Posted by terrepruitt on April 3, 2010
You’ve heard that saying before. If you are like me, you grew up hearing it. Heck, you might have even said it. Can you teach an old dog new tricks? Where did that even come from? I can’t see a dog not learning a new trick if there is a treat involved. Why wouldn’t he learn it just to get the treat? Is he that stubborn? Is he that old?
Well, I think that I have just about heard enough of this saying. I, myself, decided that IF this saying is true I am NOT a dog. A couple of years ago I started learning new things, new tricks, new ways of thinking, new ways of trying things, new ways of experiencing life. So, heck, it dawned on me . . . I AM NOT A DOG!!! . . . either that, or by embracing new things and not remaining set in my ways, I am not old. Yahoo! I think that could very well be one way to help stay young, right?
Learn new things.
The FIRST THING to learn is to STOP SAYING THAT. If you say it, you partially believe it. And if you believe then, well, yeah, its true. I hear people say this a lot. I just sigh, because if that is what the person thinks then, that is the way it is. It is as if they have given up even before they try. Because it is such a common phrase we accept it. I want to grab them by the shoulders and shake them and say, “What kind of ‘stuff’ is that coming out of your mouth?” But instead I get an attitude and I say haughtily, “Well, thank God we aren’t dogs!!!!” Sometimes, I see a bit of realization. Sometimes I see that it is recognized that, no, we aren’t dogs, so why can’t we learn something new.
So what do you say? Something new on the agenda today? Something you haven’t tried? Some new thing that you want to make a habit? Have a healthy habit you want to try on for size? Why not? Last I heard dogs can’t read, so . . . . you are not a dog . . . even if you have been on this earth for what we might think of as a long time, that doesn’t mean you can’t stretch your brain, stretch your body . . . . learn, do, enjoy!
Well, what are you waiting for a treat? 😉
Posted in Just stuff | Tagged: new things, new ways, old dogs, stretch your body, stretch your brain, try new things | 10 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on April 1, 2010
I have learned a lot from our backyard here in San Jose. One thing I have learned is even rose bushes change.
I am posting pictures of our roses because they have changed over the years. When we first moved in there were ORANGE. I had never seen roses so orange. My husband wanted to rip out all the rose bushes and rearrange the yard and I requested that he keep the orange rose bush. I didn’t care about anything else in the yard but that one bush. I was fascinated by the orange roses. And so were many people that saw them. When we first moved in we had a ton of roses, all the time, or it seemed like all the time. We would have flowers in the house all the time. I would also take them to work. People would stop and ask me about the orange roses. That is how vibrant their color was. 
While I am not sure about how my hubby felt about the orange roses, I know how he felt about the rose bush. He HATED it. It was one of those bushes that had thorns everywhere. At the top of the stem near the flower there would be hundreds of little tiny thorns. When they got in your fingers, they felt like fiber glass. The thorns were progressively larger as they went down the stem. There was never any room on the stem to put your fingers. So working with these roses always resulted in bloody fingers. The thorns at the bottom where huge, sometimes as big as a half of an inch.
Also the blooms had “less petals”. I think of the “less petal” roses as “real” roses.
Early this week, while I was practicing Nia, I looked out the window and saw a huge rose on the bush. I decided I wanted to have it inside. So I went out to cut it. Even though the rose was next to a bud, I decided to cut them both so the stem would be long enough to put in a tall vase. I also cut another rose. I was holding them while I was looking for a vase to put them in, it occurred to me that there was one (ONE!!!) thorn on the big rose’s stem. And the other one hardly had any. Then I looked at the rose itself and noticed it too is different. I had previously posted about the color change of our roses, but I had not noticed the lack of thorns nor the increase in the amount of petals before.
They are still very beautiful and I love having roses in the yard and in the house. But, there are not the same roses that we had when we moved in. So I learned that roses morph. The rose bush that has been in our yard since we moved in eleven years ago has changed. Interesting. I guess most things change huh? I had noticed that the flowers were not longer the striking orange color they had used to be, but I just noticed the flower itself is different and there are less thorns. They have been changing over the years. Do you know why? Is it cross pollination? Do all roses do that?
Posted in Flowers | Tagged: Changes, Flowers, Nia Practice, Nia San Jose, Practice, rose bushes, rose thorns, Roses, San Jose, San Jose Nia | 8 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 30, 2010
When I attended the Nia White Belt Intensive I had not heard of the Four Agreements so I was very captivated by what we refer to as our Energy Allies. When I decided to attend the Intensive I had only been to four Nia classes and I had decided I wanted to teach it. I had no idea what to expect. So these Energy Allies came in handy for me.
We call them friends and rely on them as you would friends. I am posting these because I often need to be reminded of my friends and I thought I would share them with you.
