Sometimes you need the strength of a lion.
Here is another Willow Glen Watercolor for today’s Friday Photo.
And there is this.
Posts Tagged ‘strength’
Lion’s Strength
Posted by terrepruitt on January 17, 2020
Posted in Friday Photo | Tagged: Friday Photo, lion, strength, watercolor, Willow Glen Community Cetner, Yoga | 4 Comments »
Adding A Challenge To A Pose Mastered
Posted by terrepruitt on November 30, 2016
I teach two gentle yoga classes. Gentle yoga doesn’t necessarily mean beginner yoga. It can if the class is a beginner yoga class, but “gentle” doesn’t mean beginner. The way I make the yoga class gentle is we don’t hold the poses for a long time. We also don’t flow through a long combination of poses. I usually do a sequence of two, three poses at the most, but the class is not a flow. In my two regularly scheduled gentle yoga classes we actually just stop and get down (or stop and get up) because I feel that being able to get up off of the floor is very important. We don’t use downward facing dog, forward folds, planks, or poses to get down and up. We go at a comfortable pace slowly moving through poses. The classes are not beginner classes because I have been teaching some of the same students for years. So they are not beginners. They know many poses and they know what their bodies should be doing in those poses, but they like to do yoga gently. But we still need to add some challenge to some of the poses. So, for a small group of students in my gentle yoga classes we have added a challenge to one of the poses that they have down. 
For those that can balance fine, we have added the challenge of closing our eyes.
We are still doing the pose, but we close our eyes to add to the pose. Just the simple act of closing our eyes causes us to get a little wobbly and therefore work more at standing upright. Just like with our eyes open one side is easier than the other. But this simple act gives the pose a new spin.
The inner ear plays a huge role in our balance, but so do our eyes. Once we take vision out of the equation it makes balancing more challenging. I believe practicing balancing with our eyes closed will allow us to get better at it over time. While we are practicing we will be using those stabilizing muscles and that will help us be better balanced. Just as practicing balance with your eyes open.
This is a fun thing to add to the balance practice because, as I said, my students can do this pose well, so it is kind of surprise that just closing one’s eyes makes it as if they can’t do the pose. There are some “whoas” and “what the . . ” and giggles because it is just so funny that a pose we can do all of a sudden we can’t do it (as well).
For now we are only closing our eyes when doing the Stork pose, but once we have that down AND have more stability in some of our other balances poses we will add “eyes closed” to them.
So if you come to one of my regularly scheduled yoga classes you might experience this. If you come to one I am subbing, I usually do things a little differently. That is one thing that is so great about teaching yoga, it can be adjusted and modified so it is not always the same. With the adjustments and modifications, hopefully, they are helping you improve your stability, flexibility, and strength. Sometimes all it takes is something so simple as closing your eyes.
Did you try it? Just standing with your eyes closed? How about standing on one leg with your eyes closed?
Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: add a challenge, Balance Pose, beginner classes, Closing your eyes, flexibility, gentle yoga, practice stability, stabilizing muscles, Stork Pose, strength, yoga classes, yoga poses, yoga teacher | Leave a Comment »
The Difference Between Yoga And Stretch
Posted by terrepruitt on September 9, 2016
Currently I am lucky enough to teach yoga classes and a stretch class. And I say “lucky” because I was asked to do these classes but they can be cancelled at any time. Class attendance needs to stay up or the classes can get cancelled. This is the case with pretty much any type of exercise class at any type of place . . . a gym, a club, a parks and recs department, etc. Ok, but where I am actually going with this post is: people ask me all the time what the difference is between yoga and stretch. Well, my first thought is my post “More To Yoga Than Just Asana,” but that would only help to explain what yoga is and not what we do in a stretch class. Because I teach gentle yoga classes people are curious about the difference. It makes sense since they seem the same, but there are differences. In addition to breathing yoga is different from stretch by a few points.
