Posts Tagged ‘exercise’

Back in the groove

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: , , , ,
07 November 2013
1

Ever since I started work, I’ve been meaning to find a yoga place to pick up my practice again. A few days ago, after hurting my back, I really needed to start strengthening my back again so Panda started looking for me. He found a great deal on Groupon that included 10 classes and a yoga mat and bag! That’s perfect since I didn’t bring my mat with me when I moved out here and it will be nice to have mats on both coasts so I don’t have to worry about not having mine.

floor of the ayurvedic path entrance with welcome mat and shoe rack

Hello new yoga haven.

After registering, I signed up for my very first class with this yoga studio, which is really close to my office so I can easily swing by after work to enjoy some meditation, stretching, twisting, and strength-building. It’s been a year and a half since I stopped attending yoga classes, so I went for a beginner’s level this time around. That way I can ease back into it and I can go easy on my strained back as it heals. I was surprised at how excited I was to get to the class – must have been all the anticipation. It’s tucked away in a really quiet area and the room size is meant for upwards of 15 people. I like that the classes won’t ever get big and that it’s so intimate and cozy. The warmth inside was very soothing and the teacher leading the class was really nice and welcoming. I changed into my yoga gear and joined another dozen or so women and two men in the class. It was great to get time to meditate and relax while going through various poses. The challenge level was medium and I found I was stronger than I had expected, which is excellent news!

When I first started yoga, it was a free class held in the movie room at my apartment complex. We had an average of 6 people each time and I loved it. This place gives me a similar vibe, where we get enough one-on-one attention if needed. One thing I wasn’t used to was the mirrored wall… it was strange to look at myself in the mirror but I didn’t want to stare at others either, so I usually watched the instructor or looked towards the ground. I did like that I could ensure better posture and alignment when I could see my positioning, but I generally didn’t need it. I’m very happy with my experience so far and I can’t wait to try out some of the more challenging classes! I look forward to the day when I can manage a handstand.

After class, I met the owner of the place, who’s also very nice. I finished off my paperwork with them and got my yoga mat, but they didn’t have bags today so I’ll pick it up another time. I felt great afterwards – empowered, more limber, and with greater peace of mind. I’ll be reporting back to my coworker Autumnfall to let her know in case she’s ever interested in joining. I think having a friend in class would be fun!

selfie taken at entrance of yoga studio after class, with new yoga mat in tow

After class, I took a quick selfie. Got my new hot pink yoga mat now!

365great Day 224: yoga

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , ,
24 October 2013
0

365great challenge day 224: yogaFor the longest time I meant to take yoga classes and when I finally did, it did not disappoint. It’s amazing how something so simple, slow, and low-key could work you out so well. Yoga builds strength while somehow making you more limber. You can practice it just about anywhere and when you’ve gotten good you can do all kinds of cool poses like this one my friend’s holding. Yoga is also very much about your mind and I’ve always found it to be a peaceful activity that is relaxing yet rejuvenating. Through precise, controlled movements and deep, careful breaths, I manage to improve a bit each time. I can get a great workout in without ever breaking a sweat!

The “Sk8er Girl” inside

laelene Posted in stories，Tags: , , , , ,
18 October 2013
0

smiling girl in hoodie sitting on skateboard going down hillI’m not your average “skater girl,” whatever you think that may be.  At the least I can guarantee that when people picture a skater, they’d never come up with me.  I don’t resemble Avril Lavigne, I don’t wear skater shoes, and I skate just fine in flip flops and a dress.  To me, skating is a really fun way of getting around and improving your balance.  I don’t do it to try fancy tricks and I can’t say that I know much about the subculture.  All I know is that there’s a certain pleasure in having a board under your feet. It looks and feels really cool too.

My favorite is when I’m breezing along, picking up some speed from a slight decline in my path, but nothing too crazy. I can go down steep hills if I foot-brake along the way, but that does a number on my thighs. When you’re cruising, it’s the best feeling in the world. There’s a gentle breeze as you roll on by enjoying the scenery along the way. I once did spent a Saturday afternoon going from Malibu to Venice and back (about 6 miles each way I think). It was amazing – beautiful weather, easy boarding, and great company. I even got to practice balancing on one foot and streamlining closer to the ground.

showing off bloody hip injury from skateboard fallWhile I did manage to get pretty good (well, better than people probably expected), I never handled hills too well. I’m not brave enough to do what it takes to carve down a hill effectively. The one time I tried going down a hill with a friend, he held my hand to steady me, but we both ended up flying from our boards and “Supermanning” down the road on our hips. That scar finally faded after a good four or five years. I may never do the more crazy stuff with my board, but I can certainly hold my own when it comes to the basics. I have a Loaded Board that I absolutely love, partly because you can bounce up and down on it and it will not break. That sort of flexibility offers better maneuverability, though it does present a challenge every time you kick off and might veer more than usual. Still, it’s totally worth it and I wish I had more of a chance to use it these days.

