Archive for March, 2013
Posted by terrepruitt on March 12, 2013
Let’s do a little form check on our planks. We are doing our month of daily planks (and beyond?) on our elbows/forearms. Let’s review how we are doing them.
–Rest on elbows and forearms
–Upper arm bones come straight down, so elbows should be directly under the shoulders
–Elbows are shoulder width apart, elbows are directly under the shoulders
–Shoulder blades are pulled down (putting them in your back pockets)
–Face is facing down, eyes looking at the earth (assisting with proper head alignment)
–Head is in line with shoulders, hips, knees, and feet
–The entire spine is straight
–Hips are not bowing up or sagging down (part of the “alignment” is that they are doing neither)
–Muscles are squeezing and active; abdominals, glutes, qudriceps
–Rest on the toes, heels off the ground
–Feet are in open stance, which is hip JOINT width apart*
*As with many exercises there are variations and modifications, but for this plank challenge we are keeping our feet in open stance. (For an “open stance” reminder, click here) With the feet in open stance it encourages the hips to stay in alignment. Also in open stance your bones are in alignment with your joints.
Try doing the plank with your feet apart (like in “A” stance) and you might notice how much “easier” it is for the hips to start to sag down.
If you are still learning and really want to focus on form, doing the plank on your knees is always another option. If you are doing the plank on your knees the stance is the same. The knees are straight out from your hip joints just as if you were standing in open stance. Your feet are also in “open stance”.
Be very conscious of your arm bones. You want to make certain they are perpendicular to the floor. Don’t allow your toes to push you forward. Check to see that your shoulders are directly over your elbows. An idea that might help with this is to press back with your heels. Your heels are in the air but imagine the bottoms of your heels are reaching out to press against something. This also helps with activating your thigh muscles, while on your toes. If you are doing the modified plank on your knees you can still press with your heels you just would not be using your thigh muscles to help.
As with all exercise remember to breathe. How you breathe is up to you, if panting helps you, then pant, if slow inhales and fast exhales help you, then do that. Breathe however it is best for you, but don’t hold your breath. Your muscles need oxygen so give it to them.
Remember to keep your form every time and through out the duration of your plank. If your form starts to “suffer” then stop. No use doing a minute of “planking” if your bum is high in the air or your hips are on the ground. Let’s make sure we are doing quality over quantity. So every time you plank, review your form!
Do you have any questions? Is this clear for you?
Posted in Exercise and Working Out, Planking | Tagged: A Stance, abdominal muscles, glutes, hip joints, month of planks, open stance, plank, plank challenge, plank modifications, plank variations, planking, Quadriceps, thigh muscles | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 12, 2013
So how are you doing? I just mean in general? This is the week where we might actually feel like we lost an hour of time. I actually think I feel it the second week after . . . . but I have a different schedule than many. The time might have changed, but keep up your planking!
Remember to check your form!
How are you feeling about your planking challenge?
Posted in Planking | Tagged: plank a day challenge, plank challenge, plank form, time change | 3 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 11, 2013
Plank day number eleven. So here we are on our eleventh day of planking. Might be a difficult day to do anything because of that oh-so-precious hour we lost on Sunday. So sad. Not only do we lose an hour, but I believe our body just gets messed up having to adjust to everything being an hour off. I know it messes with my cat’s schedule.
Animals don’t look at clocks they have a rhythm and when we are forced to change the time it messes up their rhythm. Well, hopefully you can keep your plank going . . . . . .
How are you doing? Have you added more time?
Posted in Planking | Tagged: day eleven of planking, plank a day, plank challenge, time change | 3 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 10, 2013
So, it is Sunday and we are on day ten of our month of planking challenge. Even though it is only seconds out of our day, it is not always easy to fit it in. That just amazes me. Some of us find we have to do it first thing so we can be sure to do it. Whenever you do it is great, as long as you are doing it.
So the title? What is that about, right? Well, as I said, today is our tenth day of planking and today marks eighteen years that have I have known my hubby. Cool, huh? I think so.
We met eighteen years ago today in a bar. Yup, that’s right, we met the old fashion way in a bar, on a dance floor. The bar was in San Jose and it is no longer there. But the name was sold and moved to Fremont. So The Saddle Rack is still around, it is just not the same bar.
Both planking and relationships take practice. 🙂 Something you have to work at everyday!
How is your planking going? Are you adding time today?
Posted in Planking | Tagged: bar, dance floor, eighteenth year anniversary, planking, planking challenge, San Jose bar, The Saddle Rack, The Saddle Rack Fremont, The Saddle Rack San Jose | 3 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 9, 2013
Have you seen t
his simple flow chart? What do you think? Do you think it is this easy? I first saw this awhile ago on FaceBook when a Nia friend posted this picture on her page. I googled it to find out where it came from. I found this to be the creative work of Alex Kopblin. You too might have seen this poster because it seems to get around. It makes sense. Are you happy? If not do something about it right? Sometimes that is easy. Sometimes it is not. Are you happy? To me this is a huge defining life question.