In regards to the way I do my gentle yoga and my stretch classes here are some of the differences:
—In yoga we work on more than just flexibility, we also work on balance and strength. In stretch we focus mainly on STRETCHING muscles and, to a lesser extent, connective tissue. We are not working either in a stabilizing or strengthening capacity.
—The poses in yoga have names, at least two, the English name and a Sanskrit name. In stretch my instruction is usually something like, “move your arm here or there” as I show them how to get into the stretch. Sometimes I do refer to an asana by name that is similar because many of the students do take yoga also, so they know what to do when I say the name of a pose.
—Some people “can’t do” yoga, but they CAN stretch. 🙂 Seriously, invite someone to a yoga class and they will say, “I can’t do yoga, I’m not flexible enough.” Invite them to a stretch class and they say, “Oh! I need to stretch.”
—With yoga, people seem to want to “get” somewhere. They want to be able to “do” a specific pose. With stretching, even though they might be able to bend deeper or more fully as time goes on, there doesn’t seem to be the urge or need to “get there”. With stretch the journey seems more important than the destination. Although it really is supposed to be the same way for yoga.
Another question I am always asked is, “Are you on the floor the whole hour?” No, but we don’t go up and down as much as in my gentle yoga classes. In both my gentle yoga classes and my stretch classes we do poses/stretches standing up and on the floor.
Stretching is so good for you. We all should be doing it, even if we don’t weight train or run marathons, it is really good to stretch the muscles. But many of us need a class, something we are committed to doing in order to actually take the time to stretch. I am happy to help in that area and teach a class.
Do you stretch?
Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: balance, flexibility, More To Yoga Than Just Asana, muscle stretching, strength, stretch class, stretching exercises, Yoga class, yoga poses | 5 Comments »
I Don’t Like Fish, But I Like This
Posted by terrepruitt on October 30, 2014
I love twists. The folding, bending, twisting poses in yoga. Right now I’m thinking about Ardha Matsyendrasana or Half Lord of the Fishes Pose. This is the one where one leg is folded or bent and the other leg is over it and you’re twisted. Twists can be challenging, but you can often find a level of execution that you can relax into. And as with all poses the more you practice it well, the more you can twist as you gain flexibility. Some twists – depending on the supporting factor – can be good to practice strength and stability. Twists are good for flexibility and digestion.
I prefer to start this pose sitting on one hip (I’ll use the left hip in the example) with my feet to the (right) side. Using the clock as we do in Nia, sit in the middle of the clock, with the left knee at 12 O’clock. Reach with the crown of your head to the sky. Lengthen the neck – create space between the ears and the shoulders. Open the chest. Draw the shoulders back and down. Let those shoulder blades slide down the back. Lift the ribs off of the hips. Gently bring the right knee up and the right foot over the left knee to rest with whole foot on the floor at about 11 O’clock. Use your left hand to gently hold the right knee as you twist your torso to the right. Keeping the posture that you set up before you brought your right leg over the left (lengthened spine) allow your right hand gently press into the earth behind you . . . a few inches from your right buttock. Both hips remain on the floor. With your posture intact relax into it for a few breaths, then untwist, and bring your feet back to the right side. Then switch your feet to the other side and proceed on this side.
That was the gentle version. Stay with this until you are comfortable and confident that you can retain the long straight posture through your entire back and neck before you add the rest of the pose. The additions could be using the crook of your elbow to hold your knee more snuggly up to your rotated torso. The supporting hand would land on the floor more towards the center of your back as you increase the depth of the twist. As you twist further you might find your right foot past the 11 O’clock position, straying towards 10 O’clock. Find your comfortable place, keeping the whole foot on the ground.
A deeper twist would be to place the left elbow (keeping with the original example) on the outside of your right knee. Your left hand could even rest on the left knee. With this the supporting hand would land on the floor perhaps just a smidge more towards the center of your back as you increase the depth of the twist or not. This is a different type of intensity but it might not take your supporting hand that much further back.
There is even a further step where you can thread your left arm (keeping with the original example) through your right leg under the knee and the right arm behind your back so they can link up.
