First, I want to introduce you all to this lovely chart here: 30 by 30. As the name suggests, it’s a chart of my 30 by 30 weight loss progress. Both lines start on May 4, 2012 with my weigh in that day of 201.8 lbs (embarrassing, but true). The blue line then tracks an ideal, even weight loss of about 1.3 lbs between that date and November 1, 2012–my 30th birthday. The red line tracks my actual weigh ins. As long as the red line matches or falls below the blue, then I’m on track for my goal.
Second, you may notice that there are two books under the “Currently Reading” header on my sidebar. The reason for this is simple: I’m reading two books relevant to this blog. The Yoga for Weight Loss book is less than 150 pages, heavily sprinkled with images, and it won’t take me long to read. However, it’s a guidebook for a 4 week program and I don’t feel I can properly review it without at least giving the program a go. As such it’ll be at least four or five weeks before I can review it, and in the meantime (since I’ll be shocked if it takes me more than a week to read), I’ve finally started reading the Omnivore’s Dilemma.
Third: my fancy new Treksports. I’ve been breaking them in over the last couple of weeks, but have at least one more walk I want to do before I review them properly here. But don’t worry, the post will be glorious and full of photos.
Last but not least, I’ve been very active over on MyFitnessPal.com. If you’re trying to lose weight it’s a great site–a lot like Sparkpeople, but significantly less garish. Sign up and friend me; the username is bookbody, of course!
Tales from the Yoga Studio follows five women who work and/or practice at a small studio in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles. Although the five main characters know each other and are friends with one another to varying degrees, the book is not a tale about them as a group, but rather five separate, interwoven stories. Each woman is struggling with her own demons, but they all pull strength from the sense of community they find at the studio, and, of course, the yoga itself.
Although I enjoyed the book from cover to cover, I can’t deny that it has a sort of soap opera feel about it: alcoholism, miscarriages, cheating spouses, suspicious accidents, the whole nine yards. But despite the high drama, each woman is written in a way that is fully believable. Some of the antagonists, however, are painted a bit too broadly for my tastes. The saving grace there is that we see them only through the eyes of their victims, for whom these people may really seem just that self-involved/passive-aggressive/spiteful/etc.
For good or ill, yoga is not the focus of this book anymore than West Beverly or Sunnydale High Schools are the focus of 90210 and Buffy (respectively). The studio is simply the intersecting point for all these characters. It’s a presence in their lives, but not a driving force in the story.
The book wraps each story in a place that is hopeful and empowered, but still fraught with challenges and diversity. It’s an unsurprising choice, given that there are at least two more books in the series, but one I appreciate nonetheless. Happy Endings are nice once in a while, and I’ll personally never get tired of Oh My Gods That’s So Messed Up Endings. But in a book like this, where the setting is more or less the real world, it’s nice when the author can give the reader a sense of closure, but still acknowledge that–short of death–people don’t get Endings of any kind.
My new job has definitely got me thinking. The gym has lots of top-of-the-line equipment and offers a good variety of group classes… but it doesn’t really cater to my species of fitness geek. And I’m not saying it should; it’s a pretty niche market, and they’re clearly courting a different demographic. Everyone needs guidance for getting in shape sometimes, and I really do believe that we’re helping these women.
However (there’s always a “however”). I’m not, personally, a huge fan of cardio machines, except under certain conditions*. I feel that most of us would be better served by going out into the world and running, swimming, climbing, etc. Strength training machines, while generally useful, can sometimes lead to real world injuries by building strength without technique**. The classes we offer (Zumba, Step, Kick Boxing, etc) all look fun and like great workouts, but they just don’t appeal to me the way a Belly Dance, Martial Arts (nearly any of them), or even Pole Dancing class would (we do offer Yoga and TRX classes, so I’ve got no complaints there).
Aerial Acrobatics FTW.
In my dream world, I’d like to open my own gym someday. We’d have two or three sound-proofed studios for the classes–I’d teach some of the Yoga and Belly Dance classes, but probably hire at least one other teacher for each; and I already know who I’d approach to teach those and the Pole classes. I’d hire a martial arts master or two or three, and offer Krav Maga and Capoeira and who knows what else. I’d offer Hoop Dance and Aerial Acrobatics and TRX, of course, and… and maybe I should think about a fourth studio space. Hrm.