I was taught:
1–Speak with impeccability
–We were reminded to stay “on task”. Often times in a group setting questions are asked that do not actually relate to the subject being discussed. Or people like to tell stories about something “sort of” related to the subject.
–We were also instructed to use “I”. When we talk we often tend to project what we are saying instead of saying “I”.
2–Don’t assume anything
–Don’t “make up” stories in our head. We don’t really always know what the story is so we shouldn’t make it up.
-Quiet our inner mind’s conversation.
3–Don’t take anything personally
–Don’t get caught up in self-pity or self importance.
–Try not to get emotional about a comment.
4–Always do your best
–No holding back
–Follow instruction
–Recognize what is required
I thought this was a GREAT way to start a seminar or in this case an “intensive”. I wished we could have employed these agreements when I was a corporate trainer. I think they really assist in keeping the group on task. When people are allowed to share information that pertains to the subject yet understand that off topic issues will be put on a back burner, that helps keep the subject flow steady. Keeping the inner mind silent assists in hearing what is being said. Not taking comments that were made personally allowed the information to be given and received so that it could be useful and not destructive. Following instructions assisted with the energy in the room. When we all understood what was required we were all able to focus on the moment’s assignment.
Keeping these four allies around really enabled our group to keep our energy going. When listening is not at a premium and/or people are emotional about something it really can zap the energy of the collective.
These are friends that can be invited to anything in one’s life. Do you have these Energy Allies as your friends? Or are you familiar with the Four Agreements?
Posted in Nia | Tagged: Classes in San Jose, Energy Allies, Four Agreements, impeccability, Intensive, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia San Jose, Nia trainer, Nia White Belt, Nia White Belt Intensive, Nia workouts, San Jose Nia, seminar, trainer, White Belt, workout classes in San Jose | 11 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 27, 2010
I actually received a response to my feedback . . . or actually I received a response to the feedback form being completed.
I had asked Lea & Perrins about their Worcestershire Sauce and explained that it has been a staple so long in my house that it was not something I had checked the ingredients on. Since I noticed it has High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) in it I would be on the path of moving from Lea & Perrins to a Worcestershire Sauce without HFCS.
The response from the Heinz company told me that recently the media has brought to light HFCS and its “role in the U.S. diet”.
You see, they say U.S. Diet because a lot of companies don’t put HFCS in foods that are made for other markets. It is primarily the U.S. that is subjected to HFCS.
The response also stated that a lot of the articles attempted to link the consumption of HFCS to obesity.
Ok . . . . thanks for that information. But I still am wondering why they are telling me this. Do they automatically or defensively assume that the reason I don’t want to consume HFCS is because of “attempted links to obesity”?
Then they reminded me that excess calories without exercise is the reason for weight gain. They feel it is incorrect to focus on a specific food or ingredient when talking about obesity. Like the HFCS manufacturers the e-mail from Heinz said that “moderation” is the key.
The way I have chosen to moderate my intake of HFCS is by not consuming Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce. Since HFCS is in so many foods, I have to eliminate as many as I can so that I can achieve this wonderful thing that manufacturers and users of HFCS call “moderation”.
Then the e-mail ended by telling me about the various Ketchup products they are coming out with. Including one without HFCS. (Because I asked about Ketchup?)
A lot of products have HFCS in them. I can only control what is purchased and brought in our home. When I go out to a restaurant, even if I order a salad, the dressing could have HFCS in it. The bread on my sandwich could have HFCS in it. The BBQ sauce, the ketchup, the mayonnaise, I don’t know, so I can only keep from purchasing products that I can read the ingredients of.
I do not eat a totally healthy diet, but I try to eat healthy. I am trying to really cut down on OVERLY processed foods. All of our food is processed, but I think it is the OVERLY processed, really chemically altered food, that is not very healthy. I know it is not easy, but I am going to do what I can and that is all that I can do.
I wanted to share that I did get a response, as odd as I thought the response was, I wanted to let you know that they responded.
Posted in Food | Tagged: Affairs, diet, feedback, healthy diet, HFCS, unprocessed foods, US Obesity, Worcestershire sauces | 8 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 25, 2010
I am saddened that it has come to this. I have started to make a list of products in our home that have High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) in them. And I am going to begin eliminating them from our house. (Yeah, sorry, Honey, if you are reading this, I meant to tell you before I posted, but . . . )
I am disgusted with the fact that it is in everything. I do not believe that it is “natural” or that it can be consumed in moderation. It is in too many of our everyday processed foods for it to be consumed in moderation.
I love Worcestershire Sauce. I use it in ALL of my marinades. I am in search of a brand that does not contain HFCS. If you know of one, please, let me know.
This will not be an easy process as some of the items, which I will discuss at a later date, are going to be really difficult for me to part with, but I am just fed up. There is WAY too much corn in America’s diet and I am done.
