Posts Tagged ‘workout’
Posted by terrepruitt on December 15, 2009
Not too long ago I was feeling so tired. I didn’t know why and I still don’t KNOW why, I think I know, but I am not sure. I think I wasn’t getting enough iron. I take Calcium supplements, they are Cal Complete so they have other stuff in them. I understand and I like the idea of being able to get all the nutrients I need from food and not having to take a supplement. But . . . I don’t think that is realistic for me. I think that sometimes I just don’t eat all the nutrients I need. Also, since our food is so altered who really knows if I am getting the nutrients I need from the food. There are other reasons I food might not have all the nutrients we think, first of all the food can be altered (as I just stated), or it could be not as fresh as it needs to be for optimal nutrients, or I could be cooking some of the nutrients out. Either way, I like the idea, but I don’t think it is entirely possible to get everything I need all the time from food. And with calcium it is recommended to take a supplement anyway.
With calcium your body can only absorb so much at a time so it is recommended to take it twice a day. I always take the “going to bed” one, but I was forgetting about the morning one. And I think it was affecting me. I eat a spinach salad almost every night so I thought I was getting enough iron through that, but apparently even though spinach has a lot of iron the body cannot absorb it that well.
There are two kinds of iron heme and nonheme. Heme is found in meat and is most easily absorbed by the body. Nonheme is typically found in plant sources and is not as easily absorbed.
I eat mostly chicken with about 1.1 milligrams per 3 oz. compared to beef at 2.2 to 3.2 milligrams per 3 oz. Add my chicken to my salad, I have about 3.8 milligrams. The total of the two is close to 20% of the recommended daily allowance. So, if you add my two calcium pills with a total of 83% of the RDA you get 103%. If I only take one then I am missing about 40%. Now I don’t know if that is enough to make me feel like I did, but I thought, “Hey, let’s get back to my 83% and remember to take both pills and now I am feeling less tired.’”
Of course, only lab tests and a doctor can tell me what if it truly was low iron. It could be a lot of things, but I just thought it was interesting that spinach doesn’t contain as much iron as I thought and absorbing it depends on what it is mixed with. So I figure with the chicken I eat, the spinach I eat and the calcium with iron I take, in addition to anything else I am eating that might have iron in it, I really will be getting the RDA.
For a lot more information on iron: (06.07.20 – sorry seems like this link no longer works)
http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/iron.asp
Posted in Food | Tagged: Calcium, dietary supplements, exercise, heme, iron Calcium supplements, nonheme, nutients, nutrients, spinach, workout | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 8, 2009
With the Turbo Jam DVD set you get five workouts. Learn and Burn, 20 Minute, Turbo Sculpt, Cardio Party, and Ab Jam.
With the Ab Jam you get the jacket saying the workout is 20 minutes. Timer starts it out at 18:53.
Chalene Johnson says it is 10 minutes standing and 10 minutes on the ground. First there is a tiny warm up then the exercise consist of ab movements. Basically you are bending from side to side and bending forward. But if you are just doing the motion and not actually putting the effort of contracting your abs then it is just movement and you won’t get any contraction type of benefit. As Chalene says it is not “leaning to the side, it is crunching”. So you have to bend but make sure you are getting in the isometric contraction.
The movement includes some of the moves that Chalene calls her “Elite Eleven”. The Turbo Tuck and the row are examples. She also gets some squats and balance exercises in there.
I originally purchased this set of DVDs because it claimed to have standing ab work and it does!
With 9:20 left you’re on the floor. She moves the first exercise from standing to the floor, so you are doing the tuck, then traditional crunches. Here you can clearly see the different intensity levels.
The music has changed from dance music to a more middle-eastern flair. Even though the style has changed Chalene manages to get some grooving in there. I am convinced she loves to dance.
Some on the advanced ab work is done with your feet off the floor. Legs straight in the air or legs in “tabletop” (bent at the knee) as they call it in Pilates.
At the 4:00 minutes mark the routine changes and she has the punches included with the crunch.
When the routine has the ol’ hands-behind-your-head-elbows-out-to-the side cross over crunches she reminds you that you are actually leading with your shoulder and NOT your elbow because that is how you really work the abs.
With a little over a minute and a half left you are sitting up and working your abs with your feet off the ground and your knees going to one side then the other.
At about 20 seconds left you do down dog and child pose.
That is the Ab Jam routine in the five workout series of Turbo Jam.
So here in San Jose, where we normally have nice mild weather it has been cold and doing a workout DVD might be an alternative to going out and doing the regular walk, jog, or run. This DVD was not a cardio workout, but, it still gets your blood pumping and has a variety of ab exercises in it.
