Author: Cathy

My favorite yoga videos #1

Bryan Kest Power Yoga 1 – Energize : : 45-50 min
The first time I tried this video, in 1998, I turned it off after 22 min and said, “I’ll never be able to do this.” I know it’s more popular to be The Little Engine That Could, but, “I can’t!” seems to be a more powerful tool for me. Somehow giving up all expectations is the best way for me to make progress.

Coming back to this video I am always impressed by the perfect pacing. This is a great stretch and strengthening routine. You can put on your yoga clothes and be finished with your mat put away inside an hour and feel like you’ve really accomplished something. Following along 3-4 times a week will quickly build upper body strength if you’re lacking it.

I have bought many copies of this video over the years to give to friends. Beginners with some flexibility and unbalanced strength seem to have an easier time sticking with this than the reverse. The stretching can be too uncomfortable for very tight people to start with. You can pick up a DVD with Kest’s Power Yoga 1/2/3 Series for under $20 with shipping on his website. That’s almost too good to pass up!!

Bored with blogs

I am bored with blogs. No, not your funny, informative posts or photos of your latest adventure or your favorite four-legged family member. I love those!!

I am bored with how blogs look. I don’t mind a blog looking like a blog, but I am bored with non-blogs looking like blogs … or worse organizations dumping all their content into a blog CMS.

What’s really different out there? I don’t mean artist/designer/media sites or hosted Flash movies ad nauseam that break normal browser functionality. Are there any sites out there with real content, a clear navigation scheme, and good spider-ability that make you say “Wow!” and more importantly, give you a sense of relief from the visual monotony of the web?

I’ve spent the last two hours searching in the usual places; Webby Awards, cool sites of the day, Best Web Gallery, Adobe Showcase. I am giving up on finding web design nirvana there. Give me some inspiration. What are your favorite sites?

My new love

Craftsbury Outdoor CenterSkate skiing is the most fun I have ever had on the snow!! I’ve cross-country skiied for 17 winters and never really “got” classical technique even with a couple lessons from a former World Champion and other good skiers. A few years ago Abi told me how much fun she was having skate skiing at Craftsbury. It looked like too much work and anyway, there are no groomed ski trails in Cuchara. This year was my chance. Teton Valley, ID, has a great volunteer groomed trail system and I made a commitment to skating when I bought skate skis, boots and poles on sale in December.

Craftsbury Outdoor CenterFor me skate skiing is a lot more natural than classical. Most of us roller skated as kids. Even if we didn’t, I think the bio-kinetic feedback of skate skiing makes it more intuitive. It is also better training for me. I’m having fun out there and speed builds on speed so I maintain a higher heart rate. It is also a better workout for Bonnie since she has to run to keep up.

I’ve been out on my skate skis about a dozen times and had the opportunity to take a skate ski clinic at Grand Targhee last Saturday. Only a few people signed up and I joined a small group for a great two hour lesson from Erica Linnell, Targhee Nordic Supervisor. I can already tell a big improvement in my speed and actually look forward to small uphills.

I’ll always enjoy snow shoeing on forest trails and downhill skiing and snowboarding for a change, but skating is where it’s at for me in the winter! If you haven’t ever skate skiied and get an opportunity I highly recommend giving it a try!