Terre Pruitt's Blog

In the realm of health, wellness, fitness, and the like, or whatever inspires me.

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Posts Tagged ‘Nia class’

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More About The Dancing Cat In San Jose

Posted by terrepruitt on October 8, 2015

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueLast Friday after teaching my Nia Class I volunteered at The Dancing Cat in San Jose.  I hadn’t been back since we got our cats.  I tend to want to be home with my own kitties.  The plan for The Dancing Cat is to be open only until November 15, 2015.  They are open Thursdays through Sundays.  Presently they have ten cats that are ready for adoption.  The Dancing Cats has had 30 cats adopted from the lounge.  Two of them were ours.  It is really fun to go sit and be able to play with the cats.  I really love the idea of meeting a cat in a relaxed atmosphere before deciding to adopt.  I think it is really helpful if you have a cat or cats already and are thinking of getting another one.  Being able to see how a cat acts around other cats is a good thing.  Of course, all cats act different around different cats, but I think having all the cats together gives you a better idea of how they might get along with cats you already own.

 

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia Technique

 

If you want to lounge with some cats in San Jose get it done before November 15th.  Keep in mind it is not a high-pressure-adopt-a-cat kind of environment.  I’ve had people I tell about the place say they don’t want a cat.  Well, that is fine.  No one is on commission there.  Ha, ha.  It is very relaxed.  The owner(s) are there to answer your questions, but they don’t hover.  They don’t even normally bring up “adoption,” they know you know the cats are available.  They let you play with the cats.  When I am there I like to talk to the guests about their cats.  Because, as I mentioned before when posting about this place, a lot of the people who come to visit have cats of their own.  I like to hear about people’s pets.  And often I am lucky enough to get to see a picture.  The last time I was there I even got to see a video of a guest’s cat.Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia Technique

 

 

 

 

 

I am just putting the word out again.  They are open and have cats up for adoption.  This group of cats is very social, none of them hiding in the back.  They were all out in the main area lounging or playing.  Be sure to visit www.TheDancingCat.Org for more information and to make reservations.  They do allow for walk-ins if they have the space so if you decide you want to go at the last minute don’t think you can’t because you didn’t make reservations give them a call.  Go check out the cats.  If you don’t want to adopt perhaps you know someone who does.  Spread the word.  The lounge will only be open for a bit more.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia Technique

The Tuxedo Cat, is Clyde.  He is so sweet and playful.  I just loved looking at him.  He has a light pink nose.  He looks as if his coloring was put on just right.  He is so handsome.

I picked up the marmalade, Jasper, because someone was coming in while he was standing by the door.  He is just a big ol’ softy.  So sweet.  His tail has a ring patterns around it.  He seems really mellow.  Shame on me for not getting a picture of his magnificent tail.

Sarge is so regal.  One might be surprised at how sweet and playful he is because he is just a royal presence.

Florance is such a sweetie.  She is just lounging on the couch.

I didn’t take pictures of all the cats, so do go to the website to check them out.  I hope this type of lounge is something we will see more of.  Perhaps we will be lucky – after November – to see a new incarnation of The Dancing Cat.

 

 

 

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia Technique

Sarge

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia Technique

Sarge

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia Technique

Sarge

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia Technique

Florance

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia Technique

 

 

 

 

Posted in Cats | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Sound And Common Business Ideas

Posted by terrepruitt on October 1, 2015

Recently I attended a Business Training type of workshop.  It was specifically for women.  The trainer feels that women – for many reasons – could use business training specifically for woman.  She didn’t get into explanations regarding her reasons, but some that have been tossed about before are things like, some woman are challenged in business because they are mothers/wives . . . just like any working woman, time used for work is time taken away from the family so they may feel guilty.  Plus . . . business is a “man’s world”.  Often times women are not taken as seriously as a man.  Some women have a difficult time stating their worth.  Some women are inclined to help so they feel “bad” charging for their services.  Those are just some reasons I’ve heard before.  Perhaps one or some of them are why this workshop was strictly for women.  It was a nice workshop.  The woman who presented it was very fun and had a lot of good information.  But, if you have taken the Nia White Belt Intensive, most of the same information was in that.  If you have taken any type of certification and it was a good one, then they would have covered the same type of business information that was in this workshop.  But if you have never taken anything before then it was a great one.