There is also a way to decrease the intensity and that would be to straighten the left (keeping with the original example) leg. It would remain active. As in you would gently press it straight out and down. Hip, knee, ankle and toes in alignment, with knee and toes to the sky. The straight leg version can be used with any of the aforementioned “holds” (hand holding knee, crook of elbow, elbow on other side of knee).
This twist really helps with flexibility in the hips, knees, and ankles. I think of it as one of those “pretzel-y” yoga poses. I have experienced that it is best demonstrated with my back toward my students so they can bend, twist, turn, and hold the exact same sides.
Do you know this pose? Do you practice this pose? Do you like this pose? How do you feel after you do this pose?
Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: Ardha Matsyendrasas, asana, flexibility, Half Lord of the Fishes Pose, Nia, Nia Practice, stability, strength, twists, Yoga, yoga poses, Yoga Practice | 2 Comments »
Sometimes I Call It The Star Pose
Posted by terrepruitt on September 6, 2014
I like this pose, Utthita Hasta Padasana (Extended Hands and Feet Pose). It is an easy pose. It is one of those asanas that can be used in so many places in a yoga routine. It can be used in the beginning to allow you to “come into your body” and start the process of concentration. It can be used in between other poses, either to rest or reset, or to allow for an easy transition. It can be used at the end. It can be used to help practice awareness and learning sensations in your body. I often use it as part of the cooldown in my Nia classes. It is basically something almost everyone can do. Sometimes it might present an initial challenge for some needing help with balance, but after a bit it becomes easy. I like it. It is very versatile.
Generally no matter when or where in the routine this pose is placed in my current yoga classes we do not hop into it. We step into the wide stance. The feet are beyond the width of the shoulders. If we have come from a mountain pose then we continue with our reaching, lengthening, relaxing, and lifting, but if we are stepping into this from another pose then we check our posture. We want to reach with the crown of the head to the sky, lengthening the neck – creating space between the ears and the shoulders, we allow our shoulders to relax and our shoulder blades to “drip” down our back, we lift the ribs off of the hips, and lift the knee caps by activating our thigh muscles. The feet – in the wide stance – are parallel to the edges of the mat and each other. The chest is open. Arms are stretched out to the side, elbows and hands are at an even height with the shoulders. We are reaching for the opposite walls.
Standing there you open your chest and create space in the joints. Reach up to be taller and reach out to be longer. The head reaching up, the arms reaching out. Feet are firmly planted, weight is evenly distributed over the entire foot (both feet), toes are spread. Here is where you sense the strength and stability while opening.
This pose is traditionally done from the mountain pose with hands at chest level, finger tips touching in front of the heart center. Then when you hop your legs into your wide stance you put your arms out at the same time. In order to be “gentle” we step into our Utthita Hasta Padasana.
Many yoga poses are challenging. Many test strength, many test balance, many test flexibility. The ones, like this one might be very easy so the possibility that they are over looked and not practice in many yoga classes could be very high. But it is the easy asanas where sometimes we learn the most. We learn to take a moment to sense the body. What does it feel like to stand wide, reaching and lengthening? What is the sensation in my bones? What is the sensation in my muscles? Can I open my chest any further? Can I make my arms longer? Check into these sensations. Allow yourself to learn and become familiar so that you can do more challenging poses with the body knowledge you have gained from the easier poses.
Do you do this pose as part of your practice? Do you do this pose in the yoga class you attend?
Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: asana, body sensations, chest open, Extended Hands and Feet Pose, gentle yoga, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia cool down, shoulder width apart, stability, strength, Utthita Hasta Padasana, yoga classes, yoga poses, Yoga Practice | Leave a Comment »
In Nia We Travel
Posted by terrepruitt on November 14, 2013
Nia is a cardio dance exercise that I teach. It is more than that, but that is one way to describe it. One of the ways it is more than that, is, it is a practice. If you chose to treat it like a practice, as one might treat yoga as a practice, one would become aware of Nia’s 52 Moves. There are 52 moves that get choreographed into the Nia Routines. One of the moves is Traveling in Directions. This is a great move for many reasons.
