I met Deandra a few years ago at a HIRL here in Atlanta. What I noted about Deandra straight off was how FLY she was. She’s not just a pretty face though, over the last several months I have watched her transformation to pretty FIT. I couldn’t let her get away without sharing with the rest of us, what she’s been doing. So here’s the fly, fit girl in her own words, introducing Deandra Bryant.
Head First
I wasn’t satisfied with my performance and wanted to get some additional skills. Having “passed” to the next level, I registered for the Adult 3-4 class at West Gwinnett Aquatic Center.
What was I thinking?
My class was YOUNG my instructor Caroline was YOUNG, a junior in high school. My saving grace was another student in her late 50s which made for a class of two old folks and three youngsters. That was short-lived however, she dropped after the second week leaving me with some energetic teens and pre-teens. My teacher, young as she was, was highly skilled, friendly and encouraging even though I failed miserably at the breast stroke and no one but me attempted rhythmic breathing right way. I was ready to quit after every single class but continued to return in spite of my difficulties. Class was going as well as could be expected until she laid the big one on us. One of the required skills was to dive head first into 12 feet of water.
Judgement day arrived, we marched to the 12 feet end and upon arrival I had a quiet panic attack. Watching those kids go in I told young instructor straight up, “I’m not doing that.” There was something going on in my head that I couldn’t shake. I jumped in feet first during that last round of classes and it was fun. However jumping in head first had me petrified with my head filled with thoughts of all that could go wrong. Scary as it was, I became determined to not be defeated by fear of an act that I hadn’t even attempted.
So I started the battle with fear by viewing some videos on the challenges of teaching adult swimmers. One of them dealt specifically with diving which indicated it may be necessary to take a gradual approach to the diving. During the next to last week I suggested this gradual approach to the instructor, she agreed and from a seated position I took my first head first dive which was more like a fall into the pool.
The last week came. Next to last class we practiced flip turns (hysterical) and more of the strokes. For the last class it was students choice and of course those children chose diving. While the kids went in without hesitation. I took baby steps. 1)sit and fall in 2) kneel and fall in and 3) standing.
I was freaking petrified. I asked a thousand questions, “what are my feet doing, what are my hands doing, do I push or jump, what about my head?” Young instructor was unflinching in her encouragement and patience. My brain finally stopped all of its foolishness and BAM I DOVE IN HEAD FIRST! It was a non-event. Who knew that you could go in that way and come right back up? Of course I did it three more times just to make sure it wasnt a fluke and it wasn’t, in fact it was real cool.
My mind had been playing tricks on me all along, tricking me into thinking that I didn’t have the skill to dive and that doing so would have adverse effects. Both thoughts were false. I’m glad that my brain stopped its ridiculousness so that I could do something that was fun and a bit of an achievement.
Vacation and work have kept me away from the pool for over a month now and I miss it. As regularly scheduled programming has resumed, I’m heading back to the pool to practice and later this summer for more classes in order to keep the boogie man away and the belly at bay.
What about you? Do you have a boogie man that’s making you stay on the sidelines? Taking it head on is a big step. If you have done so and care to share your story, let me know in the comments.
Until next time I’ll see you at the pool, going in head first 🙂
Special thanks to Caroline Christie, one of Gwinnett’s finest swim instructors.
Photos: MsThorns
Welcome Back to Lion’s Club Park
FLO (For Ladies Only) – Fear Not Your Body
Oh the gym locker room. I don’t know what it looks like for dudes but for chicks it’s a place in which we can be our most demure, and most pensive selves.
Enter the Naked Evangelist.
I find it more than difficult to keep a towel on while simultaneously applying lotion and deodorant and dressing piece by piece without breaking a sweat. I’ve made attempts to dress with a towel on only to reach the same ending, towel landing on the floor me sweating from the effort and ending up naked anyway so I stopped trying. I’d always wondered why we (women) do all this covering and tucking. Was it modesty, fear? Was it a learned thing because we certainly were not born with towels on. Then one day I got a clue.
I was in the locker room heading to the shower, realizing I’d forgotten my washcloth I made a u-turn back to my locker. A woman who had dropped trou to weigh herself, let out a yelp, and said how embarrassed she was to be seen “like that” followed by the words “I’m so fat”. I’m pretty sure I rolled my eyes, not at her but at the words. I told her, something to the effect that the scale doesn’t always say what you want, but that she had a good body, a body that works, one that got her to the gym that morning, she agreed, smiled and I kept it moving.
Women apply so much pressure on themselves because of all the images and all the words that tell us what we are supposed to look like, what is beautiful, what is fit, what is desirable. All of it is such a crock. Your level of health and fitness cannot and should not be measured by anything except you and science. Are your numbers good – blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar? How’s your stamina, strength, flexibility? All of these factors are measurable. Media driven beauty/societal standards of beauty are not measurable, they are subjective and every changing.