Posted in Exercise and Working Out | Tagged: ab exercises, Cardio Party, Pilates, San Jose, San Jose exercise, San Jose Pilates, San Jose Workout, Turbo Jam, Turbo Sculpt, workout | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on November 26, 2009
I am not a big fan of Thanksgiving. I don’t care for any of the traditional fare; sweet potatoes (especially with marshmallows, what is up with that?), stuffing, dressing, turkey, gravy, cranberries, and pumpkin pie. I don’t get excited for the big dinner. I do, however, like the idea of having a day where we give thanks.
It looks like the United States and Canada are the countries that do the Thanksgiving celebrating. But according to Wiki Grenada and the Netherlands do some celebrating to. The time of celebration was about the harvest, but now, as with a lot of Holidays it has morphed into something else.
I have been blessed with so many things to be thankful for, I make it a point to say thanks everyday. But with a day designated for giving thanks I get to gather with my family near my home in San Jose. Sometimes we get to be with both families, but this year it didn’t work out that way and we are staying local. I am thankful for all my blessings. Including you.
Posted in Misc | Tagged: blessings, cranberries, dressing, gravy, marshmallows, pumpkin pie, San Jose Workout, stuffing, sweet potatoes, Thanksgiving, turkey, workout, Workout San Jose | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on November 24, 2009
–Push Ups (So many versions, pick one)
–Squats on BOSU (standing on the rounded side)
–Chest press with dumbbells lying on stability ball
–Wall Squats with stability ball
–Flyes lying on stability ball
–Air bench (“sitting” back against wall)
–Triceps Dip
–Side Step Drill using BOSU
–Triceps Kickbacks using bench
–Calf raises on BOSU (standing on the rounded side)
This is just a generic sample of a push workout. There are so many ways to do push ups you should do them however you safely are able and however best fits your goals.
Squats on the BOSU can also be done standing on the flat side, which would be more of a challenge.
With the chest press and the flyes on the stability ball you are keeping your upper back supported by the ball, but to get a bit of lower body in there and some stability practice your hips are off the ball and level with the floor.
Wall squats can be done with one leg.
The side step drill can be timed.
This was initially created for the exercises to be done in pairs as listed; one set of push-ups, one set of squats, then back to push ups, then squats, then on to the next pairing. But just like the Pull Workout, the weight used, the reps done, the speed in which do it and how many times you do it all depends on what you are trying to accomplish.
Try squeezing a workout in between all the Holiday Happenings and New Moon risings, even if you have to do it during the twilight hours.
Posted in Exercise and Working Out | Tagged: BOSU, exercises, Holiday happenings, Pull workout, push exercises, push workout, push-ups, stability ball, Twilight New Moon, workout | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on November 19, 2009
As a Nia teacher there are prescribed steps we are to take to learn a routine. It is easy to skip steps in the interest of time. We all learn in different ways and as humans we tend to follow the easiest path. No matter what we are doing our tendency is to do it the easiest way possible. So some of the steps might be skipped.
I recently attended a FAB*, it was short workshop that covered some of those steps. Being in a workshop with everyone focusing on the same thing made it a lot easier to learn. At home, when I set about working on learning a routine, I get very distracted by things. So being in a room where there was no cat, no computer, no dirty dishes, no laundry, and no cleaning that needed to be done was awesome. It really enabled me to focus.
The routine that we were working on is called Aya (one of Carlos AyaRosas, FKA Carlos Rosas). It is very Latin based–it has both Latin music and Latin moves allowing for a lot of hip swaying and sexy moves. One of the songs that we reviewed was not in English and someone translated it for us. I have to say that sometimes when you know the words of the song it can make the movements different.
This workshop was a shortened version of another workshop that was recently held in Concord. That was a two day workshop where they reviewed the entire routine. The one I attended in Nevada City was only four hours. We reviewed two songs. I will be honest and tell you that I could not do the songs without seeing them again. But I am confident that once I purchase the routine and set out to learn it, these two songs will be a snap.
I also returned to San Jose with a renewed sense of knowledge. I might KNOW something, but it always helps to review and to look at it from different angles. I enjoy hearing how information filters into people differently.
Nia is so wonderful because it is so many things. It is a workout, it is a practice, it is exercise, it is something that brings people together, it can be the basis of a workshop, it is just fabulous.
*FAB = For all belts. Nia White Belts, Blue Belts, Brown Belts, and Black Belts.