One reason Traveling in Directions is great is because it is very easy. Another reason it is great is because it is very adaptable and can be used in almost every song and in every routine. The main way to travel in a direction is to simply walk. Using the Heel Lead technique just walk forward, then change the direction you are walking, then change the direction, etc. With the simplest of forms you look where you want to go before you move in that direction. So before your feet actually start going a different direction — LOOK. There is a little bit of thinking involved because we look before we go. Allow your arms to move freely. Step confidently in whichever direction you choose to look. Move your body as a whole.
The Nia Technique book states: “Practicing Traveling in Directions keeps your body agile for moving through space in all directions, able to change direction with ease.”
When we use this move in our routines we have a lot of fun playing with it. The move really is as easy as stated, the fun comes when changing directions quickly. You can be the leader of your own movement or sometimes you are being directed by the teacher. This makes agility one of the Nia sensations we practice with this move. Moving one way then quickly stopping and going another way. Stopping, changing, starting. Varying the speed at times will allow for additional Nia sensations such as strength and stability to come into play.
When Traveling in Directions on your own you become aware of the direction you want to go, then you look, then you go. As I said, there are times when you might be listening to the direction of the teacher, which would still mean you would need to become aware of the direction you want to go, but when being told where to go your body’s reaction is quicker. There is a quick look then a move in that direction. Less thought is involved for you as the participant because someone else thought of the direction you were going to go.
Often when this move is done in a class, quick thinking, quick moving, and quick reacting are additional skills that receive attention because we are dancing with others on the floor so we might have to switch our trajectory quickly to avoid a dance floor collision.
Modifications of the traveling can be done by going backwards or sinking low or even rising high. So many ways to travel in directions. All of them are great opportunities to try out the Nia Sensations, the more you do, the more ways you move your body. If you want you can even skip. Skipping in different directions adds a new dimension to the move.
Sometimes this move is choreographed into the Nia routine with specifics and sometimes is allowed more of a Free Dance. However it is added to the Nia workout it is a wonderful way to dance.
How would you Traveling in Directions to your current favorite song?
Posted in 52 Moves (of Nia), Nia | Tagged: body agile, cardio dance exercise, dance class, dance floor, Free Dance, Heel lead, Nia, Nia choreography, Nia class, Nia participant, Nia routines, Nia sensations, Nia Teacher, Nia workout, Nia's 52 Moves, Practice, stability, strength, The Nia Technique book, Traveling in Directions, Yoga, yoga teacher | 2 Comments »
What IS PiYo?
Posted by terrepruitt on July 9, 2013
I am very shocked and somewhat embarrassed that I have had this blog for over four years and I have never written a post explaining PiYo™. PiYo is a combination of Pilates (Pi) and Yoga (Yo), brought to us by Chalene Johnson. Chalene is the creator of Turbo Jam®, Turbo Kick®, TurboFire®, Hip Hop Hustle®, and ChaLEAN Extreme®. These programs are put out by either Beachbody or her company, Powder Blue Productions. With PiYo the idea is to combine the two mind/body practices in order to appeal to a large audience. Pilates and yoga are somewhat similar to begin with, both have a component of connecting the mind and the body in conscious movement. Both have ideals on breathing and breath. Both are a way to improve flexibility, stability, strength, and balance. Depending on which type of yoga practice there could be agility and mobility involved as in Pilates. Now this might sound familiar if you know about Nia. In Nia we have the five sensations flexibility, agility, mobility, strength, and stability (FAMSS) which we play with in our dance. In PiYo the same sensations can be experienced. The manual states: “PiYo is considered a ‘Western’ approach to the practices of mind/body fitness.”
I believe that many people think yoga has been “Westernized”. Since there are so many types of yoga there might not always be a spirituality in the yoga class or chanting, meditating, or even the Sanskrit terminology. That is true with a PiYo class. It is more about the physical with an awareness.