But in the spirit of fessing up, not only will this not be easy, it will not be an overnight thing. I need to wean us off some of these things. As I said in the e-mail/contact form to Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce is a STAPLE. So we will finish what we have which will give me some time to find something else to use.
I actually didn’t even know HFCS was in Worcestershire Sauce, but after my Nia class today I went to Jakes in Willow Glen and my friend and I were talking about how HFCS is in everything. I grabbed all the condiments off of the condiment area and we started reading the labels. Let me tell you I was soooooo disappointed. I never thought to look because it is just something I always buy. Now, when I buy something new, I look, but I have grown up with Worcestershire Sauce so I never questioned it. But now, I wonder, did it always have HFCS in it?
If you know of a Worcestershire Sauce without HFCS, please let me know. Thanks.
This is a copy of the what I sent Lea & Perrins. Pretty sure they don’t care. There website says, “We couldn’t make it better” Uh, yeah, you could, you could take out the HFCS!
Posted in Food | Tagged: America's diet, consumed in moderation, Corn, Corn Fed, HFCS, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Jakes in Willow Glen, Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, moderation, Nia, Nia class, Willow Glen, Willow Glen Nia, Worcestershire Sauce | 12 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 23, 2010
If you are going to get deeper into Nia–taking it further than a workout and even further than a practice, if you are going to attend a Nia Intensive, you will be introduced to the triads. Nia has a method of grouping things together in threes to assist in the learning of the information. I think that it is a pretty good tool to use. It helps organize things into little manageable packets.
Each principle in the Nia White Belt has a triad. Some triads have three additional triads to help further explain the principle. It is all packaged so wonderfully I just love it.
I have posts about Principle #2 Natural Time and the Movement Forms. Here is an example of what the Art Forms Triad may look like. Each art form has three movement forms.
Now, honestly, participating in a Nia Intensive is so delicious I don’t want to take away from all that you will be experiencing so this does not have all the information that you would see if you were to attend an intensive. With the principles and points on a triad there are usually catch phrases and other things to assist you in learning. This is just an somewhat striped down version so that you can have an idea of what I am talking about.
Also, with all of my talk and posts and tweets and pages about Nia, I am wanting to share with you a glimpse of the richness that is Nia. There is a lot of knowledge that Debbie and Carlos want to share and they have created or commissioned to be created some wonderful and beautiful tools in order for anyone who wants to learn can use.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: Carlos AyaRosas, Debbie and Carlos, delicious Nia, Natural Time and the Movement Forms, Nia, Nia Movement Forms, Nia Practice, Nia principles, Nia Triads, Nia White Belt, Nia workout, Principle #2, Triads | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 20, 2010
Some people Tweet what they had for lunch I blog about it! I think I was actually born to the wrong family because I love tortillas. As far as I am concerned you can put ANYTHING in a tortilla and you have a meal. The issue is that most tortillas are made with lard or loads of fat. The ones I used to get are low fat, but made with . . . . . guess? Yup, you got it partially hydrogenated oil. Even though the label says “Og TRANS FAT per serving” it stills has transfat (that’s the partially hydrogenated oil).
I found one without it. Doesn’t taste the same, but it is not bad. The other day I was craving veggies. Lucky me we had a lot in the fridge.
Here is what my lunch looked like
It was a low fat tortilla (98% fat free) with 8 grams of fiber (whoa!), then I filled it with broccoli, asparagus, and mixed greens. I had some cheese in there too! It was so yummy. I need to write about it when I am eating it from now on otherwise I end up wanting it again as I type!
I hear it is asparagus season (at the time of this post), which for us in San Jose, just means it get down to a reasonable price. Because otherwise we have it here all year round. Might not be at its peak, but . . . I like having it all the time. If you don’t know, I love asparagus.
Usually I roast it, but I had chopped it and sauteed it the night before and it workout that we had leftovers, so for this burrito that is what I had used.
So, tell me what do you put in your tortillas? How do you prepare them? Grilled? Micro-waved? Right out of the package? Does anyone make their own? I would love to learn how to do that!!!
Posted in Food, Vegetables | Tagged: Asparagus, broccoli, fiber, low fat, mixed greens, partially hydrogenated, partially hydrogenated oil, San Jose Workout, tortilla, Trans fat, tweet, Veggie burrito | 14 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 18, 2010
My husband does the grocery shopping. I know, cool, huh? Sometimes, when he is busy, I will do it. On my way home from teaching a Nia class on Wednesday, I decided to stop by the store.
Now, the store that is most convenient to us in San Jose we can’t always go to because they have bad milk and, I believe that my husband told me they also don’t have the bread I like. So we drive a little bit out of our way to go to the store where we can buy milk that will is not sour and bread that is what I like.
While standing in the bread isle I almost had to call my Hubby because I forgot what kind of bread we get. As I am scanning the packages I see this.