The first thing all the business trainings I’ve taken say is to diversify.  So in the context of Nia, the idea is to not just teach Nia classes.  But to do Nia Workshops, Nia retreats, Nia personal training, Nia sessions, Nia talks/webinars, in other words the idea is you have this great gift to share – don’t hold back.  And for something like Nia there really is so much to it, it can’t be all shared in just the dance exercise classes.  This training had to do with yoga, so she was using examples pretty much the same.  You could do all the same things; classes, workshops, retreats, sessions, webinars . . . etc.

The one thing that was different about this workshop was that the steps she recommended that needed to be taken she aligned with Goddesses.  So with the first step she said to “claim your power and passion with the Goddess Durga”.  Which according to the first thing on the internet Durga “is the root cause of creation, preservation and annihilation”.  Since, I am not going to be using Goddess in my business or my life, I didn’t take many notes that had to do with the Goddess part.  But this step was also the part that was connected to finding your niche.  Again, in context, there are a lot of different types of yoga so find one that is your passion.  Or find something that can complement yoga and concentrate on that.  With your passion you will be able to connect to people.  So let’s say you love to crochet, you could have a yoga crochet class (and workshop, retreat, sessions, webinar, etc.).

The next step was to release fears and doubts (with another Goddess).  And during this one we did a really great exercise.  She had us speaking from a place of fears and doubts, then she had us speaking form a place of confidence.  We all could really tell the difference.  This was a great (and very important) reminder for me.

The next step was to create your offering (with another Goddess) and she shared ideas on that.  She shared actual testimonies or information from some of her clients.  Step four was marketing (with another Goddess).  As you probably know there are many places to market.  With social media the ways to do it are encouraging.  So much of it can be free.

She shared some mistakes that people make, like no marketing or not doing enough, or boring marketing.  Not diversifying, not having a plan, trying to reinvent the wheel, and trying to do it on your own and not ask for help.

Like I said, it was good.  It was great if you have never heard any of it before.  As you may have read before on my blog, Nia has awesome training and business is one of the 13 principles in the Nia White Belt so they cover these things.  These are typical business ideas, attaching Goddesses to them, was new to me.

This workshop was just a taste of a longer more in-depth workshop.  The weekend one sounded amazing and fun, but my abundance doesn’t come from Goddesses, so I wasn’t interested.

I do have other things I want to share, but this post is long enough.  In another post I’ll share some things that this workshop didn’t cover but I think are good things to think about if you want to teach classes (like yoga or Nia).

If you have a certification in something did the training cover any business training?  Are you familiar with any of these business ideas?

 

Posted in Misc | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Delicious Things In Small Packages

Posted by terrepruitt on September 22, 2015

So last Friday I received an organic produce box.  And I was actually a little surprised because I thought I had selected what I wanted in it, but that must have been the box before.  So I ended up with some things I don’t know that I would have kept in the box.  You might remember I first signed up to receive an organic box of produce as a way to get “stuck” with fruits and vegetables that I would pass by in the store or at a Farmer’s Market.  If I don’t know what it is, I am not likely to buy it and try to deal with it.  But when it is delivered to me then I am “forced” to learn about it . . . .well, at least learn a way to cook it and/or (just) eat it.  This past week we received Kiwi Berries.  I have never heard of Kiwi Berries before.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueMy hubby had kindly left the produce box on the counter and I was able to snap a few pictures then put the produce away then go off to my Nia class on Friday.  I asked a couple of ladies if they had ever heard of them and they had not.  At that point I had not really had a chance to look at them or look them up.  It was receive and leave.  While we were talking I quickly looked it up because there were curious, too.  The pictures showed the Kiwi Berries sliced and they looked just like kiwis (the fruit, not the bird).

These berries actually look like kiwis, but much smaller and not hairy.  And when you cut them open they look exactly like kiwis.  They are great.  So much better . . . to me . . . . than kiwis.  With kiwis you have to peel them and sometimes that hairy stuff gets on the kiwi and . . . . I just don’t like it.  My husband says he doesn’t mind it.  Well, that could be that most of the time when I give him a kiwi I have already peeled it and sliced it.  I like to make it easy for him to eat while he is at work.  So I am the one dealing with hairy skin.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueThe Kiwi berries taste like kiwis except to me, they were a little creamy.  I don’t think of kiwis as creamy, are they?  I don’t actually eat a lot of kiwis so perhaps they are and I missed it.  But the berries had a hint of creaminess to them.  They are totally cool because you can just wash them and then pop them in your mouth like grapes or any other small fruit.

