Terre Pruitt's Blog

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Glancing At Two Gastrointestinal Disorders

Posted by terrepruitt on November 7, 2013

As you know I am a Nia teacher not a doctor nor a medical professional, but I would like to share some things with you because it seems the situation is becoming more and more prevalent in the population. I thought I would point out a few things so we can learn the difference and try to keep it straight. I am talking about gut problems. Stomach, intestines, and colon issues. I talk to more and more people who are having issues. You might even be aware of the fact that my cat has an issue. Now, I am not going to get into what might be the cause of the issues because that is very complex and I think it relates to the individual. Plus you probably already know that I believe much of our food “stuff” is partially responsible for ALL of our health issues. This post though is just to help shed some light on the terms and letters you might be hearing. Specifically, IBS and IBD! What do those letters stand for: IBS is Irritable Bowel Syndrome and IBD is Inflammatory Bowel Disease. They are not the same thing. And I don’t think you want one over the other. They are just something no one wants.

Keep in mind I am just sharing what I have gleaned off the internet, so yes, the information could be faulty, but you might agree it makes sense. Also, keep in mind that this post, nor anything you read on the internet–including my blog–should not be used to diagnose a situation. Go to a medical professional for that. This article just might help you learn somethings that will allow you to ask the right questions or perhaps point you in the right direction to get a diagnosis (from a professional) and work on the treatment you need.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome/IBS and Inflammatory Bowel Disease/IBD are gastrointestinal disorders. The symptoms might present the same, but they are not the same . . . although some people think that you can have IBS if you have IBD. With IBS the doctor might not see anything wrong. The bowels appear normal, but they are not functioning normal and more than likely are causing pain and discomfort. With IBD, the intestines do not appear normal they are inflamed and do not function as they should. With IBD the entire digestive tract could be affected by inflammation.

IBS is considered a “functional disorder”, things look fine, but don’t operate fine. With IBD there is damage and the damage keeps the body from absorbing the necessary nutrients. A little like a gluten intolerance might cause pain and discomfort and Celiacs Disease keeps the body from getting what it needs from food. IBD is an autoimmune disease, where the body’s immune system is on overdrive and ends up doing damage to the very thing (the body) it is supposed to protect.

The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America’s website states researchers are leaning away from the idea that stress CAUSES IBS, they now believe it has to do with a “disturbance in the way the brain and the gut interact”. They think the nerve endings in the gut are overly sensitive and the controlling nerves are over active.

The cause of IBD is unknown.

Both disorders have digestive issues associated with them, and both can also have additional health issues arise in connection with the disorder. There you have it, a really quick glance at the main difference between Irritable Bowel Syndrome/IBS and Inflammatory Bowel Disease/IBD. Both have similar symptoms, but IBS does not have inflammation and show signs of damage, whereas the digestive tract with IBD is does.

What do you have to share about IBS/IBD?

Posted in Misc | Tagged: "functional disorder", autoimmune disease, Celiacs Disease, colon issues, doctor, Gastrointestinal Disorders, gluten intolerance, IBD, IBS, immune system, Inflammation, inflammatory bowel disease, intestines, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, medical professional, stomach, The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America | 2 Comments »

Practicing Beyond Your Comfort Zone

Posted by terrepruitt on November 5, 2013

Nia is a cardio dance workout. Come to a class, dance, sweat, get a workout. Nia is also a practice, like yoga is a practice. Just like yoga you can go to a class, participate, and get a good workout in and go home. Or you can take some of the ideas and principles with you into your daily life. If you chose, you can decide to apply some of the body mind “stuff” to your daily life. All up to you. Now the reason I explain all that is because – keeping in mind that Nia is a practice (for those that want to take it that far) – there are a lot of things to, well, practice. And Nia HQ is great about creating and supplying continue education for its members. Also, it is great about writing articles to help people learn more about the practice of Nia. One such article that was recently posted is Move Beyond Your Comfort Zone.

It talks about how each individual has different comfort zones so that “moving beyond” would be something different to each individual. It reminds us that moving beyond the place where we feel comfortable is “the best thing to keep the body and brain strong”. It shares a story and gives examples of comfort zones. I do hope you click the link above and pop over to NiaNow to read it.