NOTE: The pictures are actually from the little birthday acknowlegement we had for the owner of the studio.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: and Nia Black Belts, Aya, Carlos Rosas, exercise, exercise routine, FAB, For all belts, latin moves, Latin music, Latin routine, latin songs, Nia, Nia Blue Belts, Nia Brown Belts, Nia Concord, Nia exercise, Nia Nevada City, Nia Practice, Nia routine, Nia San Jose, Nia Teacher, Nia White Belt, Nia White Belts, Nia workshop, San Jose exercise classes, San Jose Nia, San Jose Nia classes, San Jose Workout, workout, workout routine, workshop | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on October 15, 2009
Recently I had a friend over and she made me laugh so hard. I was making popcorn for us and she kept saying things like, “If this works . . . .” “I can’t wait to see if this works.” “Are you sure this is going to work out?” It made me laugh. I had a pot and I made a HUGE bowl of popcorn. I didn’t take pictures at the time because I didn’t think I would blog about it, but then I made some more the other day and it reminded me that popcorn can be a healthy snack.
Ever cooked it on the stove?
I use a pot that will net me as much popcorn as I want. Remember a little pot will still net you a lot of popcorn. Since I use different size pots I don’t measure per se.
Pour enough olive oil in the bottom of the pot to cover from 1/2 to 3/4 of the bottom. You don’t want so much oil that the whole bottom of the pot is covered, then you will just end up with oily popcorn.
Let the oil get hot. Then pour enough popcorn in to fill the bottom. I usually let it make about two “layers”. Then put the lid on.
I realized that I was not good at making popcorn in a pot until I got pots and pans with glass lids. I always wanted to SEE if the popcorn is popping, so I would lift the lid. And that would take the heat out of the pot and the popcorn would burn before it popped. But with a glass lid I can let all the heat build up in the pot, which allows the heat to build up in the kernel and then POP!
I DO move the pot around, shaking it. I have a glasstop so I lift the pot up to shake it, but if you have a stove that you can move your pot around while it is still on the heat that is even better.
HAVE A BOWL READY! Because once the pot gets full and the popcorn starts pushing the lid off you need to start pouring. So just keep putting the popcorn in the bowl, return the pot to the stove, let more popped corn fill the pot, pour, pop, pour, pop. You might be able to turn the stove off in between that, it all depends on your stove and your pot, but you will get the hang of it after a couple of times.
Re-reading this before I post makes me want popcorn. Do you like popcorn? How do you cook it?
After I am done, I just salt it, I don’t use butter. But if you do, you can just melt it in the pot you just used to cook the popcorn. And if you do use butter, the calories and the fat content of the snack does go up. But, I think that butter is better than the “butter” they use at the theater. What is that stuff? Ewww.
Posted in Food | Tagged: heathly snack, olive oil, Popcorn, snack, stovetop, workout | Leave a Comment »
Posted by terrepruitt on September 8, 2009
This is a simple overview of TweetDeck. And by simple I mean it does not include all the features and tips and tricks of TweetDeck. My posts regarding Twitter are not for the power users to learn from. It would be great if they commented and shared information, but basically I am sharing what I know and I feel as if I have barely scratched the surface of what Twitter and all its hundreds of applications can do. In this post I do not cover all that TweetDeck can do. I only briefly address what I do, so far, with TweetDeck.
First off, one of the things that some people love about TweetDeck is that you can manage multiple Twitter Accounts with it. I don’t have multiple accounts so I don’t use TweetDeck like that so I won’t be talking about that here. All I can tell you about multiple accounts and TweetDeck is that there is something that says, “Add more accounts” and above the box you type in it says “From” and I am guessing that if you have multiple accounts it will list them there and you can indicate which account you are sending from. (I circled that in the photo. At the bottom.)
For my one account, I use TweetDeck to see various tweets all on one screen. I have an “All” column set up so that I can see tweets from all of the people that I follow. But, I am beginning to think that only the people I recently follow show up because I don’t see tweets from people that I started following when I first signed up for Twitter. So I made another column for those Twitterers.
I also have a column for “Nia People”. This is a “Group”, these are the people that I have met online that teach, do, practice, and love Nia. With this column I have actually set it up so that I see certain people that I am following that I know have something to do with Nia.
I have a “YelpSV” search column. With this column it is set up so that I see people that send a Tweet that mentions YelpSV. It searches for tweets that contain @YelpSV.
See? You can set up different columns and you can set them up different ways. You can set up a column for a search on “Workouts” and it will capture tweets that have that word in them or you can set up a column for a group called, for example “San Jose” or “Exercise Classes” and actually indicate certain people whose tweets you want to see in either of those columns.
It is quick and easy to set up columns so you can change them whenever you would like.
I also have a mentions column of HelpYouWell set up so when people @HelpYouWell I see those in a separate column—although they sometimes show up after the ones in the other columns. And I have DM (Direct Message) column so I can see messages sent directly to me, HelpYouWell.