Since they were such an easy to eat fruit, I didn’t even look to see any recipes or anything.  Once I saw the pictures of them looking like kiwis I figured you can just eat them as it and we did.

Wiki says:

“Actinidia arguta (hardy kiwi) is a perennial vine native to Japan, Korea, Northern China, and Russian Siberia. It produces a small fruit resembling the kiwifruit.

The fruit are referred to as Hardy kiwifruit, kiwi berry, arctic kiwi, baby kiwi, dessert kiwi, grape kiwi, northern kiwi, or cocktail kiwi and are edible, berry or grape-sized fruit similar to kiwifruit in taste and appearance . . . . Often sweeter than the kiwifruit, hardy kiwifruit can be eaten whole and need not be peeled.”

I am seeing sites that say the kiwi berries are a good source of vitamin C, fiber potassium, vitamin E, and magnesium.

They are like bite sized dessert.  If you like them, I am sure you can use them like you would use any berry or fruit; in a salad, as a topping for a pie, cake, or dish of ice cream or yogurt.  They can be pack in a lunch or eaten as a snack.  I am happy that I received something new to me in my produce box.  That is one reason why I started getting it.  But now that they allow us to pick what we want, I am not always being adventurous.  Sometimes I forget to check my order.  I am glad I forgot to check this week!

Have you ever heard of Kiwi Berries?  Have you ever had Kiwi Berries?  Do you like kiwis?

Posted in Food, Fruit | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments »

Talking Body, On The Mat

Posted by terrepruitt on September 17, 2015

Do you practice yoga?  Do you have a yoga mat?  Do you have to reposition (either facing the front of the class or the side) yourself on your yoga mat in order to do certain poses?  Do you ever have a portion of your body not on the mat while doing some poses?  I have been thinking about a round yoga mat.  Have you seen them?  An average rectangular yoga mat is 6 feet long and 2 feet wide.  You can find longer ones and a little bit wider ones, but I don’t think the wider ones would accommodate some poses as well as a ROUND one.  The first ones I had seen were Mandala’s and they are six feet in diameter.  Six feet of circular mat.  Not having to turn your body in order for the majority of your body to be on the mat.  Not having to turn your mat so you are facing the correct direction in order to see the instructor.  Not having to have some part of you off the mat.  For me – I’m not tall – all poses could be done without me having to touch the ground on a round mat.  I am intrigued by this circular yoga mat.

If you only do yoga in a yoga studio then the cleanliness of the floor might never be an issue.  There is always going to be feet and sweat, but usually yoga studios have rules about shoes on the floor so that helps keep it a little more clean than some venues that use the floor for everything from daily meals to cycling.

I am not certain that the round mats would fit in a small room with a lot of yoga students.  But if everyone was using round mats it could work, since the mats are six feet in diameter and that alone would be enough room for most people.  So instead of having the normal space between the mats they could all just barely touch and that would be enough room for people to move freely through poses.  So, in other words the space that is normally between mats would just be covered with a mat, but people would have somewhat, the same space.  In theory.  Right?  Am I thinking correctly?  Wouldn’t work in really crowded classes.

Well, I just Googled it again (I started this post a while ago) and I found some that are 4 feet in diameter.  I don’t think that would be big enough.  It is actually labeled as an “Aerobics Mat” but the website says they can be used for yoga.  But I am taller than 4 feet so to me a 4 foot circular mat would be worse than a regular rectangular mat that is 6 feet long.  Oooo!  Perhaps they are getting more popular because when I originally typed up this post all I could find were 6 feet in diameter mats that were about $65.00, now I am finding smaller ones, 5 feet in diameter, on Amazon, that are $40.00.  (Or there are a few on Amazon, there is one for $25.00, but you can see how it is not long enough.)  But again is a round mat that is less than 6 feet better than a 6 foot rectangular mat?

Oh, I found a six foot one on sale for $49.95, but you have to buy at least two.