Here I am going to share other ways that Nia helps us do “the best thing to keep the body and brain strong” by helping us out of our comfort zone. One way is dancing to music we don’t like. I know . . . I can hear a lot of people say, “But WHY?” Well, that is part of moving out of our comfort zone. There seems to be some beats that just call to everyone. That one song that is popular on the radio that gets everyone’s foot tapping and head bobbing. Those songs are easy to dance to. The universal dance song. But the songs that come on that you might find yourself reaching for that tuning knob are great songs to step out of the comfort zone to dance to. They are the ones that your regular, normal, COMFORTABLE dance moves just might not fit with. The song that might have you using different muscles than you are used to. The song that might have you moving in an entirely different way . . . . away and out of your comfort zone. That is one reason why that Nia routine might have one of THOSE songs in it.

Then there is the song you just love. The second it begins to play in class you are so ready to just sink into it, then your teacher says to move in a way that is in COMPLETE contradiction to the tone of the song. “WHAT? You want me to do a strong block to this sweet, sweet melody?” Moving in a way that seems opposite from what the music is “telling” you can be WAY out of some people’s comfort zones. It is a great way to keep the body and brain strong.

Playing with emotions and acting “as if” can be beyond some comfort zones. Allowing yourself to just let go and dance without caring what you look like or if your “form” is perfect can be a big step away from some people’s comfort zones. In one of my posts recently, I wrote about “messing up” . . . . . that can be MILES away from some people’s comfort zones. Sounding can really be a big stretch for some individuals. Not everyone is used to making noises while they workout.

These are just a few examples of what we do in Nia classes to help us step out of our comfort zones. As stated, the reason is to work the brain as well as the body. Moving out of our comfort zone helps mix it up. Keeps the body and brain moving in different ways. So the next time you feel resistance, let go and know you are doing something good for your body and brain.

Are you ready to step out of your comfort zone?

Posted in Nia | Tagged: cardio dance workout, cardio workout, comfort zone, Mind-body practice, mind-body workout, Move Beyond Your Comfort Zone, Nia, Nia class, Nia HQ, Nia Practice, Nia principles, Nia routine, sounding, Yoga, Yoga class, Yoga Practice | 6 Comments »

Really Easy Pizza

Posted by terrepruitt on November 2, 2013

I have always wanted to make “pizza” using eggplant. But I usually don’t have tomato sauce. The eggplant “pizza” I have always wanted to make is using a slice of eggplant as the “crust”. Not putting eggplant ON the pizza, nor making the crust with flour and eggplant. Just a slice of eggplant as the “crust”. You might be familiar with me not really liking tomatoes. That lends to me not really liking tomato sauce. When we have pasta we don’t normally have tomato sauce. Although lately I have been buying some. Yes, the jarred kinds. I know it is silly to buy the jar kind when it is so easy to make, but since I don’t really like it, it is one of those things that I don’t bother making. If I can buy an organic jar of tomato sauce for a quick dinner every once in a while I do. Well, the last time I used it I made the My First Tomato Sauce Lasagna. I didn’t use the whole jar. Recently I bought an eggplant and it was HUGE. Normally I slice them in half and roast them, but this one was huge, but I was really looking forward to the roasted kind, so I didn’t want to make pizza out of it all. So I sliced it in thirds lengthwise. Planning to use the middle slice for the pizza crust. I finally had eggplant pizza!

I roasted it first. Then I piled on my toppings. I realized I needed to roast it longer. The eggplant got VERY soggy after all of the toppings were on it. If you REALLY like eggplant it is no big deal. I am not sure if the eggplant pizza would ever be a pick-up-and-eat-it-like-regular-pizza type of pizza, but it was really good.

____________________________

Eggplant Pizza

One large eggplant, sliced in either rounds or length-wise (about 1/2 inch thick)
olive oil
salt
your favorite pizza/tomato sauce
your favorite pizza toppings

Sprinkle oil on the eggplant and roast at 400° F for about 20 minutes . . . depends on the size of your eggplant and how thick you cut it. After 20 minutes flip it over sprinkle with oil and salt. Cook for another 15 or 20 minutes. Check it and decide how cooked you want it.

Then top with your favorite pizza/tomato sauce and your favorite pizza toppings. Bake it until your cheese is melted.

______________________________________________________

Mine had tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and sautéed mushrooms. It was sooooo good. Mushrooms are my favorite pizza topping. When I make pizza, it is usually just with mushrooms. I prefer to cook the mushrooms first — no matter what crust I am using — to get out most of the moisture and ensure that they are cooked when I eat my pizza.

