Barefoot and on the Mat - November, 2021 check-in

[Pat58]

Hello again!

Cyana, right with you on the time change. It's ridiculous! A legislator in RI introduced a bill to keep it set at DSL. I prefer natural time, but keep it at one or the other. I'm drooling over your kitchen adventures. And thank you for the Tias words of wisdom.

Margot, Never Stop Dancing sounds like a fun workout.

Congratulations Pam on getting back into the 5 digit steps!

Beth, I liked Freedom Not To. Good idea, especially since your workload is going to be increasing.

Paine, tea is the Stuff of Life. I've become an Adagio addict, I lean more toward chai and spice black tea flavors in winter.

Sandra, we're anxiously waiting to learn what type of muffins you make!

Hello to anyone who visits.

[Margot]

Hello everyone!

Today was:
- HealthBarre Online Group Class
- Pete Caughey Qigong: How to have clear sight and better vision

DH woke up this morning feeling just fine, so luckily all the brews and concotions worked. We're still taking it easy, just to be safe.

Pat - How nice for you that your DS is coming home for Thanksgiving.

Cyana - We have one freezer in the kitchen but it wasn't big enough, so we ended up buying 2 more over the years. Most of one is packed with nuts! LOL on falling into the chest freezer. When we were staying with my step-son in Arizona, I felt the same way about his washer. It was massive and I needed a step just to be able to get the clothes out from the bottom of the drum. I'm not that short either!

Pam - I like Earl Grey and also Lady Grey tea. I couldn't drink black tea without milk - shudders! I never could get into iced tea either. Mostly these days I drink white or green teas.

Paine - PG Tips tea has been around forever. I'm amazed they still sell it here, considering how many other brands we have. My Dad liked Yorkshire tea because it was so strong. We always teased him that if the spoon stood up by itself in the cup, then it was just about right for him!

Sandra - I agree, it's much simpler to record walking time versus estimating mileage. I used to have a Fitbit but I felt like a failure if I didn't get my 10,000 steps in for the day, so decided to part ways with it!

Beth - Thank you for the link to Dr. Rick Hanson's blog. Have you read any of his books?

Waves to all.

[toaster]

Margot, yes, I've read Buddha's Brain and Just One Thing. I especially like the latter b/c it offers short ideas just like the blog.

Pat, I've actually had a better Moan Day than the last few, but I'm not looking forward to ones after Thanksgiving, when our director will no longer be here.

cyana, some of the mobility routines are more intensive than others, but I managed Day 8 in the office. I agree that I've definitely moved away from what I "should" be doing to what is doable/feasible. RE Goodwill, we keep a running bag in the basement and add to it periodically. Plus, now that I finally got DH to enjoy shopping there with me, he's actually asking me to go!

Hope everyone else's week is off to an okay start!

[Paine]

Essentrics

DH and I finished watching The Queens Gambit miniseries and we both enjoyed it.

Pat, it will be so nice to have your son coming for Thanksgiving. Both of our sons will be having Thanksgiving with their girlfriend's families.
I have never tried Adagio teas and will have to look for some.

Margot, do most people in the UK drink tea every day? Many years ago when my DH and I went to London we went to a formal tea at a restaurant and we both loved it!
I never had Yorkshire tea. Which one is better between Yorkshire Gold and Yorkshire Red?

Beth, I'm hoping that things at work will be better than you expect once your director leaves.

[yogapam]

Today’s workouts:
~Neighbourhood walk
~BellyFit: Sacral Chakra Activation Zoom Class - Cardio, first 40 min
~Yin yoga class on zoom

Cyana - Yep, the upside down world of the shift worker, lol. And there were times I feared falling in when I was digging to the bottom of my old chest freezer.

Pat - I’m inspired to add cat pulling it’s tail to my yin routine.

Margo - Yay, glad you & your DH are feeling better. I agree, black tea needs milk! I have decaf Yorkshire Tea that I often drink after dinner.

Beth - I also hope things don’t get too crazy after your director leaves.

Paine - We also loved The Queen’s Gambit.

Waves to all!

[Garrie A.]

Happy November!

Pat, thanks for starting us off! Hope your toe heals soon. I'm not the biggest fan of butternut squash, but that recipe looks yummy! And I'm excited for your Reiki training. You will have no regrets!

Cyana: Thanks for sharing that time quote. I don't mind gaining an extra hour of sleep in the fall (although it gets darker even earlier ), but hate when we lose it in the spring.

Beth: I'll have to check out that "Freedom Not-To" list. The past year I've used my Fitbit to track my heart rate, calories burned, etc., but I'm considering using it to track my daily steps but not actual workouts. Hoping that things won't be too bad once the director leaves.

Sandra: I will have to try that tea in the refillable Keurig pod idea. Ever since the check-in changed to monthly I post a mix of daily and weekly check-ins although lately they appear to be weekly. I've never used silicone bakeware myself. Mom always used metal pans.

Margot: I love the sound of the "Never Stop Dancing" workout! Gosh, I picked up the DVD of Prime Power Fat Burning four years ago and still haven't tried it yet. But I did preview it. I don't know what Anna was thinking when she thought of the jungle set, but I like it. I liked Stacey in Basics Fat Burning (but not in Basics Abs, Buns and Thighs because she couldn't follow the music ). From what I can tell she is now a yoga teacher (for several years, actually) and has a yoga show on her local public access station.

Paine: Awwww how adorable your grandsons dressed up as Mario and Luigi! While I don't play video games as much as I used to, I anything Super Mario. In fact, Super Mario World (from 1991) was the first video game I played as a kid. Such fond memories. And yes! I haven't forgotten about the road trip.

Waves all around! I'll be back in a few minutes with my road trip post.