Oh yeah! THAT IS the bread that we get. But, I did a little dance because of that bright yellow label. See that is one of the reasons why that is the bread we get. The label made me happy.
Then while I was standing in line I was even made more happy because I was able to share with a woman in line why I looked like I just worked out (because I did) AND tell her about Nia. Awesome!
But, Honey, if you are reading this, I still don’t like grocery shopping. 🙂 It can still be “your job”. (Thanks, btw.)
Posted in Food | Tagged: bad milk, Bread Dance, Earthgrain bread, grocery shopping, happy, Happy Dance, HFCS, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Nia, Nia class, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Safeway, San Jose Nia, San Jose Workout, San Jose Workout class, Savemart, teaching Nia, Wednesday Nia Class, work out | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 16, 2010
First of all I thought it was Daylight SavingS Time. It is Daylight Saving Time. I am not a fan. I don’t know if they have ever done studies on it, but I don’t think it is good for our bodies to just up and change the time. And I REALLY don’t think that after 21 years it was a good idea to change the times of year that we adjust the time. I honestly believe that for the past four years I have had a VERY difficult time adjusting to the new times of year.
Let me share with you why I am not a fan and I do not think that changing the time is good for a body — at least mine. I am a night person. I am “more awake” at night than in the morning. Around 9:00 at night is when I begin to get my energy. When it is light later . . . it takes me even longer to wind down. It is very difficult to convince my body that it is night time when it is light out still.
A little history:
Daylight Saving Time had been observed in the United States spottily since 1918. From February 9, 1942 until September 30, 1945 it was observed all year long. Daylight Saving Time was not consistently observed for 21 years (from 1945 to 1966) because there was no federal law.
In 1966 the law stated DST ran from the last Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October, but states could pass a law of their own if they didn’t want to follow DST.
Then in 1974 an emergency act was passed setting the clocks ahead on January 6, 1974. It was amended on October 27, 1974 returning the clocks back to Standard Time. Then DST was observed from February 23, 1975 through October 26, 1975.
Then from 1986 to 2007 the United States observed DST from 2:00 am on the first Sunday of April until at 2:00 a.m. on the last Sunday of October.
After 21 years in 2007 it was changed to: DST beginning 2:00 am. on the second Sunday of March to 2:00 a.m. on the first Sunday of November. So for over half my life, my body has been operating on a specific time frame for the time change and I can tell you that after four years, it is still not used to the change.
Hawaii and Arizona are among the states that do not observe Daylight Saving Time.
I was very fortunate that people love Nia and don’t let this time change affect them. The first morning of the time change I had a Sunday Nia class in San Jose as a follow up to a health fair I attended in Cupertino the day before. It was fabulous the students that showed up to get in their first workout of the DST! We had a great time.
What do you think about Daylight Saving Time? What do you think about the change? Or more accurately, what do you FEEL? How are you feeling when we change the time?
Or better yet, I wanna know, are you one of those people who efficiently goes around and changes all your clocks? Or do you do the math on a few until you just get tired of that and change them?
Posted in Misc | Tagged: Arizona, Cupertino Nia, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, DST, Hawaii, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia Cupertino, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, observe DST, San Jose Nia classes, Standard Time | 9 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on March 13, 2010
Ahhhh, so what are you thinking? Friends that you have all your life? Yeah, no. This is about friends for LIFE. As in friends for health. As in friends for well being. It is very important to have good friends. The definition of “good friends” is vast and we can have a lot of “good friends”, but I believe that we all can benefit from friends that we can connect with.
Most of us have an array of friends in our life, we have people we call friends but they might REALLY be categorized as acquaintances. We have friends that call us when they need something, and friends we call when we need something. We have friends that annoy us and friends that don’t. We have friends that we might not think of often, but that we are very fond of. And, when we are lucky we have friends that fill us up. That make us feel good. They make us feel grounded and connected to humanity.
These friends could agree with us when we need it and tell us to get it together when we need that too. They could agree with us on something and disagree with us on others. They can see our faults and ignore them or try to help us with them, but either way, they are there and they are our friends. I believe that is vital to our health. I believe that sometimes life needs to be suspended—in between appointments, and kids athletic games, around the Nia classes, the gym, and the yoga practice, regardless of work and responsibilities–you need to be with those types of friends.
Enjoy time visiting with these friends no matter how frequent or infrequent it is important to connect, to refill, to recharge. It is awesome.
It is as important as good nutrition and exercise . . . . .at least, I think so . . . . I think there are friends for life.
Do you believe that friendships play a role in life/health?
Posted in Misc | Tagged: athletic games, connected, exercise, friends, grounded, gym, humanity, life, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia Practice, nutrition, yoga classes, Yoga Practice | 6 Comments »
Terre Pruitt's Blog 