Look, every woman has a day when she’s not feeling or looking her best, bloated, bags under the eyes, whatever the case may be, but what that day looks like is entirely up to you sister. However, that body that you have, the ONLY one you have is a great body. It lets you do what you need to do and get you where you need to go and if it doesn’t there are folks that can help you get there, without judging you. Oh and you’re at it quiet that little judgmental chick on the inside, she’s nothing but a phony, she’s not you.
So here’s your challenge, you don’t have to do it in a gym locker room, do it at home. Stand in the mirror butt-NEKKID and take a good look without judging. Thank you body for being there and serving you well day in and day out, promise it that you will take good care of it and honor it in all you do and tell it that it is FABULOUS. It’s your body, go ahead and love it.
Until next time see you at the gym, the Naked Evangelist will be there cheering for you sister, with your fine self!
Photo: MsThorns
He Dropped a Bomb On Me
I last ran on March 17 and had pain in my right leg so bad I had to shut it down. As such I decided to start at the bottom to determine what is the source/contributing factor/problem that is keeping me off the trail and the treadmill. First stop, the podiatrist. I figured that I was finally paying the piper for 30 years of running with these flat feet of mine. The diagnosis was not at ALL what I expected but if you run, it is a sad sorry badge of honor/horror to earn. This is how it went down.
Me: Look, I have flat feet, pain in my hip, knee, back and sometimes leg. Are my flat feet the problem?
Him: Maybe. Do your feet ever hurt?
Me: Sometimes. They hurt when I’m not even on them. In fact I’ve wrapped my feet at night to ease the pain so I can sleep.
So the doctor starts poking around in the area of where my arch is supposed to be.
Him: Does that hurt?
Me: It wasn’t until you started poking around.
Then he dropped the P bomb on me.
“You’ve got plantar fasciiatis” I’m like WHAT????? I say to him, I thought that the pain from it was felt in the heel and he says “it is for the majority of people but a small percentage of people, particularly those with flat feet feel it pain in the arch”. There was some minor wailing and gnashing of teeth with that diagnosis and prescription — no running, inserts all day, foot and achilles stretching, NSAIDs and ice on the bottom of my feet. When he showed me those inserts I told him flat-out, “dude you are messing with my Diva, I have NO shoes other than gym shoes that those will fit.”
What is plantar fasciiatis?
Plantar fasciitis (PLAN-tur fas-e-I-tis) is one of the most common causes of heel pain. It involves pain and inflammation of a thick band of tissue, called the plantar fascia, that runs across the bottom of your foot and connects your heel bone to your toes.
Plantar fasciitis commonly causes stabbing pain that usually occurs with your very first steps in the morning. Once your foot limbers up, the pain of plantar fasciitis normally decreases, but it may return after long periods of standing or after getting up from a seated position.
Plantar fasciitis is particularly common in runners. In addition, people who are overweight and those who wear shoes with inadequate support are at risk of plantar fasciitis. (Mayo Clinic).
The paragraph above makes me a winner (read loser) in the fasciitis sweepstakes as I meet all of the criteria. I’ve had about a week to sulk and rebel and have settled into the realization that compliance is necessary in order to walk let alone run without pain after the fact. The stretching hasn’t been a problem, the inserts feel pretty good in gym shoes and I’ve decided to try the half-soles for dress shoes. However let me be really clear ice on the bottom of one’s feet is NOT the business, but I’m doing it.
So I ask you runners, sportsmen and gymrats out there, have you ever had plantar fasciitis? How did you treat it. and how long was your recovery. Let me know in the comments on Twitter or on Google+.
Until next time see you at the gym, I can still lift 🙂
It’s Never Too Late
At age 47 I learned how to swim.
Why didn’t I learn before? Didn’t feel the need. Though it was mandatory in high school non-swimmers only had to float and kick the width of the pool with held breath to pass. I passed and proceeded to spend the rest of my days sunbathing by the pool. Until now.
I was always scared of deep water and didn’t understand the whole breathing thing. I still don’t have it down and deep water isn’t my preferred hang out place but I hope it will be soon because I actually quite love the water. So the work continues.
You see you can teach an old broad new tricks. You too can try something new for your fitness program if you just let go of all the stuff, get clearance from your physician and jump in, the water is just fine even 12 feet of it. One guy made it fine for me, my instructor Michael Mooney at West Gwinnett Park and Aquatic Center. He is patient, pushy and funny all at the same time which made for an exceptional instructional experience. Thanks Michael.
Until next time, see you at the pool where you’ll see me continuing to practice this whole turn your body and breathe thing while singing “Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop”.
