the bowlers for a while now, but again none of it seemed to matter to the two left-armers. It didn’t matter that the Indians didn’t lose early wickets, they still had trouble dealing with the duo. Of course, it helped no end that a quality third pacer was available in Josh Hazlewood, for a third such bowler helps in keeping the pressure on even if wickets don’t fall.

By : Javagal Srinath

Source : - http://www.icc-cricket.com

Former South Africa captain says ultimately New Zealand was the better team in the semi-final and have been the better team in the tournament thus far....

When it was clear that Australia were about to defeat New Zealand in the 2003 rugby union World Cup semi-final, then Australian scrum-half, George Gregan, was caught on camera mouthing the words “four more years” to his All Black counterpart, Byron Kelleher. That semi-final defeat would condemn New Zealand to at least a 20 year wait for their second World Cup trophy. It eventually did come but only in 2011, 24 years after their first title.

Today the Proteas left Eden Park knowing that they would have to wait another four years to lift their first World Cup trophy.

Grant Elliot was capped by South Africa at representative level in the late nineties and scored a magnificent double-hundred for South Africa Under-19s against England Under-19s in a Youth Test at Newlands. He took a leap of faith to continue his career in New Zealand in his early twenties which was validated when he was capped by his adopted country in all three formats of the game.

By his own admission his international career has been chequered but one constant throughout his career has been that of his temperament. It was this quality that earned him selection in the World Cup squad ahead of the more talented but more temperamental, Jimmy Neesham. Credit must go to the New Zealand selectors for making the hard decision and opting for temperament ahead of talent. Today he played the innings that will define his career on the biggest stage possible.

There have been comparisons between this match with the 1999 World Cup semi-final between South Africa and Australia due to the fluctuating nature of the game. The 1999 semi-final is widely regarded as the greatest One-Day International ever played and this fixture definitely pushed it close.

I felt South Africa constructed their innings superbly given the loss of the early two wickets and taking the rain into account. Du Plessis and Rossouw showed great composure in rebuilding the innings and providing the necessary platform for de Villiers and Miller. The Proteas would have been content with getting to 281 in 43 overs and would have backed themselves to defend 298 in the same amount of overs.

There has been much debate as to the effect that the rain had on the Proteas innings. I believe that it definitely halted the momentum of the innings which played into the hands of the Black Caps by allowing them to regroup. They would have backed themselves to score at a minimum of ten to the over for the final twelve overs if given the chance and would have believed a score in the region of 340 was well within their grasp. Even though New Zealand had to score at almost seven to the over they would have felt more comfortable having to maintain this rate across 43 overs as opposed to 50 overs. This in turn meant that the start McCullum gave the hosts was much harder to pull back due to the reduced nature of the innings.

In my previous column I said how important it was that the Proteas bat deep into their innings so to exploit the New Zealand fifth bowler. The rain robbed them of this opportunity to a certain extent as the fifth bowler only has to complete eight overs. The rain also created a wet outfield which altered the composition of the ball by making it a lot softer when the Proteas bowled. It was clear that the bowlers were battling with this. The elements are part and parcel of the game of cricket and the side which adapts the quickest to them usually comes out on top.

At the 1999 World Cup when Australia were in a precarious position and faced with having to win all their remaining games to progress to the semi-finals, Steve Waugh spoke about the importance of taking every half chance that presented itself. In a tight game with so much at stake neither team is going to put in a flawless performance but the Proteas missed the half chances today that counted and it ultimately cost them. Most tellingly they seemed to deviate from their pre-planned bowling strategy to McCullum by bowling poor lengths which allowed him to dictate the pace of the game.

This in turn allowed for the middle-order to play themselves in as opposed to having to chase the game from the outset.

We could further scrutinize the selection of Philander ahead of Abbott, the two missed run-outs and the miscommunication between Berhardien and Duminy but ultimately New Zealand were the better team on the day and have been the better team in the tournament thus far.

I experienced three losses in World Cup knockout games and know that the hurt will be present for some time but the team will bounce back.

New Zealand finally won a World Cup semi-final and deservedly so. Seventh time is a charm.

I wish them all the best in the final on Sunday.

By : GRAEME SMITH

Source:- http://www.icc-cricket.com

Be sure to go slow: Each repetition should take three seconds -- one on the way up and two on the way down.

By : Andrew Ginsburg (Trainer)

The morning is one of your most crucial times when it comes to maintaining your health and fitness. Whether you work out in the AM or not, yoga is one of the most energizing ways to start your day.

