Posted by terrepruitt on June 12, 2010
So I mentioned, in the old days we were taught to static stretch before exercise or working out. But research is showing that this is not really keeping people from getting injured and might actually do the opposite of what we used to think. It is not the best way to ready a muscle for a workout.
The best way is movement. Get the body moving. There are two types of warm-ups and many ways to do either. The first is just a full body warm up something like easy jumping jacks, or jumping rope, or jogging in place, or lunges. This gets the heart pumping, and the blood to the entire body. The other type is more exercise specific, say you were warming up before a golf game, then you would just mimic the movements you would do while you were playing golf but at a slower pace and a lower intensity level, and stretching the muscles in a dynamic stretch. If tennis is the exercise gently swinging the racket and/or hitting a few balls get the body ready for the task it is about to undertake. The dynamic stretch is where we are extending the muscle but gently as it moves, whereas a static stretch is stretching the muscle and holding it.
Whichever method you choose the idea is to gently warm up the body and the muscles. Movement is the best way to get the body ready to move. The practice of static stretching before a workout is being proven to do the opposite. It is stopping the body’s motion. Moving the entire body or concentrating on the muscles are about to work is now the preferred way to warm up before a workout.
In Nia classes we warm-up doing both methods to get the entire body warm. We might start the Nia workout using one body part – dynamically stretching – as we sense the music, but most often, by the time the first song is over we have warmed up the entire body; muscles, lungs, and heart. The blood is starting to move in preparation for the get moving portion of the workout. Nia also employs a bit of stretching in the cool down and floorplay to assist in giving the body a well rounded workout.
So where are you in the warm up arena? Do you participate in the latest idea for warming up? If you move to warm up what type do you do, the general or the exercise specific?
Posted in Exercise and Working Out | Tagged: best type of stretching before workout, floor play, jogging, Nia, Nia class, Nia exercise, Nia Movement, Nia workout, warm-up, Warming-up | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on June 10, 2010
When I was young the thing to do, what we were taught to do, before exercise was to stretch. Static stretching, moving into a position that stretches the muscle, then hold it for about 30 seconds. The idea was to stretch every muscle in the body, from the top to the bottom or the bottom to the top. This was considered a proper warm-up. This was the correct way to get our bodies ready for exercise. This we were told would prevent injury. Research and knowledge has changed that.
With advances in exercise technology and body knowledge, it is now a popular belief that this type of stretching, static stretching could actual harm the muscles or in the very least keep them from operating at their peak. Some researchers believe that stretching before exercise actually causes the muscle to contract and tire, therefore not perform as efficiently.
A study done by the University of Nevada found that athlete’s muscle strength was decreased by as much as 30%. If a muscles strength is decreased you are either going to be able to do less or injure yourself trying to do more than you muscle is able to do at the time.
So many of us have been taught to warm up this way for so long it is difficult for us to let go and to move on to the correct way to warm up. This type of stretching — static stretch — is best left for the purpose of improving flexibility (and strength in the case of asanas) and is best done after a workout (unless it IS your workout as in the case of a yoga). What type of warm up do you do? Do you stretch before or after a workout?
Posted in Exercise and Working Out, Misc, stretching | Tagged: asanas, exercises, improve flexibility, static stretching, strength, stretching before workout, workout, Yoga | 6 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on June 8, 2010
In Nia you are your own CPT. In some circles that stands for Certified Personal Trainer. In Nia it stands for Conscious Personal Trainer. You are responsible for your body, its movements, and its health.
If you were to hire me as your Personal Trainer you would complete a Health and Behavior Questionnaire. We would discuss it, along with your health concerns, and your goals. We would work together to create a fitness plan that would help you reach your goals. We would have one-on-one sessions so I could observe, coach, and assist you when necessary.
In a class setting there is no Questionnaire that we discuss. We have not discussed all of the things you want to address and the things you want to work on. We have not discussed your concerns at length. A class setting is different than a one-on-one personal training session. You know your history your goals and how you feel at that moment. It is up to you to set your pace and intensity level for that class.
It is up to you to be your own coach. Be aware of what is going on in your body so that you can make adjustments to your movements. It is up to you to do it in a non-judgmental way. You have all of the information: your fitness goals, your health history, your behavior history, how you feel that moment, you know your own energy level, and the status of your emotions. It is up to you to tune into all of that and to use it to receive the work you need at that moment. Move your body in a way that brings comfort.