PiYo combines yoga breathing and Pilates breathing. In general a yoga pose is done with yoga breathing and a Pilates exercise is done with Pilates breathing. Of course, students are encouraged to breath in a way that is comfortable to them and that works with their individual body, the aforementioned is just a general guide.
The PiYo class follows the tried and true module of a typical exercise class. There is a section for warming up, a section for general strength and balance, a section with more of a focus specific area of the body (say a core, upper body, or lower body), then a cool down and relaxation section. While yoga poses could meet all the requirement of each section and Pilates exercises could also, it is often the case that each section will have a majority of one or the other. Although, you might be like me and think that there is such a huge cross over it is difficult with some moves to claim it is only a yoga move or only a Pilates move. While I am certain the move did originate from one or the other practice specifically it seems as though currently there is a huge cross over. That is one reason why I think Pilates and yoga marry ups so well. They can be considered very similar.
So throughout the class there will be yoga poses and Pilates exercises. It is up to the instructor and the make-up of the class as to whether the yoga poses will be held for a measured amount of time or done in a flow. No matter which is chosen it will be a sequences of poses. Whereas the Pilates exercises are done in repetition. Generally sequences of repetitions.
A PiYo class is allowed the freedom of design. As mentioned there is a class format, but then the way it is carried out is dependent on the instructor and students. The consistence of a PiYo class is that it is for the body and the mind using both yoga poses and Pilates moves.
Do you practice yoga? Do you practice Pilates?
Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: agility, balance, Beachbody, ChaLEAN Extreme, Chalene Johnson, chanting, conscious movement, exercise programs, flexibility, Hip Hop Hustle, meditating, mind/body fitness, mind/body practices, Mobility, Nia, Nia class, Nia Dance, Nia five sensations, Pilates, PiYo class, PiYo manual, Powder Blue, Sanskrit terminology, spirituality, stability, strength, Turbo Jam, TurboFire, TurboKick, types of yoga, Western approach, Yoga, Yoga class, Yoga Pose, Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | 2 Comments »
Knee Sweep – One Of Nia’s 52 Moves
Posted by terrepruitt on August 30, 2012
Now, I know that I’ve been doing the knee sweep a lot longer than I have been doing Nia. So it is true that Nia’s 52 moves are not necessarily unique to Nia, but they are part of the core of Nia. You will find a large portion of Nia’s 52 moves in every routine. There are correct ways to do them, but Nia allows for the body’s way and also, I believe Nia allows for the move to be incorporated into the dance. For instance, The Nia Technique book states that the starting position for a knee sweep is the sumo stance. I am sure that I have done a knee sweep from a sumo stance at one time, but the first dance that pops into my head where we do the knee sweep it is not from a sumo position. But the by the book (oh, yeah, that reminds me, “BUY THE BOOK!” 🙂 ), anyway, the by-the-book version of the knee sweep starts from a sumo position, complete with arms in ready position and everything. Then the body rises as you come up on one leg bringing the other leg up with a bent knee. The knee crosses the midline of the body, the opposite hand “pushes” the knee out. The knee swings out so the pelvis is open. Then the leg comes down and the foot lands on the earth. That is the knee sweep of Nia’s 52 moves.
The book does not indicate that when your foot comes down it is in the toes-to-the-front position, but that is how I teach it. I don’t want my students landing on their foot with their knee out to the side. If we are just doing knee sweeps as an exercise, maybe I would have them do that, because they would be aware of the torque in their hip, but probably not.
When I was first doing this move in Nia I was trying to do it as the book shows and as many of the people on the Nia instructional DVDs do and as the instructor does (whether it be Debbie Rosas or Carlos AyaRosas). And that was with the knee out to the side very wide. REALLY opening the pelvis. But when I did that I noticed a “something” – I don’t know what it was, but it was something – in my lower back. So I decided that opening my hip that wide and having my leg out that far was not MY body’s way, so I do not do that. I share with my students that I found the comfortable spot to be about as far as my forearms can reach. I “glue” my elbows to my sides and hold my forearms out to the side. As far as they can go is as far as I allow my knee to go. That is what works for me.
