AngelaR

POSTED: Mon, 08/08/2011 - 2:56pm Stairs I am trying to take the stairs more often. This is somewhat easy at my apartment building as I live on the eighth floor, but at work it's problematic as I work on the 14th floor. So instead I opt to walk down thestairs at work and up at home.

twinklebree

POSTED: Wed, 04/06/2011 - 11:38am Outdoors The weather is finally becoming a bit warmer in the mid-atlantic USA. I'm trying to get outside for a brisk walk as much as possible. If it's rainy or chilly, I'm doing crew at my indoor gym. I do hot yoga once a week as well. I'm looking forward to biking again as soon as the ground dries up. I would LOVE to take a ballet class but there are no good adult classes in my area :( So jealous!

jas	POSTED: Wed, 04/06/2011 - 8:07am spring exercise Gardening, walking and Zumba classes (which I love) I do agree with Naja below that the right instructor is a key.

Leahrose

POSTED: Sat, 04/02/2011 - 10:11pm Spring sports As like every other school, we have the spring sports. This year I am on the track team. We practice EVERY DAY, for 2 hours! It is great, though - I love it! Especially sprinting - i do the 100m and 4X400m. It is such great exercise and we can really enjoy this excellent MN spring weather finally! It is April 2nd and it is officially SPRING!

Naja

POSTED: Wed, 03/23/2011 - 8:21am Pilates and Yoga! Be aware though! I cannot recommend Pilates and Yoga enough, always with an adequate instructor though. I 've been following Pilates sessions with a French instructor (Valery) and she's been doing such a great job that when I tried classes elsewhere the other instructors were asking me to show how the exercises were supposed to be done for the rest of the class! Wow, right? The same goes with my Yoga instructor: Christos learned Yoga in India where he stayed many years for this purpose and he's just marvelous! Recently, I decided to add some ballet in my programme, so I found a ballet school for ladies that's 5 min. away from my house (Valery and Christos are close to my job), and what do I find out? There, I have a lovely English ballet dancer as an instructor and she combines ballet, pilates and yoga exercises, all in one. She doesn't give any instructions on the correct posture for each exercise though, you just follow what she does any way you can. She knew what she was doing, but I noticed the other ladies could be injured because of the lack of instructions. I had Valery's guidelines in mind, so the teacher was praising me all the time while the rest of the class did not have a clue as in what I was doing better (besides the fact that I could keep up with ALL repetitions of each exercise, which was a big number)...anyhow, I need another two days of exercise to go up to 4 days/week, and it must be done close to where I live. This was the best class I could find and, believe me, I tried many others before this last one. Make sure the instructors go slow at first and do not see Pilates or Yoga as another aerobics class (that is the case only with Flow Yoga and you follow Flow Yoga AFTER you've reached a certain level so that you are able to perform flowing movements correctly, in the correct posture, which can take several months of practice for some, for others even a year+). As for Pilates I don't know what goes on with you, my american friends, but all the american DVDs I've watched so far are actually aerobics Pilates: it's like there's ANGUISH in performing everything quickly, without emphasising enough on the basic posture principles around each exercise, repetitions are a GOD and on top of that you break A LOT of SWEAT with a smile on your face as if what you're doing is soooo nice...Not so french, right? You can have the same or even better results when you perform the exercises slowly, but conscious of what you're doing. Don't take my word for it, try it yourselves! And give it some more time: permanent results come slowly!!!! Bonne chance, les amies!!!

Kimberly

POSTED: Fri, 03/11/2011 - 11:23pm Here comes Spring! I like that part in the article about Spring that says something about removing layers. That what I feel like when Spring is here. Even when I exercise indoors during the winter, it doesn't compare to being out of doors. I love taking my walks and seeing what is starting to bloom, seeing sprouts from the ground and leaves coming out on my roses. Just today I walked up to the little pond and had my three cats following me. The ran amd jumped and played about. It was the cutest thing and I wished I had my camera with me. I love hearing nature too....the birds and even a dog barking in the distance. Sometimes I walk along the road and there is a creek that follows it from above my ponds trickling all the way down to the lake. Just the sound is wonderful. When I walked one day this week I had 4 dogs in tow, two of which were not even mine. On the trip back I lost two of the dogs to a trail but gained another. Animals just react that way with me. I think they know they have a special place in my heart. During winter it seems it will be forever before Spring gets here and then it arrives and passes all too soon. Please enjoy every moment of Spring and get out there and enjoy it.