Every day might be different, with each kata it could change as I have stated before when talking about the different (Intensity) Levels of Teaching, there are different levels of doing. As you move and you become more aware of how your body moves and what you sense as you move you will be able to tweak it so that you are able to move in comfort, but also reach the goals you have. You will become an experience conscious personal trainer.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: body awareness, certified personal trainer, Conscious Personal Trainer, fitness goals, Nia, Nia class, Nia katas | 6 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on June 5, 2010
I have a friend and it seems that one out of every three conversations we have we end up talking about cat poop. Now, for some that might seem odd, but let me point out, if you are a parent, there has been a time when you have talked about your baby’s diaper contents. I remember one conversation where I was subjected to size, shape, guestimated weight, and yes, above all color. So, parents talk about their baby’s waste. Since cats have odd behavior even when they are healthy and “normal” one of the primary ways to detect and keep track of the health of a cat is by their waste.
Things change for cats when there is an adjustment to their diet or whatever and my friend is in the middle of a food transition for her cats. It just follows that if you talk about what goes in, you end up on what comes out.
Now, I apologize if this is just too gross of a subject for you. This might not be “appropriate for a health and wellness blog” and it might not a pleasant topic, but the more I looked for information regarding it the more I realized that people at least need to know what the possibilities might be so that they can decide for themselves, so hence, I am posting about cat poop.
I knew that pregnant women should not be in charge of changing a litter box. The threat comes from handling the cats waste, but . . . just to be safe most women just avoid the process all together. For most women it is roughly just a nine month vacation from having litter box duty. But I bet, even though you have a new baby yet to be born to think about you probably are having conversations with the fill in litter-box-changer in regards to the cat habits. Making sure everything is normal (again . . . that is how we gauge the health of the cats.) Honestly it is not an examination, but somewhat of an unconscious review as we are scooping and cleaning.
Anyway, what I didn’t know is that you should NOT be flushing your cats poop. Even without the litter. So all of the stuff that says you can . . .INCLUDING the EPA information . . . you might want to think twice. Research is proving that the eggs from the Toxoplasma gondii that causes Toxoplasmosis might survive up to a year even after having gone through water treatment. This is the disease that can be fatal to infants and why pregnant women shouldn’t deal with the cat’s little box.
The eggs don’t die upon treatment and they get sent out to see where our sea life eats it. And while I don’t see that this has a direct affect on us as humans the fact that our otter population has gone from 15,000 to 2,500 and a large percentage of dead otters have been found with the parasite in them, just gives you another thing to think about. Since in the grand view of things it all affects us.
Not ALL cats even have this parasite. I was just surprised by the idea that flushing cats’ waste is not good since I had always thought that flush it was fine it was the LITTER that was the concern, but apparently not. As with a lot of things it could have just changed since the population of humans has grown so has to populations of house cat. Flushing is an easy way to dispose so more people might do it than have done it in the past and with all of the products that are out there that say it is fine, it is just interesting to know that it might be affecting our sea life. Of course putting it in a plastic bag and putting it in the garbage that goes to a landfill is not necessarily the best way to deal with it either, but it is the alternative that was have at the moment. Now at least you can have a little bit more information and make a choice.
So, since this is my blog, I like to share things I learn. The things I learn might not always DIRECTLY relate to health and fitness, but I have said, “In the realm of health, wellness, fitness, and the like, or whatever inspires me.” I guess you could say I was inspired.
Posted in Cats | Tagged: cat poop, EPA, fitness, health, inspired, litter box, otters, pregnant women, sea life, Toxoplasma gondii, Toxoplasmosis, wellness | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on June 3, 2010
Frozen vegetables can be just as nutritious, if not MORE nutritious, than the vegetables you buy in the produce section. Yup. You read that the right. It says that you might be getting more nutrients from frozen vegetables than “fresh” vegetables. IF you are able to buy your vegetables from a local farmers market, that is where you most likely will get the most nutrient rich vegetables. But be aware. In our area–in and around San Jose–we have farmers markets pretty much every day of the week during the summer and it depends on WHEN the farmer has come to the bay area and when they picked their veggies.
I know that we attended one local market (and we have not been back) that was on a Sunday. And the farmers claimed to have been in the area since Friday, and we saw them at a market on Saturday, and to tell you honestly it showed. They vegetables had to be picked before Friday for them to have come up to the Friday market (and they could have even come to the Thursday or Wednesday Farmers Market). It was the warm season and without refrigeration, the produce was very tired and wilted by Sunday. As I said, my hubby and I have not actually been back to that particular market because the produce was so unappealing. The idea of a farmers market is that you are getting FRESH produce, but when some farmers attend all the markets in the area they might not be that fresh. The items probably were picked at the proper time, but within days they start to lose nutrients and without refrigeration they start to rapidly decay.