I made sure to take advantage of the opportunity to ride around when I was doing Orientation at UCLA. In fact, I was awarded the Avril Lavigne award:

top half of certificate for the avril lavigne skater girl award

That’s me, just the skater girl cruising around campus with my fabulous board.

standing with brand new loaded boards bamboo skateboard

365great Day 216: aerial acrobatics

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , ,
16 October 2013
0

365great day 216: aerial acrobaticsI took aerial acrobatics classes when I got a deal on them a few years ago. It was such a fun way to exercise, build strength, gain flexibility, work on endurance, and look really cool while you’re accomplishing all that. I worked on both the trapeze and the ribbons, where you had to make precise movements and hold certain poses. At times I felt like a monkey, and a very graceful one at that. I picked it up pretty quickly and surprised my instructor with my innate ability to do aerial work. When she asked me if I worked out and I told her I did yoga once or twice a week, she seemed shocked that I was so strong. I must say, it made me feel good about myself and the soreness afterwards was well worth the fun. When I get a chance and have the funds, I’m definitely going to pick this up again. Who doesn’t enjoy a workout that is like playing on a jungle gym? It works you out in so many ways and you don’t even feel like it’s work since you’re having such a blast. Now that’s great!

365great Day 171: vitality

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , , , ,
01 September 2013
0

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 171: vitalityWhile traveling through the UK, Panda and I often found ourselves with a bit of a challenging task getting around. We’d only resort to taxis if there was no other way, so that meant a lot of walking to get from hotels to stations with our luggage. For the most part we did a good job, getting hotels very close to a station, but with Edinburgh we got a bit confused and accidentally booked a train ticket into Waverly Station, but a hotel near Haymarket. Upon arrival, we had a choice: walk the 1.2 miles or get train tickets for the next station over. At first I figured we’d just get tickets but Panda got ambitious and decided we should walk it. After all, we’re now pros at walking extensively throughout these cities – what’s another mile? And so we braved the fierce wind and chilly night to make it to our hotel. It feels invigorating to be able to do things like this and not have to worry about poor health or physical ailments or just plain weakness getting in the way. I treasure the health we have now and the strength and endurance our bodies are capable of. As we age, I’m sure we’ll be more and more spoiled by services like cab drives and bell hops. Until then, I love that we can do these things and not even be out of breath.  What a great feeling!

365great Day 161: AcuHoop

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , , ,
22 August 2013
0

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 161: acuhoopBack in high school, my best friend Katana and I would drive out to Chinatown on a whim and hang out there for the day. We loved browsing Saigon Market (umm why is there a Saigon market in Chinatown??) for all the random trinkets, clothing, and even pets they had. We bought matching clothes, phone charms (back when phones could have charms dangling off them!), and even betta fish. Once when we were shopping around for qi pao (Chinese evening dresses), we happened upon a stand selling AcuHoops. You could get the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6-lb one. We found it to be quite hilarious and I decided I wanted to get one sometime. I believe it was my first year of college that I actually went through with it and chose the 3-lb one. It’s funny because I can’t hula hoop, but when you have a heavy weight like the AcuHoop, I actually got the hang of it quickly! Soon enough I was able to keep it up for over an hour at a time. I trained myself to be able to rotate it clockwise and counterclockwise so I wasn’t always putting the same force on my opposing sides. What fun it was! It’s still one of my favorite ways to “work out” and it really does help trim your mid-section. I think it’s really great! 🙂

Cartwheeling fun

laelene Posted in video blog，Tags: , ,
01 January 2013
0

Let’s kick off 2013 with a fun video of me cartwheeling by the Potomac this fall! Wheeeeee!

cartwheeling by Potomac from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

(Here are the pictures to go with that day.)