Yoga is great for a number of reasons. First off, the stretching warms up your muscles and gets your blood circulating. This helps prepare you for whatever the day has to offer. Second, yoga is really energizing. It will wake you up mentally just as much as it will physically. And lastly, yoga is a great way to give your metabolism a boost in the morning.

So if you’re looking for a new and energizing way to start your days, give this 10-minute yoga routine a try. It’s a simple way to start things off on the right – and healthy – foot.

Do this routine for a couple of weeks, and you’ll start seeing the real benefits of yoga for improving all-around health.

Run through this sequence at least twice for a full 10-minute energizing routine…

Child’s Pose

One of my favorite ones to start with in the morning, child’s pose allows you to keep your eyes shut and wake up slowly. Simply kneel on your yoga mat, bend forward, and place your forehead on the floor as your extend your arms forward. You’ll really feel the bend in your back, and you’ll wake up your spine in seconds.

Stay here for 5 deep breaths.

Cat/Cow Pose

Stay on your knees on your yoga mat, and lift your head up as your rest against your palms. You should now be on all fours. This move is actually 2 poses in 1. Start by pointing your head down towards the mat and bending your back upward towards the ceiling. Hold here for 3 deep breaths, then reverse the pose as you lift your head up towards the ceiling. Hold here for another 3 breaths.

Downward Dog

Keeping your palms against the floor, extend your legs as your balance on your toes. Pull your buttocks towards the ceiling as you move your head towards the floor, creating a V-shape with your body. The goal here is to try to create a straight line with your arms, neck, shoulders, and back, bending at your hips only. Hold here for at least 5 breaths.

Forward Bend

Stand up straight now, placing your feet a few inches apart. Bend forward at your hips, and allow your head to fall towards the floor, coming as close to your legs as possible. To help ease yourself into the pose, grab the back of your calves with your palms and pull your head inward to your body. Hold here for 5 breaths.

Triangle Pose

This last one will really enliven your body and get you energized. Stay in standing position, and extend your right foot out to the side by about 3 feet. Extend your arms up towards the ceiling, then bring your right hand down and place it on your right ankle. Extend your left hand towards the ceiling and look upward as you engage your abs and core. Hold here for 3 breaths, then repeat on the opposite side.

By : Sam Omidi

Visit him at : http://weightlossandtraining.com

Sri Lanka’s exit brought the curtains down on Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardena’s ODI careers....

Ultimately, obtaining a piece of the silverware was not to be for two of the one-day game’s greatest batsmen, with Sri Lanka’s World Cup exit also signalling Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene’s ODI farewell.

For Jayawardene, retirement beckons, while Sangakkara will continue playing the five-day game until Sri Lanka’s Test series against India in August.

For more than a decade, the pair has been a staple of the Sri Lanka line-up.

Best friends who were schoolboy rivals before making their international debuts, together they have played in World Cup finals and claimed a World T20 title together.

They have pursued a passion for charitable work and gone into business together.

Both have captained Sri Lanka and have batted 293 times together in international cricket for a total of 13,368 runs, more than any other due in cricketing history and ahead of Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly with 12,400.

In Colombo in 2006, they put together a World Record stand of 624 runs, Jayawardene contributing 374 runs and Sangakkara 287.

Both Sangakkara and Jayawardene sit in the top five run-scorers in the history of ODIs, on 14,234 and 12,650 respectively.

In Test cricket, Sangakkara has scored 12,203 runs and Jayawardene 11,814, placing them fifth and seventh on the overall list.

Their partnership has been enduring both on and off the field and Sri Lanka cricket will miss them dearly.

In their three previous World Cups appearances together - in 2003, 2007 and 2011 - they saw Sri Lanka to a semi-final and two finals.

Jayawardene also played in the 1999 World Cup.

While winning the 2015 trophy would have been a fairy tale finish for the pair, Sangakkara shrugged aside the disappointment of the quarter-final defeat after the match.

“That's the way it goes. Someone has got to lose in a quarter-final,” he said.

“It could have been my last game, it could have been one of the games that I've played. I don't think that makes a huge difference or adds to the disappointment.”

Sangakkara says goodbye to the one-day game in sublime form, having scored 105* against Bangladesh, 117* against England, 104 against Australia and 124 against Scotland.