With produce from the grocery stores it is often harvested before it even reaches its full nutrient potential, and then once it is picked it might ripen some more but it will not have the full nutrients as it would have had it been picked after it reached its peak. By the time produce travels to the stores and is ready for purchase it has lost a lot of its nutrient value.
The popular length of time I am seeing articles state is two weeks. Vegetables can be picked up to two weeks before it reaches the store. Then . . . it MIGHT not get put out for purchase right away (lets be generous and say it only sits for a day), then often times we buy it and it sits in the fridge for (lets be generous and say it sits for only two days). That is a long time in which the vegetable is losing nutrients. It might still LOOK pretty, but it is not a pack full of goodness as we might hope.
With vegetables that get frozen they are pick at the proper ripeness and blanched, frozen, and/or flash frozen right away so their vitamins and minerals as sealed in. The breakdown of enzymes is halted in the process. Supposedly in 1998 the Federal Drug Administration found that frozen vegetables have basically the same nutrient as fresh. I cannot find anything on a government page confirming that but I can find it on a slew of other pages.
So it is quite possible that the veggies in the grocery stores frozen section have more nutrients than the produce section. Read the labels to check if anything has been added like sugar and/or salt because those are not things you would find in “fresh” veggies so you probably want to avoid them in the frozen ones too.
My plan consists of having fresh veggies, however fresh they are from the store or the local market, within the first two maybe three days of having purchased them. I have frozen veggies in the freezer for when a trip to the store isn’t fitting into the schedule. But it used to be that those frozen veggies would sit and get freezer burned because I thought they weren’t good enough. But now I believe they are good, if not better, so I make sure to employ a rotation exercise, and we eat them in a reasonable amount of time. Ya know when the schedule is tight and getting fresh ones isn’t quiet happening. Then on the next trip to the store we get “fresh” and frozen vegetables to back into the fridge for when the schedule is tight again. I would always rather have some sort of veggie than none at all. And yes, that even means a canned vegetables.
Posted in Food, Vegetables | Tagged: Farmer's Market San Jose, Farmers Market, FDA, fresh produce, fresh vegetables, frozen produce, Frozen vegetables, nutrients, San Jose, San Jose exercise, San Jose Farmer's market | 14 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on June 1, 2010
One of my blogger friends (and actually I am lucky enough to know this blogger in person) posted about being barefoot. In her post she mentioned the barefoot philosophy. I had never heard of it. She said it is about “living light, being aware and present, being non-conformist, non-consumerist and, well, naked.”
She used a quote that said being naked in public is scary. When I read that my whole body got tingly. In a flash I had an epiphany. We do Nia barefoot. What is Nia? It is a workout that was designed to be done barefoot. But a lot of people don’t like to participate in exercise without shoes on. I believe that there are a lot of reasons for that and some of them might be because it is different, and a part of you is exposed, and it is like being naked (this is also part of the previously mentioned quote-but it is more in relation to blogging, whereas I am actually talking about feet).
Some people actually never go barefoot because they hate it that much. Some people have ideas about being barefoot, for example my dad, he thinks you are not dressed unless you have your shoes on. Me, I am always surprised when people come to my house and the first thing they say to me is, “Do you want me to take off my shoes?” I didn’t realize until recently that they probably say that because even if I am having a party and I am dressed up, I don’t usually have shoes on in my home. To me shoes are for going outside. They are out-of-the-house-wear. I usually have socks on to keep my feet warm, but not shoes. Shoes are constricting. But my attitude towards shoes has restricted me from being sensitive to those that might actually feel naked without shoes.
As I said, Nia was designed to be done in bare feet. The feet are part of our base. The base needs to be strong. One way to ensure a strong, stable base is to exercise it. A great way to exercise feet is to allow them to do the work of walking, running, balancing, wiggling, flexing, stretching, and generally moving without the assistance of shoes. Moving in ways that they cannot while they are confined in a shoe. Also some shoes actually compensate for feet weaknesses. All of this is not to say that people cannot do Nia in shoes. In my classes, if the facility allows shoes (some yoga studios do not allow shoes), people are encouraged to be comfortable above all so if shoes allow people to be comfortable then they are invited to keep their shoes on.
My friend’s post just reminded me that it could be a really deep seated feeling of “uncomfortableness” that might require some people to keep their shoes on. Nia is about moving the body as it was designed to be moved, that alone sometimes makes people feel uncomfortable because we are taught the exact opposite our entire lives. We are also taught, for the most part, that shoes are required to exercise. So moving in different ways and doing it without shoes, might not be easy for people new to Nia. Ah-ha! I get it now! It is not just about a floor being dirty.
