Nessa likes to sit in dresser drawers. She’ll sleep in there and leave when she is done. A Dresser Drawer Cat for today’s Friday Photo.
Dresser Drawer Cat
Posted by terrepruitt on July 5, 2024
Posted in Cats, Friday Photo, Teagan and Nessa | Tagged: Dresser Drawer Cat, dresser drawers, Friday Photo, Nessa | Leave a Comment »
Another Stretch For EVERY DAY!
Posted by terrepruitt on July 1, 2024
Here is another stretch you can do every day. I am just throwing these out here because, as I mentioned previously, people are ALWAYS telling me they need to stretch more. But I think they think they need to make time to stretch and while I think they do, taking time out of your day to stretch is great, I think stretching EVERY DAY is more important. Stretching is like sleeping, you can’t do it all at once . . . it is something that our body needs daily. So . . . these posts are just quick reminders. They are NOT detailed instructions, they don’t have a lot of notes on variations, they are not addressing injuries and limitations, so remember to do what your body can do. I am just trying to point out that you can stretch EVERY DAY!
This one is another floor stretch and can be done while putting on lotion, brushing your teeth, chatting on the phone, or watching TV, etc.
A stretch is most effective when done for at least 30 seconds. So you don’t even had to sit in it for that long.
This one has a lot of names (as most stretches do) I am going to call it Butterfly. Sit tall and put the soles of your feet together. Let your knees fall out. Bring your feet as close to your middle as you like.
As an example, I am brushing my teeth.
See, easy-peasey. C’mon, this is so simple you can do it every day. The thing is, it may NOT actually be easy for some because of stiffness or limitations. Be gentle and do what you can. But do it every day!
Now you have four stretches you can easily add to your routine EVERY DAY! You don’t even have to do all three every day, but do at least one EVERY DAY!
Calf Stretch
Standing Forward Fold
Seated Wide Angle Stretch Over Leg
and this one (Butterfly)
Edit (03.12.25): More information about this stretch(/asana) can be found at Butterfly, Baddha Konasana, Bound Angle
Posted in Misc, stretching | Tagged: 30 seconds, brushing teeth, butterfly, every day stretch, stretch every day, stretching | Leave a Comment »
More Of The Smile In A Vase
Posted by terrepruitt on June 28, 2024
These flowers were Smile flowers. They were sent to make me smile and they did. And they STILL do. I have the pictures in a folder on my desktop and when I see it it makes me smile so I thought I would post one more picture of them for my Friday Photo. Since they did such a good, repetitive job of making me smile.
Posted in Friday Photo | Tagged: Friday Photo, good friends, Multi-colored roses, Roses, smile flowers | Leave a Comment »
No Excuse Not To Stretch EVERY DAY!
Posted by terrepruitt on June 24, 2024
Ok, so I missed posting one Monday to start you off for the week, but you still had two stretches you could be doing EVERY DAY while you brush your teeth. Here is one you can do while you put on lotion, brush your teeth, chat on the phone, or watch TV. Remember, while taking time out of your day to stretch is great, it also may be the thing that is keeping you from doing it. Just stretch. You can stretch while doing other things so that you can ensure you get a bit of stretching in EVERY DAY.
Keep in mind while you are doing one thing (put on lotion, brush your teeth, chat on the phone, or watch TV, etc.) you are also being safe and careful while you add in the stretch.
With this stretch we are getting down on the floor.
This is a wide angle or wide legged stretch, I’m gonna call it Seated Wide Angle Stretch Over Leg. Sit on the floor with legs spread in a wide angle and then turn your torso to face over one leg and stretch over the leg. If you are putting lotion on you can make that part of the stretch. Can you reach your toes/foot/ankle/shin to apply the lotion? If you need to you can soften/bend your knee, but if you do this stretch every day you will probably be able to straighten your leg eventually.
In this stretch you will be stretching your hamstrings, lower back, and maybe a bit of your side body. Remember, this may be a little uncomfortable at first . . . depending how tight your muscles are. Don’t stretch into “OW!” pain. Be careful. You can start small and see how it goes as you do it EVERY DAY!
Remember to do both sides.
Remember this is just a quick reminder of how and when you can get stretching in EVERY DAY!
Now you have three stretches you can easily add to your routine EVERY DAY! You don’t even have to do all three every day, but do at least one EVERY DAY!
Calf Stretch
Standing Forward Fold
and this one (Seated Wide Angle Stretch Over Leg)
What do you do EVERY DAY that you can add a stretch to?
Posted in Misc, stretching | Tagged: EVERY DAY, every day stretch, Hamstrings, Seated Wide Angle Stretch Over Leg, stretch and do something else, stretch every day, wide angle stretch | Leave a Comment »
Can You Tell?
Posted by terrepruitt on June 21, 2024
I am sure you can tell I love our yard roses and our cats. My Friday Photos are full of both. Here’s to the weekend!
Posted in Friday Photo | Tagged: Cats, Friday Photo, May Flowers, orange roses, yard roses | 2 Comments »
You CAN Stretch EVERY DAY
Posted by terrepruitt on June 10, 2024
So, have you been stretching every day? Maybe three out of seven days? Well, don’t forget if you didn’t you still can. So start now. Last week we talked about a simple calf stretch. I am not going into a lot of detail because I am wanting to get you stretching not stuck reading. You can keep with the calf stretch while you brush your teeth or you can move that to when you are waiting for your meal to heat up and you can do a forward fold while brushing your teeth.