Anyway . . . this was very good. So good I made it again but this time I sliced the eggplant in rounds. I used the same toppings. This second time the eggplant was a little less soggy, but it was still not something you could pick up like a regular piece of pizza.

I roasted the slices for about 20 minutes on each side. The eggplant adds a nice flavor to the pizza toppings I used (tomato sauce, cheese, and mushrooms). And as long as your sauce and your toppings are gluten free this is a great pizza to have for those who are avoiding it!

What about you? Have you ever wanted to try eggplant as your pizza crust? Have you ever tried eggplant as your pizza crust?

Posted in "Recipes", Food | Tagged: aubergine, aubergine pizza, Eggplant pizza, gluten free, mushrooms, pizza crust made of eggplant, quick and easy pizza, roasted eggplant | 4 Comments »

Goodie Jar – Check In #36

Posted by terrepruitt on November 1, 2013

Ooooo! Only TWO months left to fill up the Goodie Jar. It is never to late to note the good things so if you haven’t started yet, why not start NOW!?!?! I have a few good things to put into my jar today.

I had a fabulous conversation with a potential Nia student. I talk to a lot of potential participants, some actually do end up attending one of my Nia classes and some do not, but I have always had wonderful conversations. While I would love to have everyone I talk to come to one of my Nia classes and I would love to meet them, I still feel fortunate to have been able to talk to them on the phone. I love sharing about Nia and listening to their stories. So many are inspirational.

Also, I received a wonderful e-mail. The subject alone made me so happy. (“Nia rocks my world!”) How could it not? The rest of the e-mail made my face hurt (from SMILING)!!!!!!! I loved it so much, I printed it out and it is going in the goodie jar!

And, as some of you may know, our cat has Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) which is a chronic condition. Basically it means that the intestines are not working properly so the body does not absorb the required nutrients. When the body does not absorb what it needs it does not function the way it should. And when the intestines are not healthy there are other issues. So it is a matter of controlling symptoms and getting the body to a comfortable and a close-to-normal state as possible. It has been about three months since we started treating this and today is a good day. I think – as with many things – there will be days where she doesn’t feel as good as others. I think that is just the way it will be. But today we are half-way through our fifth day without vomit. When I wrote my post Spot Update we were almost up to a three day vomit-free period, but that was as long as we got. Now we are on our fifth day. That is really huge. Even if she throws up now we still made it almost FIVE DAYS! I am sure she is as happy about it as I am! To me four and half days vomit free is a darn good thing. See there really is no rule as to what you can put in your jar. THIS is a good thing for me. THIS makes me happy.

When I read about it on December 31, 2013, I will be happy.

What are you putting in your goodie jar? Any good things happen yesterday on Halloween?

Posted in Good Things in the Goodie Jar | Tagged: chronic condition, chronic disease, chronic illness, good things, good things jar, Goodie Jar, Halloween, IBD, inflammatory bowel disease, Nia, Nia participant, Nia rocks, Nia student, Spot the cat, Spot Update | 2 Comments »

Regal Pose

Posted by terrepruitt on October 31, 2013

Sometimes in Nia we do yoga poses, I have yet to do the sphinx in a Nia class, but I do include it in the Gentle Yoga class I am teaching. I think of it as a nice gently backbend. I think of it as a regal pose. I think of it as a spine lengthener and a back strengthener. I like the Sphinx Pose.

Although, according to Wiki, the Sphinx is not nice:

“A sphinx is a mythical creature with, as a minimum, the body of a lion and a human head. In Greek tradition, it has the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face of a woman. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless. Those who cannot answer her riddle suffer a fate typical in such mythological stories . . . ”

Ha, I think I will stick with the idea of regal.

The Sphinx Pose is another prone pose, where you are lying on your belly. Your legs are together, touching, and straight out behind your body. Start face down, with your arms stretched out on the ground above you, as if you are reaching above your head. Before bending back, gently press your pelvis towards the earth, lengthening your tailbone towards your feet. As you lift your head and chest up off the ground, bring your arms back. Stop when your elbows are directly underneath your shoulders. Or you can bring your hands up by your ears and gently push up into the backbend. Adjusting your hands so that your elbows are directly under your shoulders. You are resting on your elbows and forearms, palms down, fingers together.

