Barefoot & On the Mat, April 2022

[Pat58]

Good morning all, Happy Moan Day! Sorry to be MIA over the weekend. Saturday I had a total rest, "me day" including attending a health fair at the yoga studio. Mini sessions of various healing arts are offered and I sampled four of them - an intuitive tarot card reading, reflexology, Reiki with the new Reiki master, and at the last minute I added on a chakra reading.

The chakra reading was weird. I hardly remember any of it except that she kept her eyes closed and held one hand up in the air and the other on her heart. She began speaking in a stream of conscious manner and barely any of it made any sense. I was just "huh?" and pretty much all I remember is her making hand gestures as if ripping things away from my chest, throat and forehead and telling me my crown chakra is sludgy. Whatever happened I ended up with a headache and was thinking of Kath who used to post with us, and how she avoided practices that worked the chakras because they made her feel weird.

Anyway, on Sunday I returned to earth with a gym workout for 15 recumbent, Lift with Cee 40-4-40 day 9 and 10 minutes treadmill; additional core PT; and 5,289 steps.

I'll be back to chat in a bit!

[Paine]

Jari Ripped & Chiseled (24 minutes of Upper Body selections)
Jackie's Essentrics class

Got the dreaded 500 Error. Back later.

[Paine]

Sandra, I need to do more squats too (even though I don't like them!).
The temperature is hotter where you live than it is here. We are 2 miles from the beach so the ocean breeze keeps it cooler here compared to inland.

Beth, I have tried wordle and I can't do it without feeling frustrated!

Pat, interesting about your chakra reading experience. I wonder how Kath is doing these days.

[toaster]

Paine, sorry about the error! I've gotten in the habit of copying all of my longer posts before posting - of course, the one time I forget is when I get the error.

[JustSandra]

Hi!

Knees are doing fairly well. I took them out walking this morning for about an hour (slower speed, shorter steps, and mindful of terrain) and they liked that. For

Today's Workout: I started with Sandra's version of the Knee routine from Total Body Solution, then I did Jessica Smith's new YouTube mobility workout titled Mind/Body/Muscle Connection. I liked this one a lot! The routine involved the knees more than I anticipated, but Jessica was very good about suggesting and encouraging modifications as needed. (She even noted in passing she is having issues with her own right hip and knee!) Will probably put off my next lower body workout until Thursday, though.

Yogapam: Thanks for telling me about the different squat variations that you do. I did try a few today using a small ball with my back against a wall, keeping my feet well out front and only going down a little. That felt okay, so I have a second option.

Paine: Believe it or not, Sacramento also gets an ocean breeze! On most summer evenings it flows in through the river delta system that feeds into San Francisco Bay. So while it will get toasty during the day, temperatures almost always cool down at night.

Pat58: The health fair sounds interesting despite the weird chakra reading. My niece just got certified in Reiki, and also in cupping (which she incorporates into her massage practice).

Cyana: My neighbor lent me a little peddling device so I can keep my knees in motion while sitting. There's no resistance but it is helpful. I'm glad you are getting value out of your Cubii!

Waving to all!

[yogapam]

Todays workouts:
~Up to the Beat: 70s Disco Dance Walk (YT) - This was fun, loved the music
~Joint mobility & strength exercises day 2
~Classical Stretch 623 (all standing) - I had intended to do Ellyn Ochs latest live. I was chatting online with a fellow instructor from Colorado who said CS Season 6 has really influenced Sahra’s latest live classes. I haven’t done any CS for ages, but I was curious. This one had much more of a toning feel, faster pace, more balance work, not as flowy. I quite enjoyed it!
~Hip stretches & yin poses

Paine - I miss Kath too! She is quite active on FB and Instagram. She seems to be doing great & sometimes posts pics of her two beautiful boys, ages 6 & 8. She is an amazing baker & often posts pics of her delicious creations.

Pat - Good for you for taking a “me” day, the health fair sounds very interesting. Energy work can do strange & wonderful things.