[Garrie A.]

As I promised Paine, the road trip details. In short: I loved it! What a blast!

The long version...

(Friday October 29th)
The first day started around 3 PM with "virtual shopping"--Jenn Arnott (who is a backgrounder in many of Cathe's newer DVDs and appears regularly on Live) showcased roadtrip exclusives: clothing (t-shirts, tanks, sweatshirts), a fleece blanket (which I passed on since I finished crocheting a blanket two weeks ago), and a travel mug. Nancy Pollack (who also appears on Cathe Live) modeled some of the merchandise as well.

Around 5 PM it was time for the first class--cardio kickboxing. Cathe did all of the workouts from her filming set, which was decorated with Halloween themes. It was a mix of combos and drills (mostly the latter). Since I had more workouts ahead the next day (three to be exact) I paced myself and took it slightly easier. All of the participants were displayed on three large TV monitors where Cathe could "see" us. At one point Cathe had us do an elbow strike as part of a combo, and cued us to "strike harder" (paraphrasing). Apparently, she saw me outside the corner of her eye and said "Yeah, that's it Garrie!" (OMG, did I just get a callout from Cathe?? Be still my heart!) Anyways, the class lasted about 50 minutes and I was drenched in sweat. Strangely, the next day my glutes were sore (probably from all the back kicks she had us do).

Next came smoothie making, and then Q&A with Cathe and Chris (her business partner). During the Q&A, they showcased some new products that Cathe will be carrying on her website. Some of which include boxing gloves, microload gloves similar to the ones from STS (which I will be getting as soon as they are in stock; hopefully by the beginning of next year they say), a barbell pad, lockjaw collars, lifting gloves, and non-slip gloves. With all that out there, it was time for Cathe to announce her upcoming series. Drumroll please...

The new series will be all lifting. (Doing my little happy dance now.) It's still in the planning stages, but right now will consist of 12 workouts. The way I interpreted it was that it will be somewhere between Xtrain and STS, with heavier weights (similar to Meso 2 and 3 of STS). I did another happy dance, since I love STS (completed two rounds) and those are my two favorite phases of the program. There will also be mobility workouts, some of the workouts will be total body, and there will even be premixes. The working title of the new series will be STS 2: Muscle and Recovery. Cathe is still recovering from her retinal surgery earlier this year, so it won't be until next year that filming starts.

Around 8 PM it was time for the last class of the day--a stretch and mobility class. This was fairly similar to her two workouts on Perfect Flow (which I've only done once), and even included the same music (which I liked). I felt great afterwards, although I noticed I've lost some flexibility. It also made me jealous for one of her round yoga mats (which I will be getting one).

(Day 2 will be in my next post...)

[Pat58]

Good morning all! Spent my day off cleaning again, but we did get to the beach for a walk, and later I enjoyed YWK Hormonal Balance Yin Yoga - Adrenal Fatigue & Thyroid Issues. I also eked out 7,247 steps. It was good to be able to walk a little bit longer, albeit slowly.

Margot, I'm so sorry - I must have missed that you and your DH have been ill. Healing prayers for mending up soon. I am chuckling over your freezer filled with nuts, you sound like my backyard squirrels.

Paine, that's too bad you won't get to see your sons on Thanksgiving.

Garrie, I'm so happy for you that you had a blast at the Cathe road trip. It sounds like they made the best of technology happen for all of you and that it was a quality production. How fabulous that she recognized and mentioned you!!!! I know the feeling - when Ana Brett waved at me and said "Hi Pat" at a live class, I almost burst with joy! In a way "virtual" things like this really stink, but then on the other hand there is so much more opportunity for fans to connect with our fitness heroes without the need to travel.

Good morning Beth, Pam, Sandra and all who follow today!

[Garrie A.]

(Saturday October 30/Day 2)

Day 2 started at 10 AM with a "Spirit of Halloween" class. This was mostly cardio and upper body. Cathe (dressed as a scarecrow) was joined by four of her regular background exercisers: Jenn A. dressed up as Wednesday from The Addams Family, a different Jen dressed up as Olivia Newton-John from the Physical video, Jai dressed up as Superman (Superwoman), and Brenda dressed up as a black cat. Many of the participants also dressed up, although I didn't have a costume. The class was great, although the upper body work was unbalanced to me.

At 12 it was time for BOO-tcamp. This was similar to her other bootcamp workouts where you do a cardio drill then three weight exercises. We did six rounds. Jenn A. appeared as a backgrounder and had a ghost coverup on. She quickly took it off after the first cardio drill.

After a two hour break we did the final class, Legs & Glutes. This one was the shortest at 30 minutes. It started with some weighted exercises then finished with barre work.

Then a few hours later it was time for "mocktails" and fireside chat. This lasted from about 6:15-10:45. I got to tell the story of how when I took a step class at the gym I teach at how I recognized some "Cathe moves" that the instructor (my supervisor and fellow home workout junkie) was using. Then during the interview I mentioned my love for home workouts including Cathe and then we had a fangirl moment. It was a very fun time and was sad to see it end.

I'm looking forward to the next roadtrip, either virtual or in-person.

[toaster]

Garrie, sounds like your road trip was amazing! When I was thinking about giving up my HRM, I realized that I did the same thing with my pedometer several years back - I finally got fed up with using it after years of consistent use. I never regretted that, so I probably won't regret the HRM either; maybe I'm just not a fitness tech person!

I am trying to temper my anxiety about the director leaving. However, the increased work load is a reality - she will still be around for another 2 weeks, and already there has been a big jump in the amount of administrative issues I need to address. The one thing that helps somewhat is that we are nearing the end of the semester; I can only hope that we are able to get a new person in place more towards the beginning of next semester than towards the end.