Barefoot Running - Day 2

Today my calves thank me.

After falling in love with Chi Running, I read the "if you like this, you'd like..." Barefoot Running. Its a great read and I'm going to hear the author speak in Campbell next week.

Long story short, overengineered running shoes are the CAUSE of most running injuries, and overly supportive shoes cause our feet to atrophy. (when the bones and tendons grow soft and weak, the poor wee plantar tendon is forced to carry weight, which it was never indended to do!)

So, I'm following his philosophy (if its not fun, don't do it) and his training method (start very slowly!) and enlisting my 10 year old for moral support.

Day one, Tyler and I did a jog around the grassy parts of Belgatos Park, then hiked the dirt path back. This 20 minutes felt GREAT. Then, throwing caution to the wind, I did a one hour uphill hike in minimal shoes, and while my feet came out fine, my calves were sore at me (pun intended) and ached with an intensity remeniscent of a teenage crush.

So today, day 2, as I jogged the grassy circle, when my calves twinged, I respected them. I then switched to another training mode - walking barefoot around my block to build better foot pads.

Stay tuned .... plan to keep this journey going all summer.

Yoga for Small Folk, Continued...

You may be asking "where's Yoga for Small Folk, post 1?" Or not...since you probably lead a full and rich lives with little time for such idle curiousity.

Fact of the matter, fall session of Alta Vista Kids Yoga was pure MADNESS, and it turned out to be delightful madness (thank you Laura) but note to my intrepid readers... do *not* offer a kids yoga class with no cap in mind as to your numbers. Or put simply... a mixed age kids yoga class with 40+ kids? Don't try this at home. Or anywhere, really.

That being said, with the help of the fabulous Ms. Laura, yoga goddess and friend, and the attrition down to a manageable number, we are now in Yoga for Small Folk, Winter Session and the fun has begun!

Learning #1. Talk less. Breath more. Kids are a natural at Follow the Leader and Simon Says. Once they know the poses, they flow in and out of them better with less talk. (Random thought: who is this *Simon* and why do they listen to him and not their mums?....Its positively Manchurian!)

Learning #2. Once you establish the safe basics (alignment of knees over ankes and strong base my two must do's) they will NEVER tire of inventing their own poses. Invariably their poses have more evocative names that the traditional names - ie horse pose -> "snowman" - can't you see it? and plow pose -> "sprung mousetrap"?)

Learning #3. Final relaxation is delicious for all ages. We give them a little lavender scented beanie baby for their eye pillow or "heart pillow" and they are in now hurry to leave.

Stay tuned for more fun from the Small Folk of Yoga....

My Crossing Guard Gig

One of the biggest joys of our new 'hood has been our short stroll or ride to our lovely local elementary. And with this week's "Walk/Bike to School" push I got to really get into the spirit... by donning the day glo yellow vest of honor.

Yeah, that's right. I got to walk out into intersections and make eye contact with a smile that conveyed "don't even think about it buddy .... let the kids cross!" After years of being the parent in the car, impatiently waiting for the crossing guard to let me take my right on red, it felt good to be the one in absolutely no hurry at all.

The highlight -- the kids and parents saying good morning, thank you, have a nice day. And it was a double sized crowd of folks on the sidewalks. I had been in a funk the previous day, and there's nothing like saying a smiley "good morning" 100 times while drinking coffee on a brisk am to lift it.

I saw no drivers texting (as we were on the corner by the middle school... I saw many passengers texting) and no overly speedy or aggressive cars. Then again, we all know each other on Blossom Valley Drive (well, I don't, but soon will...).

Its common sense but backed up by lots of research -- kids (well all of us, really) do better with a little outdoors to start our day.

I love the walk/bike to school! I'm glad we get to have it every week.

Serious Therapy

Wow. I'm still floating. I had the good fortune to spend my lunch hour in Therapeutic Yoga at Almaden Valley Athletic Club and completely lost all the tension I've been hauling about for the last week.