Sandra - Thanks for your thoughts on Jessica’s new YT workout, it is on my to do list.

Cyana - I hope this work week is a better one for you!

Waves to all!

[Margot]

Good morning everyone!

Talking of people who used to post here, I was wondering how long has this thread been going? Have you all been here from the beginning?

Yesterday's workouts:
- Jessica Smith WS3 Fusion Barefoot Cardio Core with small ball.
- Ellen B's Yoga mat work
- ETV Gail's live class

Today so far:
- Jessica Smith WS3 Fusion Tone & Flow I remembered Beth's tip to hold a prop for balance when doing the moving standing pigeon at the end. I was actually able to do this for the first time on my left leg. Strange how that works!
- Karin's Spine work

Sandra - Congratulations to your niece on her Reiki certification. Hope you're in line for a nice treatment, now she's qualified.

Pam -The 70s disco dance walk sounds like a lot of fun. I was thinking of getting rid of all my CS seasons but maybe I need to check out season 6 again!

Paine - I never knew you lived so close to the beach. Lucky you. Do you go often?

Beth - Thanks for posting the Wordle funny.

Pat - The health fair sounds fun except for the chakra reading. What on earth was she doing with your energy? I just learned a simple non-invasive test to check each chakra. Yes, chakra work is deep work. I did a protocol on myself a couple of years ago and it took around 90 minutes getting through each of the 7 layers in each chakra. It certainly brought up a lot of emotions and left me wrung out. I'm doing something else now for balancing them and it's going to take me over 5 months doing a daily short practice. I was told you have to take this work slowly, slowly. I looked through my notes last night and read that chakra work should especially be done more gently on those of us with AI.

Waves Cyana. Hope Lee Holden's class left you rested and relaxed.

[Pat58]

Good morning! Sorry I never made it back to catch up. Yesterday featured:

~ LWR Walk Fit Challenge W3D5
~ 28 minute walk around neighborhood after work
~ Lee Holden Qigong for Neck & Upper Back Pain
~ 8,050 steps

I have to say this Lucy Walk Fit Challenge is getting quite tedious with back to back walking videos. I'm determined to finish the challenge, though. I'll check out her April challenge, but might need a little Lucy vacation.

Poor Cyana, I can hear your moans all the way to CT. I hope you made it out for a walk, and some de-stressing pruning.

Margot, I'm still puzzling over that chakra psychic. It was bizarre. She is a lovely lady, and has a following, so it must work for some people. Your chakra work sounds amazing, and intense. I can see why it would drain you, and perhaps trigger AI issues. I firmly believe that AI has connections with our emotional and energy systems and can see how overly aggressive chakra work could trigger things. Bravo on your standing pigeon!

Sandra, I'm sorry to hear of the setback with your knees, and hope they continue to improve again.

Paine, I run into Kath on Facebook. She's very well and happy, and her two boys are absolutely the cutest and very involved in activities. I can't Wordle either - frustrating! And I'm a word games lover.

Good morning to Pam and anyone who visits!

[toaster]

I miss Kath's influence here too, although I do still interact with her on FB.

RE the squats discussion, I like squats okay, lunges are my nemesis.

Will try to post personals later - have a good day all!

[Pat58]

Beth, we are cross-posting. I took a two hour workshop on the vagus and was hoping to learn some asana to soothe and balance the vagus nerve, but it was all anatomical discussion and breathwork except for one restorative pose. Let's hope some more info for us yogis will be forthcoming.

PS Margot, this thread has been around for ages! It was originally the Pilates Cross Trainers from way back when VF had many more participants and juicy scandals and Cathe wars. It petered out for a while and then Beth reignited it. We discussed having a new name and ended up barefoot and on the mat. Thanks Beth!

Curiously, several years after the original Pilates Cross Trainers morphed into this check-in, a new check-in called Pilates Cross Trainers began and has lasted a respectable long time. Boy I've been here a long time.