In his final match, he made a stoic 45 while his teammates crumbled around him and at the end of the match, he sat on top of the tournament run-scoring tally with 541 runs at 108.2.

Against Scotland, he became the first player to score four consecutive one-day international hundreds, while this tournament has also seen him claim the record for most World Cup dismissals.

Sangakkara has averaged just under 60 in his last 66 ODIs, having scored 11 centuries and 20 fifties, and scored three centuries, two double centuries and one triple century in his last two years of Test cricket.

Even his captain Angelo Mathews has said he “got down on one knee” and begged Sangakkara to reconsider his retirement.

The 37-year-old who has played 404 ODIs and 130 Tests for Sri Lanka since breaking into the team as a 22-year-old.

Jayawardene, born five months to the day earlier than Sangakkara, made his international debut three years earlier, playing his first Test against India in 1997.

His ODI career has featured 448 matches and 19 centuries, while his 149-match Test career included 34 tons.

Like Sangakkara, Jayawardene is leaving the one day game in excellent form, having averaged 35 in ODIs over the past two years.

In his last 10 Tests before his retirement in August, he scored one double-ton, two centuries and five fifties.

During this World Cup, he scored a crucial century when Sri Lanka was in trouble at 51-4 against Afghanistan in Dunedin.

Jayawardene and Sangakkara have shared runs and friendship, but another shared trait makes this pair stand out – their sense of humility.

The esteem they are held in by their peers was obvious after the quarter-final, when the South African players made way to allow the pair to leave the field, hugging and patting them on the back as they departed.

Neither player is being forced into retirement. For them, it is just time.

“Retiring from cricket is not about form,’ Sangakkara said after the match.

“I'm sure I can play maybe a year or two more, but like I said before, it's time and place, and I feel that the time is now and it's right.

“The World Cup, with a four-year wait in between, is the right occasion to do it.”

He signed off his one-day career in typical Sangakkara manner. Asked how he would like to be remembered in cricket, he said: “If anyone can say that they've enjoyed playing against me and playing with me, I'll be more than happy.”

Source:- http://www.icc-cricket.com

“I vow to let go of all worries and anxiety in order to be light and free.”

~Thich Nhat Hanh

My mother was what you might call a “professional worrier.” She worried with skill, power, and acumen.

She could incisively hone in on the most seemingly benign situation and find within it some kernel of trouble to worry about. Money. Health. Household. Children. Travel. Work. You name it, she worried about it. A lot.

That is until my father was diagnosed with cancer.

When my father became ill, my mother changed radically, and apparently overnight. Faced with the potential of the greatest loss of her life, she found that she was suddenly free of the many worries that had plagued her for all those many years.

In the wake of the most terrible news imaginable, the many troubles that had been burdening her suddenly fell away, like a heavy winter coat on an unexpectedly warm day. So, strangely and without warning, in the midst of a terrifying life-threatening crisis, my mother became a more light-hearted person.

She dismissed things that had bothered her before my father’s illness with a smile and a wave of her hand. If you came to her with a knit brow and a bee in your bonnet, she would simply say, “If no one is dying, then it’s not a problem.”

There is an old Yiddish blessing that ironically wishes, “May you have many worries.”

At first glance, it seems more like a curse than a blessing. Why would you wish someone you care about many worries?

The answer lies in the heart of my mother’s experience: If we have many troubles swirling about us—and we choose to entertain those worries—that means that we do not have a single, overriding worry to consume us.

And the absence of that single, oppressive worry is a blessing in itself.

There is a great source of empowerment in this understanding: If large troubles displace small worries and with a single powerful stroke, suddenly wiping our slate of worries clean, then we ourselves can choose to wipe that slate clean at any moment.

This little bit of folksy wisdom is, in fact, a very deep instruction:

Don’t wait for a big trouble to come along and make you realize that your small troubles don’t matter.

Novelist and essayist Anne Lamott tells the story of a time she was out shopping for clothing with a friend who was terminally ill:

She was in a wheelchair, wearing a wig to cover her baldness, weighing almost no pounds, but very serene, very alive. We were at Macy’s. I was modeling a short dress for her that I thought my boyfriend would like.

But then I asked whether it made me look big in the hips, and Pammy said, as clear and kind as a woman can be, “Annie? You really don’t have that kind of time.” I just got it. I got it deep in my being . . . You don’t have that kind of time.

And she is right. We don’t have that kind of time. We live under the illusion that we have plenty of time to worry.