The main gym space would include a sizable climbing wall–nothing to rival climbing-specific gyms like Peak, but enough to satisfy folks who want to climb a bit, but don’t want to pay for two gym memberships. The strength training equipment would be limited to those that recreate natural movement like rowing machines, assisted pull-up machines and the Endless Rope Machine. For the member’s cardio needs we’d provide a swimming pool and an indoor track. And since I’m apparently working with an infinite space and a limitless budget, I’d dedicate a gymnasium-sized space to Parkour. We’d offer classes a few times a week, and leave the space open to members the rest of the time. The obstacles would be component pieces that could be moved and rearranged about once a month to keep things fresh.
(You can’t possibly tell me that you’d rather get in your cardio by running on a treadmill than by playing Extreme tag.)
If I decided to carry merchandise I’d not only include clothes and gym/yoga bags and such with the gym’s name and logo, but also a small selection of climbing gear, Vibrams, and–because I’m such a book nerd–books like Primal Blueprint and Born to Run.
This is, obviously, a bit of a pipe dream. In the real world I’m just focusing on getting my personal trainer, group fitness, and yoga certifications. And maybe somewhere down the road I’ll look into a small business loan to open my own studio and teach Yoga and Belly Dance and a few of the other classes I mentioned above. And, if I manage not to crash and burn like so many other small studios (note to self, hire a trustworthy manager/accountant type), maybe things would flourish and I could move into a larger space and offer a few more classes. Maybe even afford the equipment to teach Pole or the occasional Parkour class in one of the studios. And maybe, if I’m successful beyond my most rose-tinted expectations, someday I’ll open the gym described above. In the meantime, it’s nice to dream.
*I’ve been using a treadmill recently to help me quicken my walking pace in preparation for the Wainwright Walk. It’s not a substitute for real-world walking and hiking (which I’m also doing), but it forces me to maintain a certain speed, and that’s helpful. Plus, I just can’t blame anyone for not wanting to exercise in the rain. Cardio equipment has its place.
**By which I mean that most machines force you to lift/push/whatever in a way that is safe for the rest of your body. In the real world you may have the strength to lift that heavy box, but the machine hasn’t necessarily taught you safe technique for lifting it.
Yesterday I did my Go-Go-Robics dvd for the first time in ages, and it inspired me to dig out this Livejournal post from August 14, 2008. While looking for it I came a cross a few other gems, which I may share in the future. For now, a little trip down memory lane with the Pontani Sisters:
A few weeks ago Genevieve and I were emailing about the sudden proliferation of burlesque work out videos and after some related web surfing, she introduced me to the Go-Go Burlesque* stylings of The World Famous Pontani Sisters. I’ve been enamored ever since, and recently purchased Go-Go Robics II (the first dvd being apparently out of print).
I’ve gotten in the habit of doing a work out dvd on my days off so that I’m not just sitting on my butt on days that I’m not biking. Today I popped in my brand new Go-Go Robics dvd, and I loved it. I heartily recommend it to my friends in WEBS and HoH. The stuff they teach you could fit into RHPS as a really neat sound drop or preshow on beach night, if nothing else, and I just generally think it’s a good idea for people in a troupe like White Elephant to be constantly exposing themselves (no pun intended) to new types of movements.
All that being said, if you’re thinking of picking this up, be warned of a few things. First, the production quality is very low. Second, they don’t do an especially good job of explaining the moves they’re teaching you. They’re all simple moves–the work out comes as they build onto each other and eventually form a full length routine–so I expect the kinds of people I’m recommending this to will have no problem picking them up.
Even if you’re not doing the moves perfectly (as I’m sure I wasn’t all the time) it’s excellent cardio.
On a related note, I’m feeling awfully good about my physical self today. I’ve still got a lot of weight to lose, and I’m working on that… but over the last few weeks, I’ve seen a distinct change in my muscle tone. My arms are as-tone and less-bulky than they were when I was doing out-and-out strength training, and I don’t think I’ve ever had this much tone and definition in my abs and back. I’m even seeing improved definition in my legs–especially my quads. That really shouldn’t be so surprising, given the amount of biking I’ve been doing, but I am and (almost) always have been a big girl, and it takes a lot of strength to haul that extra weight around. That is to say that I’ve always had very strong, toned leg muscles even though you couldn’t really tell.