Some of the time that we are doing the knee sweep it is at the end of a “up-two-three-four (knee sweep), back-two-three-four (knee sweep)”. So that would not allow for the sumo position to be the start. Other times we are standing upright. As I said, I am sure I have done it from the sumo position because I bet it is in a routine I am not thinking of. But the ones I am thinking of it is done from a walking or standing position.
The amazing thing about the knee sweep is that it calls for the knee to cross the midline of the body. So that means that if you were doing a left knee sweep (with your left leg) your left knee would enter into the right hemisphere of your body. If you were doing a right knee sweep (with your right leg) your right knee would enter into the right hemisphere of your body. It is a great thing when your limbs cross the midline. It helps stimulate the brain. So there is a reason in many exercise routines and cardio classes that we have you do “cross overs”.
The knee sweep is one of those moves that requires balance. Since at one point you are standing on one leg, you will be able to improve your balance or practice what you have. Also the moving of the leg helps with that stability. Standing on one leg helps with strength and opening the hip helps with mobility and flexibility. The knee sweep of Nia’s 52 moves does a body and brain good!
Are you familiar with this move? Have you done it before in your exercise class? Did you give it a try?
Posted in 52 Moves (of Nia), Nia | Tagged: Cardio classes, cardio dance class, Carlos AyaRosas, cross the midline of the body, dance, Debbie Rosas, exercise routines, flexibility, improve balance, Knee Sweep, Mobility, my body's way, Nia, Nia instructional DVDs, Nia routine, Nia students, Nia's 52 Moves, stability, strength, Sumo Stance, the Nia Technique books | Leave a Comment »
Another Zumba and Nia Comparison
Posted by terrepruitt on June 30, 2012
I teach Nia. I have been teaching Nia for three and a half years. Not as many people who I talk to have heard of Nia as have heard of Zumba so I am constantly being asked the difference between Nia and Zumba. Since I am often asked I am often thinking about them and comparing them. First, they are actually the same in that music is played and participants dance to it. Second, in both the instructor leads the participants through the various dance moves. Third, participants of both claim they are both fun. One difference is Nia is an experience in five sensations, Zumba seems to concentrate on one.
The experience is such a big part of Nia we actually call them the five sensations of Nia. I have posted about them before (FAMSS). They are the sensation of flexibility, of agility, of mobility, of strength, and of stability. In a Nia class your body will move in a way that allows you to sense the energy moving out and away. You will bend and stretch to play with flexibility, either retaining what you have or improving upon it. There are moves in the routines that require the start and the stop. The movement that is agility could be done with our feet, our arms, our hands, our bodies, our heads or a combination of body parts but we sense the start and the stop. With every routine there is a lot of mobility, some routines have more than others, but all of them that I have experienced have a lot. With mobility it is just the same as agility in that it could be a body part that is moving or our whole body. Whatever the case there is a lot of movement from each joint that helps create a healthy joint by allowing the fluid to move to it and within it. Then we also play with strength. We might squeeze our muscles sensing the energy moving in as if the bones are being hugged by the muscles. We might do squats or sit-ups, punches and/or kicks, but there is time where we play with strength. I say Nia is very big on balance because we do many moves that requires us to be stable. Many of our moves are balancing on one leg, could be a kick, could be a stance, but it requires stability. Moving from one move to the next often requires us to call upon our stability. In a Nia routine we experience all of these sensations. I’ve reached the conclusion that Zumba is primarily agility.
In Zumba the moves are always fast. So it is a constant state of start and stop. The only sensation I sense while doing Zumba is agility. Fast start, fast stop . . . . even when there is a stretch where your muscles are yearning for a second to move to their fullest length, it is a fast stretch that does not allow for the muscle to be fully stretched. Doing a full hour of agility is not a bad thing at all. It can be fun and it can produce a lot of sweat. And many of us are programmed to think that sweat equals a good workout. I think that if you are adding Zumba to a stretching program that has some balance practice in it that is great.