Continue to keep your legs together, while your toes are reaching toward the opposite wall/direction. Your back is active, while your arms are supportive. Reach with your chest somewhat upward and open. Your shoulders are back and your shoulder blades are pressing gently toward the earth.

Your gaze is forward and your posture is regal. You are strong and confident. Breathe into the pose. Hands, arms, neck, back, and legs are all active yet not tightly clenched.

(11/17/21: Click Picture The Great Sphinx for a picture.)

Stay for a few breaths or as long as your practice dictates. Release and lower to the floor, allowing your head to turn to the side. Rest your head on your hands and repeat as desired.

This is a nice gently backbend that can be the next backbend after learning the locust pose, if your practice is one in which you are progressing from a small backbend to a “bigger” backbend. These (the Locust Post and the Sphinx Pose) can be preludes to the Cobra and the Upward Facing Dog. Of course, this is a great pose to practice even if you are already doing the other backbends.

This pose is great to help strengthen the muscles in the back.

If necessary a rolled towel can be placed under your pubic bone in the shape of a U to provide cushion. The U would be “hugging the belly”.

Do you have backbends in your practice? Is sphinx one that you do? What backbends do you practice?

Some Benefits Of Doing Back Bends

Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: back strengthener, Cobra pose, gentle yoga, Greek tradition, mythical creature, Nia, Nia class, Nia Practice, regal pose, sphinx pose, spine lengthener, Upward Facing Dog, Wiki, Yoga class, Yoga Practice | Leave a Comment »

Brisket In A CrockPot

Posted by terrepruitt on October 29, 2013

I have a friend who buys a grass-fed cow for beef by offering portions to her friends. So my husband and I purchased a portion. The meat is really amazing. If you have read any of my meat posts you know that I prefer to douse my meat in marinades and seasonings. Well, with this beef I don’t do that normally because the grass-fed flavor of the meat is good. When I picked up my meat my friend gave me a few choices about some of the cuts. I know nothing about cuts of meat. I based my selection on this cut being one or two servings and that cut being three to four. Of course I chose the value. Plus a couple of the selections were new-to-me cuts. So I was excited at the prospect of learning how to cook different cuts of meat. Well, as I said, I was excited at the prospect. I haven’t had as much time since I picked up the meat. I have not spent time learning how to cook both the different cuts AND the way this meat cooks. So I have been cooking the ground beef — A LOT. I make burgers often. Used to be I couldn’t get my hubby to want to eat a burger that I handmade, now he LOVES them. The beef is spectacular! Anyway . . . I finally have to get to cooking the meat in my freezer so my first attempt — BRISKET.

On Facebook I asked my friend what to do and she said, “Brisket: crockpot, red wine, bay leaves, onions. Can add bell pepper, tomato sauce too. Cook. FYI: I say crockpot because I’m guessing you have one. I don’t use them, so I couldn’t fathom how much time. Brisket is one of my faves. Remember what I said: look up how to cook grass fed. Because this cow was so lean, look up veal. Not the same product, but the cooking is the same.”

I am really not a fan of brisket, unless my friend cooks it. I had one she made once and I was so amazed. But as she said, she doesn’t use a crock pot, but I did.

I don’t like cooked bell pepper that much so I nixed that idea and I am also not a fan of tomato sauce so I decided against that. What I did was I looked up crockpot brisket and found a bunch of recipes. I looked at the ingredients I liked from each one and decided I would put them together and see what I get.

Here is what I used. I actually thought to write it down BEFORE I prepared it.

_________________________________________________________

Crockpot Brisket

About 3 pounds of brisket
-4 or 5 cloves of garlic, minced
-1/2 cup brown sugar
-1 tsp salt
-1/8 tsp pepper   (1/4 tsp)
-1/2 tsp dry (powdered) mustard   (3/4 tsp)
-1/2 tsp cumin    (3/4 tsp)
-1/2 tsp thyme
-1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce (1 1/2 tbsp)

-3/4 of an onion, chopped
-1 tbsp of sherry
-1 bottle of beer
-1 cup water
-1 tsp Better than Bouillon

Mix all the dry ingredients including the Worcestershire sauce together in a bowl, then rub it on the meat. Cover all of the meat. Put some of the onions on the bottom of the pot. Place the meat in the pot on top of the onions. Put the rest of the onions on top of the meat. Then pour in the sherry, beer, and broth (I had mixed the water with the Better than Bouillon).