We have the feeling that we have hours and days and weeks and months and years to concern ourselves about whether our hips look big or the house is drafty or the bills are piling up or there is dust under the furniture or the car needs vacuuming or the kitchen is outdated.  But we don’t.

My mother realized that those kinds of worries added up to nothing on the day my father became ill.

She found that she no longer had time to worry about meeting agendas and traffic tie-ups and household clutter and gas prices and rainy days and rusted gutters—all the things that consume so much of our time and energy.

She found she only had time to love the man she had committed her life to over three decades before. And that is just what she did.

We don’t have to wait for a crisis to realize that we only have time to love what is real. We only have time to care for what is right in front of us. To vow to let go our worries is a vow to love what’s most sacred.

And once we realize this, we’ll be free.

By : Lauren Rosenfeld

Visit her at : http://yourtobelist.com/

Rafael Nadal is back in sunny California to make his 11th appearance in Indian Wells. And while many things have changed in the past decade, even Nadal marvels at the fact that the top four seeds at the 2015 BNP Paribas Open are the same four names that have dominated the men’s game for so long.

“It’s pretty amazing what has happened in the last 10 years,” Nadal told the media on Wednesday. “The same players are achieving almost everything. That is something that I think has never happened in the history of our sport.

“Novak [Djokovic], Andy [Murray], Roger [Federer], myself…it’s something special. It’s something that is finishing. I don’t know if [it will happen] in one, two, three, four years, but for everybody it finishes. Hopefully we created a good example for the next generations.”

The three-time Indian Wells champion and current World No. 3 credits his upbringing for his longevity.

“When I was a kid, I didn’t feel that pressure from my family,” said the 28 year old. “I didn’t feel that I was only focused on tennis. I was playing tennis, football, going out with my friends. You have time to be a professional in the future.”

Nadal, who claimed his first title of the season just weeks ago in Buenos Aires, has undoubtedly made the most of his time at the top of the sport. In addition to his family support, he has an inner circle he trusts implicitly.

“I give my team the flexibility to say the right things to me,” said the 14-time Grand Slam champion. “If I am playing terrible, they are not scared to say [that] to me. Sometimes the teams around the big stars of sport are scared to say things to the player. That hasn’t happened with me, and that helps.”

Source:- ATP Tennis

"The hope of a secure and livable world lies with the disciplined non-conformists who are dedicated to Justice, Peace and Brotherhood"

~ Martin Luther King Jr.

1. With Yourself

Patience with yourself is personal loyalty. It's respect - the foundation of every worthwhile relationship.

Being impatient with yourself is always self-defeating.

Worse, when you are not patient with yourself, social relationships don’t last.

People who are impatient with themselves make narrow-minded choices in social situations that appear to be selfish or arrogant, and alienate others. That's why 'things' don't work out.

Find patience for your heart and mind. If you don't give it to yourself, nobody will.

2. With Timing

Patience with timing is a sign of confidence in choices and faith in goals. Sure, it’s a disappointment and a drag to not have an answer, a meeting or a trip when you want it. Reality is: we all march to our own beat and we're not always in step with others. Sometimes this means waiting.

The surprise of extra time gives you space to prepare the response for an unwanted answer. Time always catches up with us.

Extra time means you can have unexpected insights to fine-tune content for the meeting.

Postponing a trip puts you somewhere else you need to be.

If you are perfect, LOL, then the time of ‘waiting’ will reveal an opportunity or responsibility you need to address or reposition before your answer, meeting or trip.

Whenever you are patient with delays, you will find something new that helps you succeed. Time brings opportunity.

3. With others

Patience with others has its priorities. These include dignity, self-respect and compassion. People who do this well are our heroes, like Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi. These patient fighters used patience as personal power. So can you.

This is not about what you do; it's about how you do it.

Patience with other means acknowledging differences. No and yes are equally important for staying in tune with patience and your goals.

It is not ‘turning the other cheek” while someone hits you. You can be angry and be dignified.

If someone pushes your buttons and is disrespectful, sometimes it's best to just say, good-bye. The only person you can change is yourself. Stand tall, talk softly and use eye contact to make your point.

By : Jane Bernard

Source:- http://intuitivescribe.blogspot.com/2014/10/three-ways-of-patience.html?spref=tw

Sit on the front steps of right NOW, aging gracefully and gratefully, smoking a peace pipe with what is.  You and this moment are a perfect match, deeply in love, with nothing to prove or fear.  Give thanks for all you’ve been, seen and loved.  Breathe in the acceptance.