I don’t have an issue with “API” (whatever that stands for), but I hear of people that do. Apparently Twitter only allows third party applications (systems? programs? Whatever.) 100 “touches” (that’s what I am calling them) per hour. So if your account “touches” twitter (either sending, receiving, dealing with, whatever) 100 times in an hour you have to wait for the next hour in order to “touch” twitter again. But this is only with third party stuff, like TweetDeck. If you are on Twitter.com it does not do that. So use TweetDeck and if you max out, use Twitter.com until the hour is up and go back to TweetDeck.
Posted in Twitter | Tagged: @HelpYouWell, API, exercise, exercise classes, exercise people, exercise San Jose, learn Nia, multiple Twitter accounts, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia exercise, Nia people, Nia Practice, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, San Jose exercise, San Jose Nia, San Jose Workout, teach exercise, teach Nia, teach workout, TweetDeck, TweetDeck API, TweetDeck columns, Twitter, Twitter.com, workout, workout classes, workout exercise, workout people, Workout San Jose, Yelp, YelpSV | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on August 25, 2009
Here are the main points to the 12 tips to help you move with Nia. These tips are taken from The Nia Technique a book written by the creators of Nia, Debbie Rosas and Carlos Rosas. The book can help you better understand how Nia can be is a great workout and can be just a workout or practice, like yoga and Pilates are practices.
~Use visual imagery to make movements feel natural.
~Combine small movements with large movements.
~Use your Base, Core, Upper Extremities, breath and voice to add energy and power to your moves.
~Use a variety of speeds.
~Use your joints to move energy.
~Use breath to start and stop the flow of energy.
~Add intensity to your movements by sinking lower and rising higher.
~Shift your body weight–don’t drop it—
~Add emotion to every motion.
~Use your fingers and hands to express how movements make you feel.
~Use your voice as you move, to activate your abdominal muscles.
~Lead your head movements with your eye movements.
While nothing compares to the energy of a live class, the book is a great way to get started or to get you acquainted with Nia.
These are great tips to help you get more from your workout yet also help it feel less like exercise.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: 12 tips, 12 tips to move with Nia, Carlos Rosos, creators of Nia, Debbie Rosas, exercise, Nia, Nia Practice, Pilates, Pilates practice, San Jose, San Jose exercise, San Jose Pilates, San Jose Workout, San Jose Yoga, The Nia Technique, The Nia Technique book, workout, Yoga, Yoga Practice | 8 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on August 4, 2009
Serious. Do it. Every day. It is a great exercise. Get down on the floor and get up again. Over and over. At least 10 times. For some of you it might be easy, fine then, make it challenging, put a book on your head, hold a glass of water, chew gum, don’t use your arms, do it on one leg, who cares, just make it an exercise for you that challenges your body and your brain. That way your brain will be trained and it will know how to get up.
If it is already a challenge, then do it. And do it again. Start off however you can. Use a couch, a chair, a person, a cane, a dog, whatever . . . .just get down, and get up at least five times. Keep doing it every day until you can do it more and without help.
Whether it is a challenge or not, while you are doing it, think about it. Think about what muscles you are using to get up. Try to get down on the floor differently every time, think about all the different muscles you are using. Also, try getting up differently, thinking about all of those muscles.
No, this will not increase the size of your muscles, for some of you it won’t even tone them, but if you try to make it a challenge it will challenge your muscles. Balance and being able to get up are a key part of health that we just either don’t think about or we take it for granted. But it really is a great exercise, right up there with the push-up, but maybe more functional.
Of course this is just ONE exercise of many that I believe qualifies as a functional exercise. And for a lot of you it should not be your only workout, but for some it might be a start and a good start.
Posted in Exercise and Working Out | Tagged: challenge, exercise, functional exercise, get down, Get up, muscle challenge, Muscles, workout | 6 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on July 25, 2009
I am actually interested in hearing what you think, because I know what annoys me. So let me know what you think. Add comments to what I have or come up with your own.
It’s annoying when people don’t use:
Car blinkers
Car ashtrays
Car gas pedals
Door mats
Manners
Headsets (hands free devices) for cell phones while driving (yeah, in California it is illegal to hold your phone)
Headsets for office phones (we all do not need to hear your conversation even if it is a “business” conversation)
Office doors (see the above)
Crook of your arm when sneezing or coughing (it is better to cough/sneeze into the crook of your arm as opposed to your hand that touches things)
Bathroom sinks (they’re for washing your hands after you use the restroom before you go back to work. Oh yeah, I’ve seen it happen.)
Ok, I honestly just started out with two, but then I thought that looked kind of measly and I let my brain wander. Let’s see how this one works out. What about you? What bugs you when they are not used properly?
Yeah, “do you know the way to San Jose?” that is what pops into my head, because my blog has strayed . . . . oh well, thanks for putting up with it!
Posted in Entertainment, Misc | Tagged: annoy, california, cell phone, manners, Nia, Nia workout, San Jose Workout, workout | 10 Comments »
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