Barefoot & On the Mat 6/28-7/4: Mat Mavens Declare Their Independence From Shoes!

[JustSandra]

Hi!

Yesterday was a planned rest day.

Today's Workout: Classical Stretch episode 1318. This finishes off Season 13. Overall this was a good series, although much shorter than previous ones. Most all of the episodes were good, and the level was back up to "regular" after Seasons 11 and 12, which were aimed more at beginners.

Anny: Those are my kind of temperatures! When I lived in San Francisco the weather was almost always between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit, no matter what season it was. I loved it. True story -- shortly before I moved from San Francisco back to Sacramento it suddenly occurred to me to take a good look at my closet. It was full of woolen clothing. Given that it was April, I knew I had to do some shopping really quick for outfits more appropriate for hot summers!

Beth: Our governor closed indoor service at bars, restaurants, etc. earlier this week, but not gyms or yoga studios, so my niece is in the clear for now.

Take care everyone!

[Anny]

Sandra I find this current winter weather too cold. Give me Summer and higher temperatures any day!

Today I have walked and just did a Joyce lower body workout. I do different exercises for legs rather than lunges and squats and modify her abs to include some floorwork and some standing abs.

[toaster]

Happy Friday!

Anny I am in agreement with you that I like it hot, but your winters would be a relief after what we have here.

Sandra I heard that about CA. Luckily cases in NY have gone steadily down and we haven't had a resurgence. Still, I want to continue to be personally cautious. Restaurants are open here, but I've eaten outdoors a few times only; I'm not ready to be back inside.

I signed up for another outdoor yoga class this evening! It's another HOT day here but looks hazy, so we shouldn't be out in the direct sun (and it isn't until 5 pm).

[Paine]

Flow and Yin with Donna Helm-Yost (75 minute Yin Yoga Practice)

I really like the Yin yoga practice on the Flow and Yin DVD. My biggest hesitation in doing it more often is that it's 75 minutes long and not chaptered. I especially like the instructor Donna Helm-Yost because she is gentle, non-judgmental and gives helpful tips/suggestions for the practice.
Beth, I think Donna is a good role model as a Yin Yoga instructor.

Anny, the wind can make the temperature feel a lot colder, that's for sure. We just moved from an area that had 6 months of snow and sub-zero (Farenheit) temperatures so you have milder winters than many people have.

Beth, enjoy your outdoor yoga class!

[cyana]

Happy Friday

I've pretty much repeated last week so far - upper body weights one day, lower body the next with a daily dose of 50 stability ball crunches, 20 back extensions on the ball, all out sprint on the rebounder while listening to Vehicle by Leonid & Friends on YT. And then a health bounce while listening to Beginnings by Leonid & Friends as a cool down. And a breath meditation morning and evening. Since I have the day off, I'm going to do a longer work-out this afternoon and shake up the routine and engage in some cross training.

I've been doing better as far as getting in bed at a reasonable hour and I'm starting to consistently wake up earlier, so even though I feel like it's been baby steps, it seems to be working.

Beth - I hope you enjoy your outdoor yoga class this evening. I wish my neighborhood studio would do something like that - it would be nice to see some of my old yoga classmates. The studio is still offering virtual and limited size classes. Hopefully I can try your new lower body yoga practice this week-end.

Paine - OMG, according to DH, the shelves at Whole Wallet were worse this morning than the previous several weeks - I wonder if people are starting to hoard again since the numbers are climbing back up. DH asked the person at the service desk if she thought people were hoarding versus supply issues and he said she seemed clueless. At least we have plenty of beans and T.P.!! I'm glad you enjoyed Kim Eng's meditation - I love her demeanor.

Carolyn - I'm glad you didn't let "barefoot" scare you away from joining us. I used to wear shoes for everything but yoga and over the years I've gotten to the point where I rarely wear shoes for any indoor work-out. DH used to refer to me as the Imelda Marcos of Sports Shoes, as I had a pair of shoes for every fitness pursuit imaginable (and thankfully plenty of closet space!). Amazing how much money you save on shoes when you don't wear them, LOL!! Last fourth of July I did the original Step Reebok video shoe-less while I was waiting for the fireworks to start.

Sandra - San Francisco weather is definitely interesting to the uninitiated - I'm glad I had a variety of clothes packed for my first trip there years ago (highs in the low 60's to mid 90's all in the space of a week). It was a trip I will always remember fondly. I hope your niece is able to continue teaching live classes - keeping fingers crossed.

Anny - I read a story on The Guardian earlier today about one of their writers who has take up ocean swimming (in Sydney) during the pandemic. Being a water lover, I enjoyed reading about her discoveries: https://www.theguardian.com/commenti...virus-pandemic And she's absolutely correct - make sure that wet suit fits!

Hope all is well with Garrie and Linda.

[Paine]

Cyana, stability ball crunches are a nice way to work the abs.
I also like Kim Eng's demeanor in her Yin Yoga DVD that I have.
I'm so glad you finally have a Friday off work--enjoy!
It's disappointing that the selves at the markets are still not stocked that well. Since the coronavirus cases are climbing in Southern California, I have concerns that availability of items at the market will get even worse.

[toaster]

cyana yay for your day off! I hope you are thoroughly enjoying it. There are actually a lot of outdoor local yoga activities locally including SUP and another group that does "Hikyoga."

Paine I had that yin DVD and liked it, but it was too long for me too--that's the main reason I didn't keep it.

Anyone have plans for the 4th (I'm guessing not Anny, haha)? I went out and bought some corn on the cob today and also made macaroni salad for DH & I to have tomorrow with burgers.

[Paine]

Beth, we have no plans for the 4th. I love corn on the cob, Mmmmm!

[Anny]

Beth we have no plans for the 4th (no holiday here haha!!) but we we going for a pub lunch today (it’s the 4th here) for one son’s birthday.

Carolyn we swim sometimes at Manly and Shelly beach as mentioned in the article. They are about a 20 minute drive from us. But I am a coward and I never swim in the ocean in winter ! Lol!

Today I’m thinking of doing some Taebo and some of Joyce’s upper body paper workouts.

[cyana]

Argh. I might have fallen down the world's deepest rabbit hole this afternoon. My assignment for today was to try to find some reusable masks, so I got on Etsy, which I haven't spent much time on. There are millions of people (only a very slight exaggeration!) selling masks. I had several in my cart and was still browsing and the site got locked up and I had to totally back out - which meant my cart was emptied out, and I'd spent a considerable amount of time on there already. I said to heck with that, and it will have to be a project for another day!!!

Today's work-out (not as long as I'd intended, thanks to my Etsy adventure):
YT - Beth's new Lower Body Yoga practice (cat assisted )
YT - Hip to Be Square(d) - Yoga for Happy Hips - Yoga Ranger
YT - 15 Minute Guided Meditation to Find Peace in Uncertain Times - Boho Beautiful

I may try to do a little rebounding after my dinner digests.

Beth - A little yoga humor.....near the end of your practice where you have the folded blanket under the sacrum and twist to the side, I rolled all the way off my prop! I don't think my prop was folded quite as neatly as it could've been.

Anny - Happy Birthday to your son. I'm such a wimp I'm sure I wouldn't swim in the ocean in the winter either. When I visited San Francisco, I used to watch people swim near The Dolphin Club and would marvel at their ability to swim in the cold water of the bay and no one ever wore a wet suit - brrrrrr!

The highlight of my 4th of July will be going to the farmer's market in the AM. Since the city isn't having the usual celebration, the market will be open - hooray.