Don’t-want-to-read-it-all summary:
—Goal is to stretch not fold all the way over
—Forward Fold*
—Notes variation
The forward fold will stretch the low back and back of your legs. Remember the goal is not to touch the ground, if you can great, but if not, don’t get frustrated. The goal is to sense a stretch in your low back and back of the legs.
*Forward Fold stand with feet shoulder width apart. Keep your legs straight and move from the hip joint. Hinge forward keeping your spine in neutral. Only go as far over as you can before you start bending your legs and rounding your spine. Also, don’t choke on your toothpaste.
So there are a lot of different ways to do a forward fold, some include rounding the spine, some include bending the knees, some may have feet together, some may have feet further apart (like in the photo), some may include hands on legs, some may include hands on floor, some may include hands on props. We are keeping it simple. We are here for a stretch. It’s simple so that you can do it while you are doing something else. If you are setting time aside for stretching – which is great, do that! – then there are a lot of things to think about, but I am just trying to get people to add a stretch into their everyday life so simple is the key.
Ok, add this to your daily routine.
Posted in Misc, stretching | Tagged: brushing teeth, every day stretch, forward fold stretch, neutral spine, straight legs, stretch back of legs, stretch every day, stretch low back | Leave a Comment »
Teagan In Tissue
Posted by terrepruitt on June 7, 2024
A long time ago my hubby put tissue paper in a room for a birthday surprise and the cats like to play in it. Here is Teagan in 2018 in the tissue paper for today’s Friday Photo.
Posted in Cats, Friday Photo, Teagan and Nessa | Tagged: Birthday 2018, black cat, Friday Photo, Teagan, tissue paper | 4 Comments »
Stretching EVERY DAY
Posted by terrepruitt on June 3, 2024
Sometimes life is strange. You know when you are thinking about a friend and they call. Or you think about having BBQ for dinner and your spouse says, “Hey, I feel like BBQ.” Or you are thinking that you want to do a blog post about stretching every day and that same day one of your students says, “I need to stretch more.”
Don’t-want-to-read-it-all summary:
—Need to stretch every day
—You can do it while you brush your teeth or scroll on the phone
—Stretching may be uncomfortable, but NOT painful
—First stretch: calf stretch (see * below), do both sides
I stretch every day. I think it is very important. Modern society is primarily set up so that we sit a lot and we have our bodies in a set position for a long time so things (muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc.) can get tight and short. We need to stretch every day. Most people will agree but then say they don’t have time. Not having time is a very valid reason, but not a good one. I think that stretching every day for a few minutes is better than stretching for a long time every so often.
There are many stretches that can be done WHILE doing something else. And by “something else” I mean, brushing your teeth, talking on the phone, texting, watching TV, putting on lotion, something you do EVERY DAY. You can incorporate a stretch or two into your everyday routine.
If you think to yourself, “I can’t stretch because I am too tight.” Stop. A stretch is a stretch. If you can’t touch your toes, but you try you are getting a stretch, the point of stretching ISN’T to touch your toes, it is to stretch your body. There could be any number of reason why you may NEVER be able to touch your toes but since that is not the goal, it doesn’t matter. The goal is to stretch.
As a reminder stretching may be uncomfortable, but not painful. Know the difference. It is like a whine compared to an EXCLAMATION (OW!).
We are going to start with a super simple one. Simple may not mean easy for you, but in this case it means you don’t have to get down and then up. You can do it while you are brushing your teeth. I am going to go with the idea that teeth brushing is something done every day so this stretch can be done every day.
This is a simple calf stretch. *You take a step back keeping the back leg straight with the toes facing the same way as your hips, chest, and shoulders. Bend into the front leg’s knee. Keep your stance wide enough – at least shoulder width – apart so you have balance. Press the heel of the back leg into the ground, straighten that leg as much as you can and hopefully you will sense the stretch in your calf. You may not be stepping FAR back and that is fine, just step far enough that you can sense the stretch in your calf of that back leg. You can brush the same side of your teeth as the back leg and when you are ready to switch, you can switch. You can do this at least once a day!
Posted in Misc, stretching | Tagged: brushing teeth, calf stretch, every day stretch, life is strange, stretching, stretching every day, tight muscles, touching toes | 2 Comments »
My View
Posted by terrepruitt on May 31, 2024
This is my view when I do Legs-Up-the-Wall(/Viparita Karani). I love the sparkly butterfly.
Do you ever do this pose?
Posted in Friday Photo | Tagged: asana, Friday Photo, Legs Up the Wall, ornament, sparkly butterfly, Viparita Karani, wall, Yoga Pose | 2 Comments »
May Rose
Posted by terrepruitt on May 24, 2024
Oh, I just love our roses. I like to share, plus have them here so they “last” longer. This is another yard rose for my Friday Photo. This is a May flower (from 05/01/24) .
Posted in Friday Photo | Tagged: flower, Friday Photo, lovely color, May flower, pretty rose, yard rose | 6 Comments »
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