In looking at the reviews on Amazon in regards to the 5 foot one, it will not really work in a crowded yoga class, just as I thought (and you probably did, too!).  With everyone else having a rectangular mat it doesn’t work for there to be one round one.  But in some classes that are not crowded it would work.  It would be nice to have one for outside because that is another place you might not want to be off the mat.

A round mat would be great for Nia, too, since we often move more than the space of a regular yoga or exercise mat!

I am intrigued.  Any one have one?  What do you think?  Where did you get it?

Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Double The Goodness

Posted by terrepruitt on September 1, 2015

What better way to start a month than with a Goodie Jar check in?  Any of you still doing a goodie jar or any version of one?  A Goodie Jar or a Good Things Jar is where you make a note of a good thing and put it in the jar to read later.  That is the basics so how you go about it is up to you.  The possibilities are endless.  You could decide upon guidelines on what is allowed in the jar or just put whatever you want.  My idea is whatever is a “good thing” that makes you smile.  You can assign yourself a schedule as in “you have to do it once a day/week/month”.  Or you can do it whenever you experience something that makes you smile.  When you read them is also something unique to you.  Our Goodie Jar is read on December 31st.  It is kind of nice since we are past the age of going out and getting crazy.  We usually are home all night and so this is a little tradition, a way of celebrating.  Now, many of you, perhaps people who frequently read my blog, already know about this because I think I am on my third year of doing it, but there are many people out there that don’t know about it.  And for a lot of people it is a good way to keep focused on the good things in life.  There is always something good so it is nice to have a way to keep that at the forefront.  So, I am happy to report that I have had to go back to using my first goodie jar.  But that is in addition to the new container I had moved, too.  We now have two “Goodie” locations!

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueHow awesome is that?  Our Good Things filled up one container so we had to move it to another one!  That is good stuff.  Granted some of our things are full sized pieces of paper.  John used that as documentation for one or two good things.  Plus we use all types of paper and all types of sizes.  There are also a few tickets in there.  So they take up a lot of space, but still!  A lot of good things.

There are always good things to say about the Nia classes because of the fabulous students that come to class.  In fact, as I type this I was reminded that the attendance I had at this past Nia class on Sunday at the NW YMCA was the largest I have ever had.  So that is going in the good things jar.  That was a good thing!

My yoga classes are a consistent good thing, too.  There seems to be a lot of good revolving around those, too.  Currently, yoga in the park.  So nice to be out in the gorgeous day . . . even when the lawn maintenance people are there.

Our cats are doing well.  We decided to stop the medicine for the little cat.  We had three days left and we decided that she was just getting, too upset and it was just causing too much stress in the household.  So we stopped that.  She has yet to realize that evening time is not “torture” time.  But she will get there.  I even got an exposed belly and purrs today.  The whole situation around us getting the cats and all that mess was really a great time to utilize the goodie jar because that is when I need it.  When a happy situation turns to muck, it helps to have a process in place to help concentrate and focus on the good things.  So we are rolling along.

So, what about you?  Are you doing a Goodie Jar?  Do you have a way to help you stay focused on the Good Things?  How is it going?

 

Posted in Good Things in the Goodie Jar | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments »

Losing Lens Flexibility

Posted by terrepruitt on August 25, 2015

Recently I hosted a Nia class taught by a guest teacher.  It was a on a Sunday.  It happened to be one of the hottest days we have had.  So I thought I would allow myself to be a little cooler by wearing my contacts and not my glasses.  And by “cooler” I mean temperature-wise, tee hee!  Having glasses on my face makes me a tad bit warmer than when I don’t have glasses on.  I hadn’t worn my contacts in a long time.  Turns out a VERY long time.  When I went to read, I couldn’t.  And on top of that I kept looking down under my glasses (the ones I wasn’t wearing because I was wearing my contacts).  I also couldn’t write.  I mean I could but it wasn’t very well because I couldn’t see.  It was kind of funny, but very frustrating.  I know that it happens, I know that as we age we lose our ability to read up close, but it was really weird, because without my contacts lenses I can see up close, fine.  I can read up close without my glasses on, I have to look below them, push them up, or take them off.  So when my contacts made me a far-sighted person, it was so weird to lose the ability to see close.  I mean it made sense because my glasses do the same thing, it just didn’t dawn on me that my contacts would do the same thing and that I couldn’t push them up or easily take them off in order to see.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueI am so used to wearing my glasses that the first time I stopped dancing during the Nia class, to mop off my face I grabbed for my glasses (the ones I wasn’t wearing because I was wearing my contacts) to push them up so I could towel off my face.  Funny.  It was a funny experience.  Kind of frustrating because no matter how far or close I moved the – whatever I was trying to read – I couldn’t really see.  This wasn’t an issue during the class, but afterwards it was.  I actually borrowed by husband’s glasses for a second, just to see if they would help — they did.