Surf’s up (finally)

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: , , , , , , ,
14 June 2012
0

Today I got around to learning how to surf after talking about it for the last 10 years. Wow, how did that happen?! Time sure does go by fast. Luckily, there are still plenty of years left for me to continue to try surfing. As for this first try, I joined two other girls for a group lesson in the morning. Panda stayed in shore to watch and take pictures for me.

It was extremely busy at Waikiki Beach, but Erik our instructor showed us the “sidewalk” that you paddle up, which is sort of a safe zone to the right of most of the surfing action. If you head up that channel, it’s pretty safe. Once you get far enough in (there were visual cues for us to line up to make sure we were positioned correctly), you’d wait in the “parking lot,” staying aware of your surroundings so you don’t run into anyone who may be coming in on a swell. When the coast was clear, we’d paddle towards Erik and he’d send us off on a wave.

We had practiced how to get up on the board back in the shop, ensuring we could keep a strong stance and maintain our balance. While the sensation of this force pushing you from underneath and behind was strange, it was relatively easy to get up and not flail around.

My first wave was a short ride and as I tried to get back on my hands and knees for greater stability, I fell over into the water. The second attempt wasn’t much better – my timing was a bit off. But by the third try, I was able to catch a wave almost all the way back to shore! On my way back I had one mishap where I wasn’t straight enough heading into a wave so I got turned around right next to a guy surfing. Thankfully, he was an instructor, so he was incredibly skilled at keeping us from colliding. Other than that, I was pretty proud of how well I was able to avoid any accidents, even getting out of the way of a fast-moving outrigger canoe (if you never had one charging at you before, it can be intimidating).

For some reason, my breastbone feels bruised from the experience. At first I thought that it was due to my bathing suit, but I just had a soft string there, no knots or pieces of plastic to dig into the flesh. Long after I got out, it was still hurting too. I thought I’d be more sore since I was feeling it getting out of the water, but I feel good so far. My triceps hadn’t gotten that kind of workout in awhile! I’d expected paddling to be easier than it was since I’m a good swimmer, but boy did I feel weak and inefficient.

Ultimately I’m so glad I finally took a surfing lesson and I can’t wait to try in the California coast sometime. Hopefully next time, Panda will be confident enough to join me.

A new career? :-P

laelene Posted in photo blog，Tags: , , ,
15 February 2012
0

Haha, check me out doing aerial acrobatics on ribbons! It was fun and tiring.

aerial acrobatics at power plant center in manhattan beach

Holding myself up on the ribbon with one foot and my armpits! Now that's skills. ;)This time I let the ribbon hold me up as I let go with all but one leg.

aerial acrobatics at power plant center in manhattan beach

This time I let the ribbon hold me up as I let go with all but one leg.

Natural talent

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: , , ,
26 June 2011
0
playground equipment - three-level horizontal bars

I spent most of recess on these! Did you have them too?

We all have things we’re good at naturally and I’ve found yet another random skill that I’m pretty good at, for having no training.   You see, yesterday I took an aerial martial arts class and I picked up on the moves pretty quickly.   Granted, I’m by no means “good” at the trapeze and silks, especially compared to the advanced students, but I was one of the better beginners.   I was able to do all of the moves that the instructor had us noobs do, and even tried a few of a bit more difficulty.  My childhood experiences playing on horizontal bars must have paid off!

My instructor seemed kind of surprised and asked me what I do for strength – I replied that I’ve been doing some yoga for a few months.   Now I thought that that would explain it to her, since I do feel it has helped my strength a bit, but to my surprise, she asked, “That’s it?”   I then joked with my friend Iota (who came to the class with me) that I must just naturally be strong!  Come to think of it, maybe there’s some truth to that?  After all, prior to picking up yoga this year, it’s been years since I’ve done anything to stay fit and build or even maintain strength.

I was pretty tired by the end of it all and my arms were shaking from exhaustion.  Between hanging from the trapeze in a variety of inverted positions and trying to keep the silk from sliding through my feet, I’d done as much as my body could handle!  And that’s not even counting the rigorous mini workout we did as a warm-up to class that left my abs sore.  I just knew I’d be sore the next day and so it has been.  There were times during the day today when I was so sore I couldn’t do more than flop back in bed and take a break.  That’s good though!  I like it when I’m working my muscles and I look forward to the next class!

hanging upside down from trapeze, with legs spread wide

Look ma, ALL hands!

hanging sideways on a silk ribbon

The leg I'm touching is actually floating and not on the other one, so this was HARD!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
First Prev 123 Next Last