Source:- http://www.soulseeds.com

Plank Hold (30 seconds): Hold plank in a forearm plank position. Make sure your body is in a straight line and your abs are contracted.

Rollups (15 total): Lie face up with your arms stretched overhead. Inhale and begin to curl your upper body off the floor. Exhale when you're halfway up and continue rolling forward to reach toward your toes. Inhale and reverse the move, exhaling halfway down. Repeat.

Cross-Body Mountain Climbers (10 each side, 20 total): In high plank position, raise your left knee towards your right elbow, lower, and then raise your right knee to your left elbow.

Bicycle Crunches (20 each side, 40 total): Lie face up with your fingers resting on the sides of your head. Lift your shoulders off the floor and hold them there. Twist your upper body to the left as you pull your left knee into your body towards your right elbow. Straighten your right leg at the same time. Return to starting position and repeat, bringing your right knee towards your left elbow.

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The best part about this workout (besides the fact that it only take 10 minutes) is that you don't need any gear, just yourself and a mat. And the mat is totally optional — I did it last night on our living room rug while watching Chopped. You can squeeze this workout in whenever you have an extra 10 minutes — right when you wake up in the morning, before you go to bed at night or after your regular cardio or strength training routine. Anytime really!

By: Brittany Mullins

Visit her at : http://www.eatingbirdfood.com

(Photo by Getty Images; Masterfile; iStock Photo)

A year ago this month my husband and I started a new diet. It had nothing to do with a New Year’s resolution to lose weight. For about nine months, he had been suffering from bad hives all over his body. It was bizarre. One day he’d wake up and they’d be all over his back. The next afternoon, his lip was swollen so much he couldn’t talk. He had been to a few different allergists and they told him it was “idiosyncratic” (meaning they didn’t know how to fix it) and told him to take Zyrtec indefinitely — until they went away.

“Could it be related to my diet?” he asked.

“No,” they said.

One guy sent him home with fungus cream that made the tiny red spots swell into ripe, red tomatoes all over his arms.

So he decided to try his own experiment and see if it worked.

The journey started with the book, Eat to Live, by Joel Fuhrman, MD. We bought a used Vitamix, those ridiculously expensive blenders, and we were off: kale smoothies in the morning, homemade almond butter with celery for snack, and black bean soup for dinner.

His hives went away within a few weeks. Apparently the white flour and processed foods were causing the inflammation all over his body. My inflammation is in my brain, a rather complex organ, so my result took much longer — like nine months. But I’m finally starting to feel the real benefit of our diet changes.

Here is a list of 10 foods I eat every day now in order to feel good. These foods provide the nutrients my body needs to fight off inflammation in my brain, which leads to depression.

1. Dark Leafy Greens

If you were to choose the healthiest food of all, the most nutrient-dense item available to us to eat, it would be dark, leafy greens, no contest. Spinach. Kale. Swiss chard. Greens are the first of the G-BOMBS (Greens, Beans, Onions, Mushrooms, Berries, Seeds) that Dr. Fuhrman describes in his book, The End of Dieting, the foods with the most powerful immune-boosting and anticancer effects.

“These foods help to prevent the cancerous transformation of normal cells and keep the body armed and ready to attack any precancerous or cancerous cells that may arise,” he writes. They fight against all kinds of inflammation, and according to a new study published in JAMA Psychiatry, severe depression has been linked with brain inflammation. Leafy greens are especially important because they contain oodles of vitamins A, C, E, and K, minerals and phytochemicals.

2. Walnuts

Walnuts are one of the richest plant-based sources of omega-3 fatty acids, and numerous studies have demonstrated how omega-3 fatty acids support brain function and reduce depression symptoms. A study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry is especially interesting. The lead authors ask the question, Why is the vast biological research — from genetics to psychopharmacology — concentrated on neurotransmitters, when the mammalian brain is approximately 80 percent fat (lipids), and there is a growing body of research demonstrating the critical role of lipids to help brain functioning? What’s more, the shift in the Western diet away from these necessary omega-3 fatty acids over the last century parallels the large rise in psychiatric disorders in that time.

3. Avocado

I eat a whole one every day in my salad for lunch. Avocados are power foods because, again, they contain healthy fat that your brain needs in order to run smoothly. Three-fourths of the calories of an avocado are from fat, mostly monosaturated fat, in the form of oleic acid. An average avocado also contains 4 grams of protein, higher than other fruits, and is filled with vitamin K, different kinds of vitamin B (B-9, B-6, and B-5), vitamin C, and vitamin E-12. Finally, they are low in sugar and high in dietary fiber, containing about 11 grams each.