Well, I will continue to mop the floor when I get to the studio early enough, but I will also think of bare feet in a larger sense. Because in Nia being barefoot is about exercising the feet, but it also is about being aware, being present, being open, and being free and some people need to work up to that. Nia is a journey that allows us to work on more than just having naked feet.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: barefoot exercise, barefoot Nia, barefoot philosophy, exercise class, exercise shoes, naked feet, Nia, Nia class, Nia exercise, Nia workout, weak feet, what is nia, workout class, Yoga, yoga studio | 13 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on May 29, 2010
I am always a little taken off guard when someone comes to me before Nia class and tells me with shock that they were sore (after the last Nia class). I recently came to the realization that these people who are shocked–and maybe a bit offended–are shocked because they didn’t realize they are exercising in Nia. They didn’t realize what a great workout they received. They certainly weren’t aware that they were using muscles they may not have used in a long time OR that they may not have used in that way. Nia is a vacation from normal exercise, but it IS exercise.
Nia is a cardio dance exercise class so there is ample opportunity to move with an intensity that will get your heart rate up. Some people sweat, some people don’t. Everyone does Nia differently. EveryBODY has different needs. Needs can change from class to class. Nia teaches to listen to your body and to learn to give it what it needs.
Nia is a form of movement. It is a mixture of nine different movement forms. The mixture includes actual movements from some of these forms and elements and ideas from these forms. But it is not these forms. In other words if you attend a Nia class you will not be practicing yoga, tai chi, or the other martial arts but we might do some moves from some of those forms or we might use the ideas from them.
With the availability of so many moves and concepts we are able to move in Nia the way the body was designed to move. We can play in the different planes, moving up and down and work on the ground. Nia allows us to work on flexibility, agility, mobility, strength, and stability.
All of this motion and action is sometimes different from what your body might be used to doing. Even though the movements are moves the body was actually designed to do, some of them you might not do in your everyday life, for instance rotating and opening the joints. When you move your body after not moving it at all or move it in a different way than it is accustomed to moving there is a possibility that you will experience soreness or DOMS.
It could be that the muscles are sore or it could be that there is awareness of the joints because the tissues or muscles that make up the joints are strengthening. While doing Nia we encourage people to try all the moves and experience them, but to tweak them so that they are comfortable to the body. Since we invite participants to sense Joy during the workout they might walk away not realizing that there could be some soreness after. Nia is also non-impact, but it can be intense so sometimes people are amazed that they sweat. It IS a workout after all.
Not everyone likes to sense the soreness that might accompany a good workout. I like it, I appreciate it because I know that it means I did something good for my body. It is ok for a body to be a little sore, it means that it is adapting to change. If the body is sore because it has not moved then it is good to have it adapt to the change of movement. If you are one that does not like to feel the effects of change on your body, then while in a Nia class you can make your movements smaller. If you don’t mind a little change then keep playing in all the levels. Nia allows for which ever path you chose and whatever you chose is up to you, I just wanted to help you understand so you can be aware of what might be happening and make an informed and mindful choice. It is my pleasure to be your travel guide and enable Nia to feel like a vacation.
I also have Tips for a Pleasurable Nia Experience and Tips for Moving Nia.
Are you ready for a relaxing yet exciting journey?
Posted in Nia | Tagged: agility, cardio class, DOMS, exercise class, FAMSS, flexibility, martial arts, Mobility, Nia, Nia class, Nia Dance, Nia exercise, Nia workout, non-impact, stability, strength, Tai Chi, the body's way, Tips on Nia, workout class, Yoga | 12 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on May 27, 2010
You have probably felt it but didn’t realize what it was called. DOMS or Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness is the feeling we have after we have exercised, if we have worked the muscle hard or it is not used to moving. It is usually experienced 24 to 72 hours after the workout. It can be severe discomfort on the verge of pain or just slight discomfort. Everyone has different pain tolerances. It is important to identify it as just DOMS and not something more serious. DOMS will disappear whereas if there is an injury it might have to be treated.
DOMS is no longer associated with build up of lactic acid in the muscles. It is now known to be the result of intense eccentric contraction. Often people associate muscle soreness with body building or lifting weights. This association is correct because in order to make a muscle bigger it must be stressed to the point of rebuilding, and most workouts that stress the muscles include eccentric exercise. But also muscles that are not used can get sore when they are used.
As we move through our lives we form movement patterns. Our muscles become used to these patterns. If we were to add weight to our movement patterns it is likely that our muscles could become sore and experience DOMS because we are stressing the tissue. But without the added resistance there is almost no chance of soreness. Think of the last time you helped someone relocate (as in move from one home to another). We ALWAYS you hear people complain how sore they are. The movements they did are normally the same; walking, lifting, bending, etc. But usually when you are helping someone move you are helping them move heavy furniture so there is resistance to the walking, lifting, bending. Even if you aren’t helping with the really heavy items it could be your chore to move the boxes . . . . a lot of boxes so the repetitiveness of that has the potential to cause soreness.