Losing our ability to see close is part of the aging process.   It is called presbyopia and is actually a change in the eye’s focusing ability.  The American Optometric Association website says:  “Losing the ability to read the newspaper or see the cell phone numbers may seem to have occurred abruptly. Actually, these changes have been occurring gradually since childhood. But up until now, your eyes have had adequate focusing power to allow you to see clearly for reading and close work. Now your eyes no longer have enough focusing power for clear and comfortable near vision tasks.”  This is “the result of the lens inside the eye becoming less flexible.”  The effects of this loss of flexibility starts being noticed about the age of 40.  The condition just continues to worsen as we age.

There are many ways that this can be addressed or corrected, from glasses to surgery.  I want to get new glasses.  I don’t remember the last time I got new glasses.  I am thinking I don’t want bifocals or progressives.  I think I am ok with just looking under, pushing them all the way up, or taking them off.  But we will see.

For those of you who are at this point or beyond, what have you opted to do?  Anyone like progressives?

Posted in Misc | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments »

He Got Me With Something New

Posted by terrepruitt on August 18, 2015

Oh my!  I bet you are relieved to hear that I only took a few pictures of the Nia event.  I say that because I took so many of the last two events that I couldn’t decide which ones to post, so I posted a lot.  In March Jason came to town and taught his Nia routine Frankie Say Nia and a Nia FreeDance Playshop.  We had a great time.  You can see pictures and videos on my posts What Did Frankie Say?, Dancing, Learning, Posting, Editing, The Nia FreeDance Playshop Was Awesome!, and What Do You Mean Nia FreeDance Tool?.  This time Jason was driving through California again so I invited him back to do what he is calling Franking Say Redux.  It is so fun.  One of the things he said was that we were going to do things we had never done before.  I teach Nia so I thought that was a tall order and I shared my skepticism.  But I was also eager to see what that might be.  Well, a song or two in he had us doing . . . . something I had never done before.  And I said, “Alright, here it is!”

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueSo even though he was here in March and we did the same routine he did it a little different.  While he traveled throughout the United States he adjusted it.  Plus sometimes part of what a Nia Teacher does while teaching is adjust moves or what we say to encourage different movement.  The move was not only new to me but it was so funny I had to laugh while I was doing it.  It was a Cat Stance Tail Wag with Jazz Hands.  Now, if you know what that is get up and do it.  It is hilarious.  You don’t even need music to get a giggle out of it.  I am sure part of my laughter came from the fact that we were doing other things leading up to or right after the move that doing it was almost a joke because there was just so much going on!

Some of you may need a reminder:  a cat stance is balancing on one leg while the other leg is up, a tail wag is when you wag your tail (I like to do it with a release in my spine), and Jazz Hands are your fingers spread wide.  Yeah.  Ha, ha, ha.  Try it!

Loved it.  I can’t remember what was before or after, but I know the whole thing was very funny.

We had a small group, but we had a great time.  My supportive husband even joined us.  Jason is always fun and we always learn something.  I think I will just have to keep inviting him back until you come and see for yourself.

Doing something new is such a great way to stimulate the brain and with that the nervous system.  Doing something new and having it be physical is a way to stimilate the brain, nervous stystem, and the whole entire body.  Jason had us doing all kinds of stimulating things.  It was very fun.

Does your exercise class stimulate your brain?  Do you do knew things?