4. Berries

Blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, and blackberries are some of the highest antioxidant foods available to us. I try to have a variety for breakfast in the morning. In a study published in the Journal of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine, patients were treated for two years with antioxidants or placebos. After two years those who were treated with antioxidants had a significantly lower depression score. They are like DNA repairmen. They go around fixing your cells and preventing them from getting cancer and other illnesses.

5. Mushrooms

Here are two good reasons mushrooms are good for your mental health. First, their chemical properties oppose insulin, which helps lower blood sugar levels, evening out your mood. They also are like a probiotic in that they promote healthy gut bacteria. And since the nerve cells in our gut manufacture 80 percent to 90 percent of our body’s serotonin — the critical neurotransmitter that keeps us sane — we can’t afford to not pay attention to our intestinal health.

6. Onions

You won’t find this item on most lists of mood foods. However, it’s included in Fuhrman’s G-BOMBS because onions and all allium vegetables (garlic, leeks, chives, shallots, and spring onions) have been associated with a decreased risk of several cancers.

“Eating onions and garlic frequently is associated with a reduced risk of cancers of the digestive tract,” explains Fuhrman. “These vegetables also contain high concentrations of anti-inflammatory flavonoid antioxidants that contribute to their anti-cancer properties.” Again, if you consider the relationship between your digestive tract and your brain, it is understandable why a food that can prevent cancers of the gut would also benefit your mood.

7. Tomatoes

I try to eat at least six baby tomatoes in my salad each day for lunch because tomatoes contain lots of folic acid and alpha-lipoic acid, both of which are good for fighting depression. According to research published in the Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, many studies show an elevated incidence of folate deficiency in patients with depression. In most of the studies, about one-third of depression patients were deficient in folate.

Folic acid can prevent an excess of homocysteine — which restricts the production of important neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine — from forming in the body. Alpha-lipoic acid keeps coming up as I read more about nutrition and the brain, so I have begun to take it as a supplement, as well. It helps the body convert glucose into energy, and therefore stabilizes mood.

8. Beans

“Beans, beans, good for the heart. The more you eat, the more you … smile.” They make the G-BOMB list because they can act as anti-diabetes and weight-loss foods. They are good for my mood because my body (and every body) digests them slowly, which stabilizes blood sugar levels. Any food that assists me in evening out my blood sugar levels is my friend. They are the one starch that I allow myself, so on top of a salad, they help mitigate my craving for bread and other processed grains.

9. Seeds

When I’m close to reaching for potato chips — or anything else that is yelling “I will take away your pain!” — I allow myself a few handfuls of sunflower seeds or any other kind of seed I can find in our kitchen. Seeds are the last food on Fuhrman’s G-BOMBS list.

Flaxseeds, hemp seeds, and chia seeds are especially good for your mood because they are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Fuhrman writes, “Not only do seeds add their own spectrum of unique disease-fighting substances to the dietary landscape, but the fat in seeds increases the absorption of protective nutrients in vegetables eaten at the same meal.”

10. Apples

An apple a day could — if eaten with the rest of these foods — keep the psychiatrist away, at least for stretches of time. Like berries, apples are high in antioxidants, which can help to prevent and repair oxidation damage and inflammation on the cellular level. They are also full of soluble fiber, which balances blood sugar swings. A snack I have grown to love is almond butter on apple slices. I get my omega-3 fatty acid along with some fiber.

By : Therese Borchard

To see more writings from her, visit :

http://www.everydayhealth.com

“Social media should improve your life, not become your life.”

~Patrick Driessen

The summer after college, my best friend and I had many a girls’-night-in, largely to accommodate her new life as a single mother.

These nights consisted of drinking wine and Facebook stalking anyone and everyone who went to our high school.

One night we went as far as creating a false page representing a popular local bar so that we could peer into the lives of anyone our hearts desired without revealing ourselves as grade-A cyber stalkers.

We spent a lot of our downtime that summer focusing on what other people were doing, and none of that focus prompted any kind of personal growth or increased self-worth on our ends.

I know there are people out there who are masters of self-discipline when it comes to their devices and social media pages.