Powered by Soul Spotlight – Jeffrey Woods
I’ve known the King of Cardio for several years now. I call him the King having witnessed him in action in cardio hip-hop class on a few occasions and he goes HARD. Jeffrey is a diehard Falcons Fan, a supremely talented artist, a southern gentleman and guy whom I’m fortunate enough to call a friend. Introducing Jeffrey Woods in his own words
My name is Jeffrey Woods, 56 from Atlanta Georgia. I’m a GIS Specialist.
I attend cardio classes four days a week. The other two days I’m walking, running or doing strength training.
I work hard at eating vegetables and drinking water, instead of going for non-nutritional foods.
The past 10 years
Since I have been active and working on developing a healthier body I’ve successfully run and completed the Peachtree Road Race (10k) for the past 11 years. I’ve lost weight and have had successful health reports from my doctor. My blood pressure has lowered and my energy has improved.
The good feeling I have after exercising, plus I enjoy it and want to maintain my good health.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)
Powered by Soul thanks Jeffrey for sharing his story with us. You can catch him at the 45th Peachtree Road Race here in Atlanta on July 4, 2014 if you dare :-).
Photo: Jeffrey Woods collection
Must Be the Music
Have you ever sprinted out of your house to get the gym in the morning (afternoon/evening) and left your headphones at home? I have and it was the absolute worst. Having to listen to the piped in gym music, even when I know it, can be brutal. I prefer to have a choice of tunes to suit whatever it is that I’m doing and whatever it is that I’m feeling. My music selections usually go something like this:
Cardio days – Cardio is usually running on the treadmill unless I’m nursing some god-forsaken injury. I listen to just about anything within my taste range which would include R&B, Hip-Hop, Jazz, Pop or Rock. Here are a few selections from Thursday’s cardio session:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMZ65DA9pPs
Lift days – I lean toward something more uptempo/upbeat in any of the above genres in addition to some old-school House. I always pick uptempo stuff for lifting because of my love-hate relationship with pushing and pulling weight. Something uptempo or upbeat gets me through the drudgery.
One thing I do not do is wear headphones when running outside for two reasons: 1)safety – I don’t want anybody or anything creeping up on me; 2)I like to hear birds chirping, kids playing, stuff like that.
For sure there are some who can workout without a headset, I’m just not one of them. Music for me is a little something extra – motivation, distraction and sometimes the only opportunity I get to listen to new music uninterrupted.
What about you? Do you listen to music when you workout? Why or why not? If you do, I’d love to hear what type of music pushes you through those sets, reps and miles. Feel free to let me know in the comments, or in reply to this post on Twitter or Google+.
Until next time, see you at the gym, where I might be rocking Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) or John Coltrane, you never know.
Photo: MsThorns
Skip The Gym – Snowpocalypse Edition
Midwest, southeast, east coast, just about everywhere has been hammered with snow and ice bringing life to a virtual standstill (I’m in the Atlanta metro area, we’ve been closed since Tuesday). While mother nature flexes her muscles, ours may get soft, being stuck at home with all the snacks and all the beer and my personal favorite — naps, to be taken at will. Don’t let the snow/ice take you away from your program. There’s plenty to do right in the comfort of your home like:
- check out Youtube and workout with some of my favorites or discover some new ones for yourself
- dust off that Insanity, P90x or Jane Fonda (;-)) video
- pay a visit to your home gym
- go out and PLAY with your kids/partner/dog in the snow
just to name a few.
Until next time, see you when the ground is visible again.
The E Word
Sinusitis in the dead of winter.
The doctor said it could be caused by a virus along with breathing dry indoor air. Rx this time? Meds and a cool mist humidifier, which I have yet to purchase. I’m feeling fine now but am having major difficulty getting my fanny back in exercise mode and you best believe I have ALL of the EXCUSES to not do so:
- it’s too cold to be going out at 5:30 in the morning
- I might hurt something else
- don’t want to be bothered with people
- gym cooties
- don’t have a treadmill/elliptical/bike at home
- lack of perfect shoes
blah…blah…blah
Though these excuses are lame they are apparently enough to keep me from working out. I was well enough to exercise on Monday. Today is FRIDAY and I have yet to lift any weight heavier than my purse, or run anywhere besides the bathroom. At the end of the day, it’s not really the illness that got me off my game, it’s the mind and the excuses it creates. The same mind that creates the excuses says I can also choose to get off the couch and get my butt in gear. When that will happen, I do not know.
How about you? Are excuses winning and your fitness losing? I’d like to hear your excuses AND how you overcame them to get back on track. Let me know in the comments, on Twitter or Google+.
Until next time, see you (hopefully soon) at the gym.
Photo(s):MsThorns
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