I know that many of us have things in our lives that can make us sad. We could all probably sit down and focus on those things and become sad, if not downright depressed. I believe that is what some people do. I also believe that the people who are happy choose not to do that. It is not that their lives are perfect and they have nothing to feel sad about, it is that they choose not to focus on that. So this flow chart graphic could just be a reminder not to focus on those things. It could also be a reminder to actually make some changes.
This easy to follow chart could just be a reminder to do something that makes you happy. The “thing” does not have to be time consuming, costly, or difficult, just something that makes you smile. Maybe take a walk at lunch. Maybe stop to smell a flower. Maybe go to the ocean. Maybe get all the errands done that you had planned. Whatever . . . . just do SOMETHING that makes you happy, something that fills you with joy and that is a step in a good direction. Those feelings can carry you to the next place.
If you can, if you have the opportunity . . . . if you MAKE the chance do something like that EVERY DAY! If you do just one thing that makes you happy EVERY DAY that can help a lot on the path to happiness.
Please try to realize that if you are happy that does not mean that you are not affected by the things that are going on in your life. There could be situations that are difficult and sad. Maybe you think that being happy is something you shouldn’t do. Maybe you feel guilty because someone else is suffering. I don’t think you should. I also don’t think that someone has to be happy and up all the time. I know that we all have moments and situations that can be sad. This is just me trying to remind you to take sometime for yourself and do something that makes you happy. I like this poster and I believe it, I just also believe that sometimes the “change something” can be a difficult thing to do. So maybe what I am trying to say is start small. Work your way into “happy” if you need to.
Are you happy? Is there something you like to do that makes you happy? Can you do it?
Posted in Misc | Tagged: Alex Kopblin, Are you happy, choose to be happy, Facebook, happy flow chart, happy is a choice, happy poster, happy things, Nia, Nia friend, Nia on Facebook | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 9, 2013
Saturday and our ninth day of planking. The nice thing about this challenge is even if it is your “rest” day in your workout schedule you can still get in some planking time!
I have another idea on how to time yourself. Once you feel you have good form, your body is aligned properly, you can use a stopwatch type of timer. I have one on my iPhone. I would imagine other phones have something like it. I know there are a lot of apps for timers. Get into your plank position and then press start on the timer. Check your form, get comfortable, settle in and then look at your timer. I bet by the time you look at the stopwatch you will have already done the time you think you can do. Then if you want you can hold it for a few seconds more.
This is a way for you to find out how long you really can do it. Then you can add accordingly.
Also remember there might be days where the duration is less than normal. It is ok to have a day that is a bit off. Just get back to it the next day!
Whatever way you choose to time yourself is great. This is just another way to do it!
How is your planking going?
Posted in Planking | Tagged: app timers, iphone, month of planking, plank, planking, planking challenge, planking time, stopwatch, workout, workout schedule | 5 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 8, 2013
Recently my husband took a couple of days off of work. It is good to take some days off to just relax, I think. It great to take days off when you have something planned, but sometimes it does the body, mind, and spirit REAL good when you just take the day off with no plans. Just sit around and relax or work on a project.
Well, on one of the days he had off he decided to attend one of my Nia classes. I was so excited. It was great to have my hubby there. For a moment I thought I would be nervous, but then I realized that he would be fine and I would just be doing what I always do. And that is what we did. He moved, I led, and we went out to breakfast after.
The whole morning was such a wonderful treat to me. It definitely is in a Good Thing worthy of my Goodie Jar!
How is your good things jar doing?
Posted in Good Things in the Goodie Jar | Tagged: body, days off work, Good Thing jar, Goodie Jar, mind, Nia, Nia class, relax, spirit | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 8, 2013
So, even though we eventually want to add time to the duration of our plank, we also want to make certain that our plank is “good”. So before you add on some time, make certain that you are in proper form. As I mentioned before, a mirror would be helpful. If you don’t have a mirror maybe you have a camera with a timer and you can set it up to take a picture of you while you are planking so you can see the position of your body. Or if you have an iPad you can set it up so the camera is on you while you are looking at the display. Or if you have someone that can take a picture for you, do that. I would strongly recommend YOU looking at you as opposed to you asking someone, “Hey, how do I look?” or “Am I in alignment?” When you ask someone they might not really know what you mean by “straight” or “in alignment” so they might say yes and you aren’t. Or, they might say no but you really believe you are so you don’t really think they know what they are talking about. Or a hundred other possibilities.