Sprinkle more cumin on top.

Set it on low and cook it for 5 hours. (I will cook it for less next time.)

_________________________________________________________

When I looked up brisket I saw times from 6 to 9 hours. So I had been planning on cooking it for 5 hours. But then I looked up veal and it said 7 to 9 hours. So I set one timer for 7 hours and another for 5. At 5 hours I checked on it and it seemed done so I turned off the crockpot. I will cook if for less next time because, as you know, it keeps cooking even after you turn off the heat. I will also remove the crock pot from the heat next time.

The meat actually came out moist and fine. But I would like it a little less cooked.

My husband loves meat, especially beef, so he loved it. He kept making yummy noises. And I actually observed him eat the meat except for one piece. Then he eat everything else then the last piece of his meat. He saved it for last. He wanted to savor the last bits. As I have said before, I am blessed because he likes pretty much anything, but he loved this.

The amounts in parenthesis are the amounts that I am going to use next time. I want a little more flavor. But I am happy with my first cooking of brisket. And now you know what? Yup, my favorite . . . . leftovers!

Are you a brisket fan? Do you have a brisket recipe? How do you cook brisket?

Posted in "Recipes", Food | Tagged: beef, better than bouillon, brisket, crockpot, crockpot veal, cumin, easy dinner, Facebook, grass-fed cow, hamburgers, Worcestershire Sauce | Leave a Comment »

Spot Update

Posted by terrepruitt on October 26, 2013

About three months ago I posted about putting my cat to sleep. We did not do that, but she seemed so sick I thought we were going to have to. Then when I took her to the vet he had a completely different opinion. He is accustomed to seeing cats with the disease our cat has. So he said she did not look as bad as he has seen. She had just lost so much weight it just seemed so unlikely that a cat could survive being so skinny. At one point she weighed over 12 pounds and at that point she was down to less than half that. At the time I wrote the post I just kept thinking we were faced with that decision. But we were not. We might still get to that point, but since then we have come a long way. The disease the cat has is not curable so it will be an on going situation, but hopefully she will live for AT LEAST a couple–few more years.

When I wrote that post everything coming out of the cat was liquid – and had been for over a month. And it lasted almost two months. Part of the liquid was her throwing up. She would eat then throw up, so she would stop eating the item that made her sick. I think that part of the problem (and you will probably agree) was that I would give her something else so she would eat something. I don’t think that changing her food that often was helping matters. But she was so thin my main goal was just to get her to eat.

The treatment for the disease she has (Inflammatory Bowel Disease) is steroids and a chemotherapy drug. Well, the steroid we were giving her made her retain so much fluid it affected her heart. So we stopped that. Now she is just getting the chemotherapy. It is a very small amount three times a week.

At this writing we are headed into our 37th hour without vomit. Yay! But she did that earlier this week, almost made it 48 hours. But that is still better than multiple times a day or even once a day. Maybe it will be that she will make it past the 48th hour then it will happen, but then maybe the next span will be even longer. That would be nice. But at least the other end hasn’t had any issues since August.

She was settled on one particular cat food, but then the pet store owner gave me a can of another type of food. When the cat hesitated at her dish, I thought, well, I’ll try this one he gave me because I liked the ingredients better. Well, she seemed to like it. And she seemed to like it more than what she has been eating for the past two months or so, so we made the switch. But this time we switched slowly and today was the first day she had the new stuff “straight”. I had been mixing the two. They are the same protein, just different brands with different ingredients. The new one has less ingredients (chemicals) than the other stuff so I am happy. The new one does not have “meal” in it and I think that is what was making her vomit. We will see.

Since IBD is where the body does not absorb all the necessary nutrients from the food, I am giving her Vitamin B12 shots. Normally a cat can produce it, but without all the nutrients needed to function properly I don’t think her body is able to produce it. So I am giving it to her. I have increased it from once a week to twice a week. It really seems to help.

The last visit (Thurs., October 24, 2013) to the doctor was good. Again, she is frighteningly skinny to my husband and I and she even lost a couple of ounces, but the vet was pleased with her progress. He said it seemed the heart problem cleared up . . . while there still might be an issue it is no longer the problem that he was hearing when she was on the steroid. Her latest blood work came back fine. They test it often to see how the chemotherapy is affecting the cat. He seemed happy with her. Again, he is used to seeing cats with IBD so he thinks she is fine. Yes she is skinny, but her blood work was fine, her coat is great, no temperature, her eyes are bright, and she is stronger than she was two months ago. Aside from being so skinny she is good. So we are staying the course and enjoying every minute we have left with her.