I am also a believer that there are a lot of things that compliment Nia too. I actually think that if you like Nia and Zumba and you are able to do both that is a nice combination. You get two different types of cardio. One that is a workout in the sensation of agility and one that can move you through more use of the entire body to get that heart pumping.
I really believe that whatever gets you moving is GREAT. I think that you have to like what you do in order to make it a constant in your life. So Zumba, Nia, Jazzercise, U-Jam, yoga, kickboxing, bootcamp, weight training, whatever works for you is great. Do what you will do! That is the key!
It is that I am always asked about the difference between Zumba and Nia that I am always thinking about it and this was my latest thought after I did a Zumba class. I think I posted before about how I am left wanting to extend and finish my moves in Zumba and it dawned on me that it is the sensation of agility that is predominant in Zumba. Some Zumba classes I have attended do take a song to stretch at the end, but not all of them. So I guess it depends on the instructor. Nia instructors are encouraged to infuse their classes and the routines with their personalities, so I am sure that every Nia class has a few differences too.
Both Nia and Zumba are great cardio workouts. It just depends on what you want to do during your workout and what you want to get out of it. Do what you will do!
So, what is it that you do?
Posted in Nia, Zumba | Tagged: agility, bootcamp, cardio dance, cardio workout, dance exercise, FAMSS, five sensations, flexibility, Jazzercise, kickboxing, Mobility, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia instructor, Nia Moves, Nia participants, Nia routines, Nia Teacher, Nia vs Zumba, stability, strength, U-Jam, Ujam, weight training, Yoga, Zumba, Zumba classes, Zumba instructor, Zumba participants, Zumba routines | 11 Comments »
Build it Big
Posted by terrepruitt on February 24, 2011
In Nia classes we have the opportunity to experience flexibility AND mobility AND agility AND strength AND stability. Depending on the starting point we can either be increasing or maintaining. I also believe it is good for people to participate in a weight training program. I believe it is good to use weights to keep strength or build strength. I think having muscle strength in important. Most people do not have to concern themselves about getting big and bulking up. I have heard women say they don’t lift weights because they don’t want to do either of those things.
First of all, as a reminder, weights are not the only way to build strength, any type of resistance can work muscles. Depending on your starting point different things can be used, for example body weight alone without the use of weights is a great place to start. The use of resistance bands or tubing can be a great way to work muscles without having to deal with storing the weights. Working with weights (resistance) is a great way to stave off the aging process.
I think it might help people who are afraid of building big muscles to know how it happens. Basically if you want to build big muscles you have to work really, really, really hard at it. It doesn’t happen from going to the gym two or three times a week doing a few exercises at 8 repetitions each. Hypertrophy (muscles getting bigger) occurs when heavy weights are lifted in a specific way . . . more than the average person is going to lift (75% to 85% of what you can absolutely lift), more exercises than the average person takes time for, and with less rest time than most people take in the gym. It really takes work and concentration. It is very stressful on the body and people often don’t like to be sore. The type of lifting required to cause hypertrophy is not something the average woman is going to do. Doing 8 to 12 repetitions of a few exercise two or three times a week will enable your muscles to stay toned or it might even build some strength, but it will not make the muscles really big. If you want to increase your strength add more resistance or more reps.
What could actually happen if you start working with weights is the shape of the muscle might adjust and it you might think it is bigger because you actually start sensing it. I would recommend you measure your limbs with a flexible tape measure before you start a weight regimen. After a couple of weeks measure again, see if there is actually an increase in size. I’ll be waiting to hear . . . .
Posted in Exercise and Working Out | Tagged: agility, anti aging, flexibility, hypertrophy, Mobility, muscle building, muscle tone, muscle toned, Nia, Nia Classes, resistance training, stability, strength, strength building, strength training, weight training | 5 Comments »
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