These people put their phones down during dinner, turn them off to go to bed, and only check their social media pages during specified times during the day; they may go days or weeks without accessing their online profiles. I, however, am not one of them.

I often find myself torn between the practical benefits of engaging with social media and the detrimental toll these same tools can take on my inner self.

On the one hand, I rely on being able to access certain private pages for work, and I enjoy keeping in touch with long distance friends. On the other hand, compulsively checking my profiles on various devices often prevents me from living in the now.

Over the years, I have deactivated and reactivated my social media accounts time and time again in an effort to break myself of my bad social media habits.

For me, deleting my accounts helps me focus on the present moment and the goings on in my own life. However, I missed connecting with my friends and risked alienating myself from an ever-more-technological professional sphere.

When I began a position with a company that all but requires the use of social media, I realized deleting and reactivating my accounts was no longer a solution to my social media problem.

I found myself faced with the question: how do I use social media in a way that helps me grow, both professionally and personally, while minimizing the negative effects of overuse?

Over the past year, I developed some strategies for increasing positive content presented to me through my social media accounts, while decreasing the material that leaves me feeling bad or distracted and creating greater awareness around my usage habits.

1. “Follow” the blogs and websites you like to read:-

Your favorite blogs and websites often have social media counterparts to which you can subscribe. If you don’t have a running list of blogs and websites (I didn’t until about a year ago), spend an afternoon searching for content that interests or inspires you and then continue to add to it over time.

I created a folder on my favorites bar containing links to literary journals, professional and personal development blogs, online learning websites, recipe guides, fitness videos, etc.

As you scroll through your newsfeed, you’ll pause to read articles related to your interests that may help you grow, cause you to pause and reflect, or inspire you to begin a new project.

Instead of spending an hour cyber stalking your ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend, who you saw in a picture with a mutual acquaintance, you may end up writing an article (like this one), bookmarking an interesting recipe, or sharing a funny video with a friend.

2. Unfollow or block people who distract you:-

Do you find you criticize yourself after viewing your beautiful friend’s daily selfies? Do your brother’s travel photos make you lament your office job? Does your aunt’s constant complaining clog your newsfeed with negativity?

Unfollow people whose posts—for whatever reason at all—typically make your mood take a turn for the worst or cause you to lose focus on your own goals. You can still access these people’s content by intentionally navigating to their profiles, but you remove the spontaneous mood killers throughout your social media usage.

If the person isn’t someone you care to maintain any kind of connection with, you might want to think about blocking him or her. My Facebook block list is a mile long, and here’s an example as to why that is:

I recently blocked my boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend on Facebook.

Blocking her was not something I needed to do to prevent her from contacting me; I have never interacted with this person firsthand. However, we share many mutual friends (both on Facebook and in life), and I realized that her comments and Facebook activity became distracting for me in a negative way.

Blocking her prevented me from seeing comments she makes to mutual friends, prevented me from stalking her profile during insecure moments, and removed from my vision any pictures that she previously tagged my boyfriend in while they were dating.

This was not an attempt to erase my boyfriend’s past, just a measure prevent me from returning to it in the present.

The unfollow and blocking features are not indications that you do not like someone; they are tools you can use to filter content that you don’t need to see on a routine basis. Remember, you can always unblock a person or decide to follow him or her again later.

3. Delete the mobile app from your phone:-

(Or at least put mobile apps in a folder)

Use the web app instead of the mobile app. This requires you to open a web page and intentionally login to a social media account versus mindlessly checking the same profile you’ve viewed twenty times today already.

If you cannot (or will not) forgo the features offered by the mobile app, group all your social media apps into a folder, and move that folder to the last page on your phone or tablet.

Increasing the time and effort it takes for you to access for your social media accounts helps to create awareness around your actions.

4. Create separate pages for different purposes:-

I have three different kinds of social media profiles. One I reserve for personal use; this is private profile I use to keep up with friends, follow celebrities just for fun, and access my favorite blogs on any topic under the sun. The other two profiles are public: one I use for business purposes, and the other is dedicated to art.

Having different focuses for each of your profiles gives you a direction for your social media use. Instead of using three different profiles to keep tabs on your friends and share photos of yourself, dedicate one or two profiles to your professional or personal growth.

If you’re like me, you may spend a considerable amount of time perusing social media pages each week. Turn this time into an opportunity for personal growth by practicing social media habits that nurture your interests and promote positive connectivity.

By : Jessica Vick

*(She teaches Art History at Full Sail University)*