Elizabeth G

POSTED: Sun, 03/28/2010 - 10:03pm Suburbanite woes! Oh Ella, I so envy you. As much as I love my home, and access to the paths near the river and the rolling fields, where my dogs and I go for long walks, there are no stores within walking distance. I often drive my Vespa or ride my bike to the store, but regret that it's not a well-planned community for walking. (I'm in Spokane, by the way, across the state from you.) A co-worker invited me to go to a Zumba dance class and I impulsively signed up, and after watching some videos on youtube, I wonder what I'm getting myself into!! It's a "cardio" form of latin dance, and looks really fun and invigorating, but I'm not the most graceful of creatures. As I laughingly told my friend, I'm a middle-aged white woman, my hips just don't move like that! But I'm really looking forward to having fun in the class. It starts on 4/22, so I'll report back after the first class. In the meantime, I've found a few beginner's videos on youtube and have been practicing some of the moves, so I don't humiliate myself too badly.

ella713

POSTED: Sun, 03/28/2010 - 9:42pm Walking Honestly, the only exercise I indulge in is walking. I walk everywhere. To work, to the market. It kind of helps that I never learned how to drive as a teenager so I really have no other method of getting around. Of course if something is too far to walk, I will take public Transportation, but I live in the downtown area of Seattle, so everything is within walking distance. Even a Farmer's Market!

danyaleeva

POSTED: Sat, 06/27/2009 - 1:29am First Time Formal Pilates Originally planning to wait until I took my first class to write about it, but I am determined to go to this European Method Pilates class this summer. I found out that the European Method is a combination of pilates, yoga, and ballet training. My plan is to go every other week over the summer then weekly in the fall. For the next two weeks I am going to prep by doing at home pilates with a tape.

danyaleeva

POSTED: Sat, 06/27/2009 - 1:24am Yoga for Tennis Yoga for Great Tennis DVD--Whether you're just starting out, or an accomplished tennis pro, you'll find that practicing yoga will do more than just improve your tennis game - it will enhance all aspects of your life! In this easy-to-follow 45-minute DVD, avid tennis player and Jivamukti-certified and Yoga Alliance-registered yoga instructor Anastasia will guide you through this tennis specific yoga practice. Anna Kournikova-Basic Elements DVD-Beautiful tennis champion Anna Kournikova shows you how to keep fit with her own personal fitness guide! Suitable for all ages, from budding teenage tennis players to fitness-conscious adults, this video includes a variety of routines for all skill levels. I thought this was an interesting way to look at yoga. Would love to see what lessons from Kournikova would be like.

LLDowell

POSTED: Sun, 05/31/2009 - 12:56pm Spring Exercise: what are you doing? I've started a running program. I am now running two miles per day. I plan to build up to 3 miles per day and a long run 6-9 miles once per week.

frenchy

POSTED: Sat, 05/30/2009 - 10:43am Exercise I have a Malibu Pilates chair and the Fluidity Bar that I use along with walking. My knee was crushed in an auto accident and all exercising must be low impact now. Both pieces are great.

bananie67

POSTED: Sat, 05/30/2009 - 8:47am I have started working I have started working towards running a 5K. I started just running 1/2 a mile my first week, 3 times a week. Each week, I add on a 1/4 mile. I am now running 1.25 miles without stopping. Love it!

Kara

POSTED: Tue, 05/12/2009 - 1:16pm Walking and light toning! Now Walking and light toning! Now that it's warm (and light) enough at 5:30 AM, I'm so happy to be walking outside again. It's what inspired me to actually come back and revisit this site. Isn't that funny, I realize it just now. I gradually stopped coming here about the time I couldn't go outside in the mornings anymore last fall.

scjl132

POSTED: Thu, 05/07/2009 - 10:15pm A walk along country roads A walk along country roads with my dog by my side or more likely she is running ahead sniffing out new scents!! I have yet to find an indoor exercise for the winter - can't tolerate exercise DVD's after several uses.

Jeanette

POSTED: Wed, 05/06/2009 - 8:20pm Yoga I've started up my yoga classes again. Two times a week. It's great for the body as well as the sanity! :-)

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