She is a very good cat. So we are doing our best to make her happy. Fat and happy would be AWESOME, but I’ll settle for happy.

Again, thanks for listening. I thought I would give you an update since I brought the situation up in August. She has days when she feels great and days when she feels not so great, but I believe for the most part she is good.

Do you have a pet?

Posted in Cats, Spot | Tagged: frighteningly skinny, IBD, inflammatory bowel disease, putting a pet to sleep, Spot Update, steroids and chemotherapy, venison meal, Vitamin B12 shots | 10 Comments »

Goodie Jar – Check In #35

Posted by terrepruitt on October 25, 2013

Ha, ha, ha. Seems like “The Fox” will not go away. Two weeks ago I posted a video of a “live” version Ylvis did on Late Night. Today I received word that some of my fellow Nia teachers are going to use the song in their Halloween Nia Routine. They even printed out the words so that people can sing along. I love it. So funny. I posted the words here: I Give Up, What Does The Fox Say?

I am still filling my Goodie Jar with good things. Remember this is a practice to help us recognize things that we might not stop to notice normally. Also it is something to help us remember the good things even when there are things that are not good happening. So . . . . really . . . . anyone can do it. It is not too late to start, if you have not already. There are two full months left of the year!

So . . . . how is your jar coming along?

Posted in Good Things in the Goodie Jar | Tagged: good things, Goodie Jar, Goodie Jar – Check In #35, Halloween, Late Night, Nia routine, Nia teachers, Practice, The Fox, Ylvis | 2 Comments »

Messing Up Is Fun

Posted by terrepruitt on October 24, 2013

After Nia class once a month we meet for a visit. We walk to a coffee house and get a beverage. Some of us have coffee, some of us have tea, some of us have nothing, but that is not the point. The point is that we visit. It took almost two years for me to learn one of my students is a Naturopathic Doctor. As the teacher, often times I am busy with “teacher/business” duties. I miss some of the interaction and conversations that my students have. It is so fabulous to see friendships formed and conversations happen. But I wanted to be in on some of the conversations and I wanted my students to be able to share with each other as a group. I love when I can make a connection . . . when one person can meet the needs or desires of another. So, so, so fulfilling. It is difficult to learn about people while dancing . . . so an after-class visit is just the thing. Students can share what they do and what is going on in their lives and we can get to know each other a bit off of the dance floor. Also, I learn a lot of other things about my students and what they like about Nia.

I was sharing with one of my students something about the moves. I was using a specific example and I said, “You know when I am talking about because you were giggling.” And she said, “I was giggling because I messed up.” She said after we did the move over and over and over she was still getting it wrong and so she was laughing. She said messing up is one of her favorite parts of Nia. I LOVE that. I love that she “gets” that part of Nia. Nia is not about doing it right. Nia is about moving. Nia understands that sometimes for so many reasons, you just don’t get it. It could be a move you can normally do in your sleep but for some reason at that moment it is escaping you. Instead of getting upset and frustrated with yourself and STOPPING, embrace the mistake and keep moving. Use the opportunity to do the move in a totally different way. If you are still able to move with the count, but the choreography is escaping you for the moment, move in a different way but with the same count. If you are able to do the movement, but it is the count that you are having issues with, vary your speed even MORE. Go faster or slower . . . what have you got to lose, not the count because you’ve already lost that! Just IN JOY it, be in joy. Have fun.

I love, love, love that my student loves messing up. She embraces so much that is Nia. She takes that as an opportunity to play. To “be a kid again” and just not care. You know how kids are — before they are taught differently — they just move and dance in their own way and they don’t care what opinion people have. Also in the messing up and going with it, it is a lesson in letting go . . . . letting go of judgment, letting go of feeling you have to be perfect, letting go of making your body do something it is clearly not doing well – at the moment. It is freeing to just move the best you can.