Posted in Nia | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

A Nip About Cats

Posted by terrepruitt on August 8, 2015

Well, as you know, we not-too-long-ago adopted two new cats.  And with that came ringworm.  So we have not been able to start our lives together . . . in a sense . . . because we have been having to keep them locked in one room to reduce the chances of the spread and continuation of this fungus.  It is not worms, but a fungus.  In addition to the lock-down, we are having to give them both medication in the form of a pill.  Anyone that has “pilled” a cat knows that no matter the method it is not pleasant for neither recipient nor giver.  It is not something new “parents” want to have to do to their new cats.  So, really, all I have thought about is cats, lately.  Yes, I realize that I tend toward the obsessive side, but when all my spare time is spent cleaning and a lot of my energy is spent working towards getting my “new” cats healthy, can you blame me?  With all the thoughts; “cats”, it made me think of a one thing about cats that I recently learned.  Some of you might find it interesting, I know I did.  In talking to a friend after Nia class the other day, she asked me if I was going to write a blog post about it and I said no because I feel I have been posting too much about cats.  She made me think that it might be ok to do so.  So here ya go.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueNot all cats like catnip.  Well, it is not so much as “like” as it is respond to it.  It is a genetic thing.  I thought all cats liked catnip.  I thought catnip was like cat marijuana and every cat would get “high” off of it, but I recently learned that is not true.  Some cats will have a reaction to it and others won’t.  Between 70 to 80 percent of cats will react.  The reaction cats have is in a general “range”.  Most of them will “exhibit several behaviors common to queens in season (females in heat): They may rub their heads and body on the herb or jump, roll around, vocalize and salivate.”  (According to ScientificAmerican.com) And even more interesting:  “This response lasts for about 10 minutes, after which the cat becomes temporarily immune to catnip’s effects for roughly 30 minutes”.  So you can only dose your cats in 30 minute intervals.  But some cats also become immune to its effects.

Some cats get more aggressive than just rubbing their heads and rolling around, but it is not dangerous aggressive or violent aggressive.  Just maybe a little more aggressive and active than you are used to seeing your cat actually be.  But  I don’t know exactly first hand because I once read that catnip is a drug for the cat.  Some articles say that it is like LSD or marijuana.  So my hubby and I decided to keep our cat “drug-free”.  And we did.  We didn’t give our cat, Spot, catnip.  Once I bought a toy that either didn’t disclose on the website that it had catnip or I didn’t read it.  So we gave it to her, but then we put it away and it never came out again.  But with two cats, who knows what we will do.  This is new territory for us.  And by now, I had dreamed of being well into our “getting-to-know-you” phase.  Anyway . . . we will see.  In addition to the “frenzied”, “high”, “tripping” behavior a cat might exhibit there is a calm.  It acts like a sedative.  I could see that being a good thing.  But who knows.  When they have reign over the whole house we might never need a sedative.  Although from the sound of things it might be entertaining to see them on the stuff . . . .

What about you?  Did you think (like I did) that all cats reacted to catnip?  Do you allow your cat to indulge?

Posted in Cats | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments »

Now, Not The Future

Posted by terrepruitt on August 1, 2015

I admit, I am challenged with living in the NOW.  I have posted about it before in my Still Practicing Living in the Moment post.  It is a constant practice.  The idea of multi-tasking does not help.  It takes the focus off of what you are doing because your attention is split, and I talked about that in my post “Multitasking”.  There are so many things that remind me to live in the present.  There are always memes showing up on my Facebook Newsfeed.  There are even Bible verses.  Nia used to stand for Now I Am, which I was taught meant to focus on the present, to move and dance in the moment.  But still, I often don’t pay attention to the moment.  When I am not living in the moment sometimes it causes me to worry or feel anxious.  When I have a lot to do, a lot to get done, that is when I am most thinking about doing the next thing.  I am especially anxious for the future right now.  It is like when you have a vacation planned and you can’t wait for it to get here.  I can’t wait for our cats isolation period to be over with.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueWe brought them home on Saturday, July 4, 2015.  For a day or two Smokey was fine but then we noticed her starting to rub her ears a lot.  She was rubbing and scratching them bloody.  Then I noticed Esmeralda had scabby ears.  As I mentioned in my other post it didn’t really hit us that we needed to go to the vet until a Saturday.  We couldn’t get in to a vet (I called five) until Monday (July 13th).  The culture wasn’t back until Tuesday, the 21st.  John was wonderful and picked up the meds that evening on his way home from work.  So we could start administering right away.