In any case, I think about how I would have felt and looked if I’d been this active when I was still a size 8… and frankly, it makes me that much more invested in getting rid of this weight again.
*Much more Go-Go than Burlesque, but burlesque and related nostalgia is much more on the rise than go-go and related nostalgia, so three beautiful women dancing in their skivvies naturally get lumped in with the whole new burlesque movement
Somewhat depressingly I still haven’t managed to get back down to a size 8 (the closest I came as a size 10 a year or so ago). Also, I remembered this post being a much more thorough review of the work out dvd. It’s not quite what I expected when I went hunting for it, but it’s still an interesting look at where I was and what I was doingfour years ago.
I came across this while browsing Netflix streaming (apparently when they run out of titles for the actor you’re searching for, Netflix just starts recommending random movies). The title intrigued me; it’s not often entertainment media tells about the fat boy having problems. The plot synopsis* was a bit weak, but I decided to give it a chance anyway.
The feel and look of the animated opening sequence strongly reminded me of Pretty Ugly People, which I had found in a similar manner, and which I wound up very much enjoying. The opening credits, however, is where the similarities ended.
Although the synopsis is basically accurate, the acting is mediocre at best and occasionally downright bad. In defense of the actors, the writing was also pretty awful, and a badly written line is near-impossible to deliver well. It wasn’t just the dialogue that was badly written, though. The movie is based on a book by the same name, and some of the subplots that may well have worked fine in a novel just didn’t fit in the movie. The overall effect was disjointed and awkward.
On a personal level, I just found the characters hard to relate to. I loved, loved, loved, that Jimmy’s “dream girl” was a bookworm goth type; an outcast with self-esteem. Then three-quarters of the way through the movie it’s revealed that she cuts herself because she’s “dying inside.” (Seriously. Those are her exact words.) Jimmy’s best friend, Paul (who goes to another school), has two alcoholic parents and is clearly headed down a bad path. When his father commits suicide he runs away and eventually shows up hospitalized from an accident no one ever explains, and sans his left leg. Jimmy himself is the classic, nice-guy, decent-but-unremarkable student, constantly mocked and pranked, fat boy stereotype. He’s even in the jazz band.
I was fat and geeky in high school, but I was never victim of–nor witness to–the sort of cruelty Jimmy suffers in this movie. And I get that my high school experience was unusual, in that I was neither popular nor athletic, but still genuinely enjoyed my time there.** But the angst and melodrama of these characters’ lives is so far removed from my own reality that combined with the poor acting, I just don’t believe them for a minute.
*Overweight teenager Jimmy Winterpock transfers to a new school, where he’s mercilessly bullied by classmates. After he starts keeping a journal that puts him in touch with his feelings, he resolves to lose weight and win the girl of his dreams.
**I have my theories, but basically they boil down to the fact that it was a large enough school that only popular/athletic kids I ever had a chance to interact with were in the same geeky honors and AP courses as me. I figure enough of them were smart/polite enough to behave better than that, and the rest followed suit.
This book comes complete with some good advice, some awful advice, and a whole lot of not-very-funny bitching and moaning about how hard running is. Maybe in real life Dawn Dias is a riot and a half, but in this book her sarcastic humor just make her seem cranky and lazy.
Dias attempts to make light of the silly clothing, sweaty faces, and goofy food stuffs (GU packets, anyone?) that are par for the course when running any kind of long distance. Instead, it just comes across as the worst kind self-deprecation. After her mockery of these things, no amount of, “but really you should buy X running products; they’re great” is going to sell me on these products.
Since the book was so clearly marketed for women, I had expected some attention would be paid to the biological differences between men and women. Our hips tend to be wider set–does that affect our stride? We have different nutritional needs–should we be eating differently than the guys we’re training with? Those of us of child-bearing age will menstruate five or six times over the course of this training–should we adjust our training around our cycles in any way? None of this was addressed. The only thing that made this book “for women” was Dias’s complaints about sports bras chafing and how hard it is to run with big boobs. For the record, I’ve never had a sports bra chafe (although in fairness, I’ve also never run 26.2 miles in one go), and even in my heaviest, most out-of-shape days I’ve never worn anything bigger than a B cup. I’m not saying the sports bra/boobs discussion doesn’t belong in a running book “for women” I’m just saying it was somewhat disappointing as the only gender-specific content.