If you move in a way that your body is not accustomed to and/or you use muscles that are not used to be moved, sometimes there is no need to add resistance and there can be soreness. So it is possible for a muscle that is used to experience DOMS if used in a different way or to get sore using muscles we never use.
I have shared with you in the beginning of my blog what I use for muscle soreness. Unless it is seriously painful for me to move, I like to actually work and move through my soreness. I feel that my body adapts quicker if I keep moving. But I am also not an intense body builder and I also move often. When I say keep moving I don’t mean to keep doing the exercise that caused me to be sore, but I do mean to move, and stretch and work it out. Working through it works for ME, for MY body. You have to decide and learn what works for you. Also, each time might be different. If you do a really intense workout and you end up sore you might want to rest a bit whereas if you do a less intense workout you might be able to recognize that moving through it would be best. It is helpful for you to know how best to handle your DOMS by listening to your own body and learning what it needs.
Posted in Exercise and Working Out | Tagged: body building, Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, DOMS, eccentric contraction, lactic acid, Muscle Soreness, resistance exercise, resistance workout, weight, weight lifting, workouts | 8 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on May 25, 2010
The first half of Nia White Belt Principle #7 is the Three Planes of Movement. The second half is Levels of Teaching. (You can learn more about Nia’s Belt Levels here) The three planes of movement in Nia can be easily described as low, medium, and high. The planes are used to allow our bodies to practice agility and mobility. We use the floor, the space in between, and the “high”. We bend and fold. We reach out and stretch up. We move in space both horizontally and vertically.
With all the movements available to us in the three planes we have the opportunity to experience energy as it moves around us. In addition to the possibilities of energies the journey should be to pleasure and comfort. As you move through the planes part of practice of Nia is to observe how our joints open and move more freely.
Just like the three levels of intensity Nia encourages everyBODY – regardless of fitness level – to work and play in all three planes. Keeping in mind everyone’s low, middle, and high is unique to their own body.
Moving through the planes can tie into the levels of intensity. For example if doing the bow stance, the lower or deeper you go could be considered a level of 3 intensity because going down and coming back up would require greater effort and be more intense than staying “high” and not lowering into a deep bow.
Strength, stability, and flexibility will also be a result of working through and in all the planes. The more we play in all of these areas we develop more ability in all of them, the more we can maintain balance in the entire body.
If you want to join me in a Nia class please look at my San Jose Nia class schedule or my San Carlos Nia class schedule. I look forward to seeing you.
Posted in Nia, Nia White Belt Principles | Tagged: agility, Belt levels, Bow Stance, City of San Jose, Levels of Teaching, Mobility, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia energy, Nia White Belt, Nia White Belt Principle #7, San Carlos Nia class, San Jose Nia class, Three Planes of movement | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on May 22, 2010
A lot of workouts have different levels of doing. The second half* of Nia White Belt Principle #7 is (Intensity) Levels of Teaching. So to a participant of Nia that would be levels of doing. The different level in Nia are like most workout classes: level 1, level 2, and level 3.
In a Nia class, participants are always invited to try all the levels, if comfortable. The idea is really to learn the value of each level. Trying the different levels allows the body to learn different things. Also the changes in movements stimulates the brain. Often times your energy level might dictate the actually level of intensity you are participating in during a particular class or kata, but that is up to you. No level is “better” than the other one, the best one is what is good for you and your body. You, as the person that lives in your body everyday, are the only one that can truly decide which level is right for you, which level at any given moment is going to bring you most Joy.
As a Nia teacher, it is my job to show the participants three different levels. It is also my job to encourage you to try each level. It is important to remember that YOUR level 1 might not be the same as MY level 1, the same with levels 2 and 3. It is up to you, as a participant, to find your different levels and play with and play in all three.
When you experience the different levels during your Nia workout you will learn to allow muscles that might be tired to rest and learn to stimulate other muscles. In addition playing with the different levels will enable you to experience Nia routines in a new light and a different way.
So go. In your next Nia class or your first Nia class try all three different levels. Remember that everyBODY’s levels are different!
*The first half of Nia White Belt Principle #7 is the Three Planes of Movement.
Posted in Nia, Nia White Belt Principles | Tagged: kata, level one, level three, level two, Nia, Nia class, Nia kata, Nia levels of teaching, Nia teachers, Nia White Belt Principles, Nia workouts, workout classes | 2 Comments »
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