It was on the 13th that we locked them in one room.  Now we have to give them meds until the August 19th.  We have an appointment with the vet on August 10th.  The vet will take samples at that time.  While we are waiting for the culture to come back (10 to 14 days) we will be finishing up the 30 days of medication.

We are excitedly waiting for the 19ths when we will be done with 30 days of medication.  But what if the culture doesn’t come back negative? OH MAN!  What if we have to go more isolation time and more culture time and expense? AHHHH!  What if ONE culture is negative and the other one positive?  What if we go bat guano crazy before the 19th?

So I am having a difficult time living in the now.  I have a ton of stuff to do and I feel as if I can’t really concentrate or enjoy (whatever should apply) because I am so wanting this whole thing to be over.  I want the cats to be able to free, plus I really just want to get back to living our regular lives.  This whole process is a pain in the ass.

I know I need to just focus on the moment.  It really does make things better.  It allows me to get more out of what I am doing.  I allows me to enjoy the present.  It helps me to not worry and be anxious.  But damn it is a challenge!

Can you share a story of a situation when you were looking forward to the end and anxious about it at the same time?  Have you ever had this happen where you are not living in the moment? 

Posted in Cats, Misc, Teagan and Nessa | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Fingers And Toes

Posted by terrepruitt on July 14, 2015

About four months ago I went to a Foot Fitness Workshop as part of a Movement as Medicine Series by Tanya Baldwin N.D..  I wrote a post about it called Foot Fitness Workshop — Ahhhhh! I could have sworn we did an exercise where we put our fingers in between our toes, but I am not seeing that on the list nor in my post, but I know I would not have done it on my own.  I know I have seen it other places too, such as in connection with yoga, but I can’t put my finger on those references at the moment.  I am not fond of this exercise.  For some reason I really don’t like to put my fingers between my toes.  Well, I think it is more accurate to say I don’t like things between my toes.  But this is a great exercise for the feet.  It is also relatively simple.

I had to have done it at that workshop because I wouldn’t do it on my own.  But once I did it I realized how great it made my feet feel.  It helped open my foot and made it feel as if it had more space.  Everyone’s feet are different.  Some people have toes that are wide apart and some people have toes that are close together.  My big toe on both feet have enough room for another toe to be in between them and the rest of my toes.  So I have no problem wearing flip-flops where your big toes and second toes “straddle” something.  But I don’t like things in between my other toes.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYo, Nia TechniqueMy other toes are very close together.  It is a challenge for me to get my fingers in between my toes.  Now the idea is not just to put your fingers in between your toes.  The exercise involves putting your fingers in between your toes all the way down to your hand.  So your fingers are all the way down to where your toes meet with your feet and your toes are all the way down to where your fingers meet with your hand.  For me that is wedging my fingers in between my toes.  I don’t really like it.  The orientation is the bottom of your foot is in the palm of your hand.  You want to put your fingers in your toes from the bottom.

But as I said, I had done it and I loved the way my feet felt afterwards.  So . . . I took it to a stretching class I taught.  I told them I was doing something I didn’t like to do, but I knew was good for them.  I put it in the “routine” just for them.  After we did it our feet felt great.

Today I brought this exercise to my Nia class.  Since I did it and I like the way it made my feet feel I wanted to bring it to Nia, but it seems like a Floorplay exercise, but after we dance we don’t want to touch our feet.  No matter how clean the floor is, after moving around on it for 50 minutes, touching your feet is just not very comfortable.  Perhaps touching the top or even a quick touch.  But the way you have to wedge your fingers in between your toes, is not so great after almost an hour of barefoot dancing on multi-use type floors.

So today we STARTED class with this exercise.  We took a bit of time to do it.  We talked about the sensations of the our foot and our hand as we did it.  A lot of us didn’t really like it.  But we did it.  We noticed that one set of toes seemed easier to wedge our fingers in between.  All of us agree that our foot felt more open after doing it.  With the way we squish our feet into shoes.  It is great to allow them to open up with this exercise.

It helps with mobility in the foot because we move our foot around while I fingers are in between our toes.  It helps strengthen the toes because they are moved into a different position.  It helps bring mobility and flexibility into the toes because we are causing the toes to move and separate.  It is good for overall foot health.  Try it.  You will see how different your feet feel after.  You will appreciate the sensation.

Have you done this exercise before?  How does it make your feet feel?

Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

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