This should look familiar.
In addition to these complaints, she also whines throughout the book about how badly running messed up her knee. However, at no point does she seek medical attention for it, or consider that the heel-to-toe stride she promotes throughout may be part of the problem. In that same vein of bad advice she recommends you go to an athletics shoe store and buy whatever the salesperson recommends. After all, they know what they’re talking about and will send you home in the safest possible pair of running shoes, right? There’s no possible chance that they’re just trying to make a sale, so there’s no reason that you should do any research of your own on the bio-mechanics of running, or what kind of shoe will help promote the healthiest stride. That would be down right foolish.
I might be more forgiving of some of this bad advice (even the conventional shoe nonsense), if she’d finished the marathon in good health. At least then I could believe that Dias believed that this was good advice. However, the story of her marathon day is largely the story of how she limped the last 13 miles on her bad knee, stopping every mile or so to sit down and cry. I kid you not. Now don’t get me wrong; she was running this thing for charity, and in many ways I respect that she pushed on despite her knee injury. What I can’t imagine, however, is how she or anyone else can look at what happened with her knee, and think that she’s passing on good advice about running stride or shoe choice.
Her advice on nutrition and comfortable clothes and such seems pretty sound (or at the very least it worked out for her), but all-in-all I can’t recommend this book. None of her good advice was anything a couple of hours of internet research couldn’t tell you, none of her bad advice is worth listening to, and none of her stories or jokes made me so much as crack a smile. You want running advice, surf the web or subscribe to Runner’s World. You want inspiration, read Born to Run. You want a good laugh, read some Terry Pratchett, watch your favorite sitcom, or visit your local improv theater. Give The Non-Runner’s Marathon Guide for Women a miss.
An old high school friend of mine made a Facebook post that has me thinking. “Debating the psycho limitations I would put on myself if I set a goal of losing 30lbs by my 30th birthday…” Now, Facebook won’t tell me her birthday and by now I’ve entirely forgotten what it was*–so I can make no judgements on whether or not this is a reasonable goal. However, my 30th birthday is very nearly 6 months away.
I’m not a huge fan of setting these sorts of number based goals. I stand by the idea the it’s more important to feel happy and healthy than it is to weigh a certain amount or fit into a certain dress size. But I recognize that sometimes people (myself included) need some sort of firm goal to get/keep them motivated. We’ve been talking about this a lot during the training for my new job, but aside from feeling a bit of a sham selling fitness to other people while at my current weight… I didn’t have a great motivator for really getting on the ball with my diet and exercise.
Don’t get me wrong. I’ve been keeping my food and exercise journal, and doing my daily yoga. Tuesday after training, I even took advantage of the fact that I now work at a gym, and spent a half an hour circuit training. But there have been too many days lately where I went over calories for no real reason, and too many weeks when didn’t get around to doing more than just my daily yoga**.
Ultimately I’d like to lose a total of 40 or 50 pounds… but 30 by 30 is both incredibly reasonable at only 5lbs a month (roughly 1.2 lbs per week), and gives me something to strive for. I don’t have any big, photo-heavy events (weddings, etc) coming up that can serve as inspiration… and while I’ll be throwing myself the same birthday party this year that I always do (none; or a huge one depending on how you look at it), it’d be nice to enter a new decade feeling good about my body.
*Which, even 12 years later, I think may make me a bad friend. “BFF” wasn’t a term in the late 90s, but if it had been, I think we probably would have used it in reference to one another. Clearly we would have been wrong, since our relationship these days consists entirely of Facebook status updates… but that’s really not that point.
**Doing yoga every day has been amazing, and there’s a huge change in my flexibility, and even a noticeable increase in muscle mass. But 2o or 30 minutes of yoga every morning shouldn’t be my only exercise.
Shannon Willow Fullard is a firm believer in yoga, barefoot running, organic eating, and most other forms of neo-hippy health and fitness. She is also a priestess, storyteller, burlesque dancer, house frau, pescetarian, and all-round student of the human body.
This blog is about the power of the written word to help us see ourselves with clearer eyes.
Shannon Willow Fullard is a firm believer in yoga, barefoot running, organic eating, and most other forms of neo-hippy health and fitness. She is also a priestess, storyteller, burlesque dancer, house frau, pescetarian, and all-round student of the human body.