The teacher Nanci, greeted us all, gave us a list of props we'd be using (blankets, rollers, blocks...) and then got us arranged in Mountain Brook pose. I've been to a lot of yoga classes in my day, and had not before encountered this delightful position. Laying over some blankets that strategically lifted and lengthened our spine (especially that stress laden lumbar region) while letting our arms fall open to the side.

Just *try* to stay tense in this position... I dare you. And if this wasn't nice enough, she brought small towels to put over our eyes to let us enter complete relaxation.

So.. 10 minutes later, she's gently cuing us into the next pose. Ah well, I figured, couldn't stay that relaxed for the whole class, thought I. But I was wrong, she moved us slowly from one delicious pose to the next, including a relaxing straddle stretch, forward twist pose, with many other lovely spots on the way.

I'll be frank - its hard to let yourself be both that comfortable and let the mind enter into that stillness. Part of "power yoga's" appeal for me is that I can't make a grocery list while making sure I stay balanced in standing splits ;-) But Nanci's lovely imagery, and just enough verbalization of sensation and intention kept me present enough ... resulting in this lovely, continuing relaxed state.

And I have another hour til school lets out ;-)

A New Hill

I build my cycle classes around great music and the idea of a great hill...

Hicks Road is in the rotation! The ride from New Almaden is a perfect warm up, the 20 minutes STRAIT UP up the perfect vertical, and the 20 minutes down and across to Camden is great for aerobic bursts.

Come spin with me at 24Hr. Supersport tomorrow for this new mix - featuring my "Glee" mix that'll let out your inner 16 year old.

(PS - worry not, the Gaga/BEPeas Old La Honda class will live on!)

My Top 10 Yoga Poses....

I'm a big fan of lists (I really love December for its abundance of "top 10's".) In preparing for this week's yoga class, I decided to build the flow of the class to include my favorite poses, or asanas.

Should you wonder... here they are! (In English, but should you want Sanskrit/photos, follow the links for each pose to Yoga Journal online.)

1. Downward facing dog. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...Stretches shoulders, hamstrings, builds beautiful arms, relieves lower back tension.

2. Chair. Builds quad strength, promotes foot health, strengthens abs and knees (note: make sure weight is dropped back into heels or it can tweak knees... no no no!)

3. Forward Fold. Best done after chair for full pnf goodness! And definitely best done with softly bent knees to promote lower back stretching and tension release. And how I love the inversion benefits... feel the blood flowing up into my tired brain!

4. Lunge Pose. Builds leg strength, IT band flexibility, and lower ab toning. Also nice done with a twist. (if you, make sure you bring the weight slightly forward to allow the back to fully extend.)

5. Plow Pose. I love the intense compression sensations that accompany the intense inversion sensations. And its a great lower back stretch, coupled with putting restorative pressure on our shoulder blades.

6. Pigeon Pose. Like many yoga poses, uses the body's own weight to deepen a stretch in not one, but two! hard to stretch spots, over the IT Band and under the hip.

7. Tree Pose. Of all balance poses, this one really captures the lighter than air feeling. And it strengthens our feet (hooray) and makes my upper thighs look really thin!

8. Dancer Pose. Combining the best elements of the two above poses (IT band stretch, foot strength) and adds a lovely shoulder opening and a level of intensity. Perhaps the most beautiful of all balance poses.

9. Bound locust. While I frequently run out of time before getting to prone poses, this one is a winner for strengthening back muscles, and I think it feels especially good with hands interlaced to help open shoulders at same time.

10. Child's pose. What's not to love? (especially after locust pose) stretches and relaxes our wonderful backs. Especially delicious if you have a child willing to walk on your back (teacher tested up to 70 pounds.)

I could go on, and on... so many poses... so little time!

Shoreline Dirt Pile, Part 2

For those who read my earlier post about the joys of Dirt Piles at Shoreline Park... here's the photo to go with it.

I never see that look on their face while playing inside :-)