Now this is different from Nia Free Dance. I mean Free Dance is where we are purposefully dancing to stimulate movement creativity, not dancing in a choreographed way. Where we don’t think and we just move. This, when you just can’t get a move and give into NOT getting it, is you dancing what you are capable at the moment in the choreography. Get through it then join back in. I would think you would keep trying to do it or continue with the modification you made, but it is not free dance. It is more of a embrace-the-mess-up-and-have-fun kind of dance.

I was just very happy to hear that she was ok with messing up. She was ok with allowing herself the freedom to not be perfect. She was embracing and celebrating movement for Joy and not for moving exactly like the choreography. She was having fun. Awesome!

So do you enjoy messing up in a situation like an dance workout class? Can you laugh it off and keep going? Can you allow yourself to dance your way and get back on track when you are able? Can you see the difference between this and Free Dance?

Posted in Nia | Tagged: be a kid again, coffee house, coffee visit, Free Dance, Free Dance Nia choreography, freedance, letting go, Naturopathic Doctor, Nia choreography, Nia class, Nia connections, Nia Dance, Nia dancing, Nia fun, Nia schedule, Nia students, Nia Teacher, perfection, tea | 6 Comments »

Icky Name, Great Pose

Posted by terrepruitt on October 22, 2013

I really like the locust pose itself, I don’t care for the name. I think this pose is really nice because it is so easily modified so it fits well into the Gentle Yoga class I am teaching. Everyone can do it because there are so many versions of it. Since every body is so different and in different states of health and flexibility most yoga poses can be modified to accommodate. Some poses require props; straps, bolsters, blocks, etc. This one is really nice because of its simplicity. It is a prone posture, where you lie on your stomach, and it is considered a back bend. Locust pose or Salabhasana is the pose in which you lift your legs and chest up off the ground.

To do the Locust pose you lie on your stomach. Your arms are at your side, hands near your hips with the palms facing the ceiling. Forehead is on the floor allowing the back of your neck to lengthen. Your legs are hip joint width apart. Reach with your toes toward the opposite wall. Firm your thighs. Exhale as you lift your thighs off of the ground using your hamstrings and glutes. Your legs remain straight. There is no bend at the knees. Your pelvis and lower ribs are pressing into the earth.

At the same time you lift your legs you lift your head and chest off of the ground. Either looking down or up, with your chin parallel to the ground. Wherever it is comfortable for your gaze to rest be sure to keep the neck lengthened so as not to crush the back of the neck. Lift your arms off of the ground, keeping your palms toward the ceiling. Throughout the lift of your upper body and while you are lifted, you are keeping your shoulders back with your shoulder blades down – toward your hips. There is space between your shoulders and your ears.

While up in this back bend you can turn your big toes toward each other, this will rotate the front of your thighs inward. The back of your legs are firm, muscles squeezing but not clenched, so that the back of the body is active but not cramping.

(11/08/21: Click Gate, Locust – Pictures May Help for a picture.)

Breathing into the active muscles will help keep them active yet relaxed. As you breathe imagine the oxygen traveling to the tense areas.

This pose is meant to be held. So hold the pose for as long as is comfortable. Then repeat as your routine allows.

There are many ways to modify this. You could just lift one leg at a time, keeping your forehead and arms on the ground. Or you could lift both of your legs, with your arms and forehead down. Or you could lift your chest, and let your arms and legs stay on the ground. Or you could lift just your arms. Or you could lift one arm and one leg, or you could, lift your legs and your chest and keep your arms on the ground. You probably see all the different ways it can be modified. The key is to find the area of your body that is the most difficult to lift and focus on learning to lift that area. Then once you master the difficult area you will be able to add it to the easiest one and progress from there into the back bend.

Another way to modify this which can be in addition to the aforementioned modifications is to place a folded towel or blanket under your pelvis and/or ribs.

Remember whether you do the full pose (as described here) or any modification of it, your spine is lengthening and you are keeping your shoulders back and down towards your hips throughout the entire pose. To help with keeping your shoulders back and down, imagine opening your chest as you lift it off of the earth.

This pose helps strengthen the muscles along the backside of the body including the triceps, lats, glutes, and hamstrings.

Do you like this pose? Do you include this pose in your practice?

Some Benefits Of Doing Back Bends

Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: backbend, bolsters, gentle yoga, locust pose, modified yoga pose, prone pose, Salabhasana, Yoga Pose, yoga pose props, Yoga Practice | Leave a Comment »

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Terre Pruitt's Blog

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I teach yoga, Nia, and stretch online!

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