I am not sure if I’ve shared this before, but once I was working with a trainer and she told me to bring my foot straight back. And I did. I did the exercise again and she told me to try to bring my foot straight back next time. So I did the exercise again, and she said, bring your foot straight back. Every time I brought my foot back I THOUGHT I was going straight back. Finally I just asked her to move my foot to where “straight back” actually was. I stopped and sensed the difference and said, “Oh.” I was really off. But I didn’t realize it. I thought I was going straight back. So you might think you are in alignment so it really helps to be able to SEE for YOURSELF. That way you can also figure out how much of an adjustment you need. Maybe your hips are sagging so you need to move them up. Maybe your hips are too high. Whatever it is YOU can see with your own eyes and then use your body sense to adjust!
So . . . are you? Are you planking it? Are you planking it good?
Posted in Planking | Tagged: body in alignment, duration of the plank, plank, plank challenge, plank exercise, trainger | 3 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 7, 2013
At the present time I am fortunate enough to be holding Nia classes at four different locations in San Jose. Each location allows me to meet different people. At one of the locations I have been teaching for four years and some of my students have been coming to my classes that long. At three of my locations I am a new teacher and Nia is new. Most of the people are new to me. It is exciting to met new people and discover new relationships. There is the relationships between my students and me and there is the relationship between Nia and the students. One of my students told me after one class that she loved the part of Nia where we compare things to nature. The specific example she stated was “tickling the clouds”. She said that the mention of nature in Nia reminded her of one of her favorite poets, Mary Oliver. She asked me if I had heard of Mary Oliver or if I was familiar with her. I said no. I also said that I would look her up. Well, the following week, my student came into class and handed me a copy of two poems. As soon as she held out the paper, I remembered that I had said I would look up the poet and that I had forgotten. I gratefully took the paper without reading the poems because class was about to start. After our class there is another class so I did not stop at that time to read the poem either. It was not until today I picked up the paper to read the poem. On the second line I realized I HAD heard this before and I laughed. This very poem or at least a portion of it is in the Nia White Belt Manual.
I thought it was funny that my student related Mary Oliver’s work to Nia and obviously so did the creators of Nia, Debbie Rosas and Carlos Rosas, because they put this poem in the manual. Only the first few lines are in the manual, but I recognized it right away.
The lines are:
“You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves.”
From Mary Oliver’s Wild Geese poem.
That portion of the poem is at the very beginning of the section which is Principle #1, The Joy of Movement. The last line of that section really struck me.
I want to continue to share with my students that a Nia class is not just about learning the moves and doing a routine. It is about doing what the body loves. It is about their relationship to their body. It is about their relationship to Nia. To me that is why we do a routine over and over. That is also HOW we do a routine over and over and not get bored with it. If we move and let our body do what it loves then it is moving in a different way. Once we have done a routine a few times we can play. We can move lower . . . if that it what the body loves . . . we can move higher . . . if that is what a body loves . . . all the time moving in the general pattern of the routine. It is when we are not in tune or when we cannot let go, that the routine is tiring or boring. If we are only moving the way it was choreographed and not putting our spirit into the moves it is as if we are walking through a desert on our knees. Suffering through a workout. UGH! Repenting for the cream we had in our coffee, the workout we missed yesterday, or the cookie we had at lunch.
I used to do a different routine every class. I thought people would get bored with the same routine. But then I realized that the more I knew the music and the choreography the more fun I had and the more playful I could be. I asked my class and they said they liked the fact that after doing the routine a few times they, too, could be less concerned with the choreography and more aware of their own spirit, dance, and play. So it is a relationship with Nia and the body that we are building and experiencing in a Nia class, we are not just learning a routine, we are not just moving through choreography.
I have been thinking about this a lot lately as I work on a routine schedule, playing with it to see what works. I want to ensure my students don’t get bored, yet I want them to build a relationship with Nia. I want them to be able to dance and play with the routines.
I love that my student shared her thoughts with me. To me that is me being able to witness her budding relationship with Nia. I love that because of my thoughts about repeatedly doing a routine, I was able to look at this poem and relate it to that. Like many things I might look at it sometime from now and have it relate to something else. My relationship with it might change, just as my relationship with my students and with Nia will change and grow. That is the nature of it all.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: Carlos Rosas, Debbie Rosas, Joy of Movement, Mary Olive, Nature, Nia, Nia choreography, Nia classes in San Jose, Nia experience, Nia locations, Nia Music, Nia relationships, Nia routines, Nia San Jose, Nia students, Nia Teacher, Nia White Belt, poems, poets, Principle #1 of Nia White Belt, San Jose Nia classes, tickle the clouds, Wild Geese | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 7, 2013
Here we are day seven of our month of planking. Are you finding that your muscle endurance is greater now? Depending on how you are doing it, you might have two more days until you add time. I will be adding 10 seconds on Sunday. During the week I added five, so Sunday I am going to add 10.
I am also going to get my mirror out before I add time on to check myself.
How about you?
Posted in Planking | Tagged: month of planking, muscle endurance, plank, planking | 3 Comments »
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