Fun Lifestyle Fitness with Valerie Paule

It's all about the Venice Eco-Fest Baby!

2010-07-07T19:17:00.000-07:00

Good news!

I'm listed with some innovative health and industry experts to present my fusion dance fitness classes, Afro-Latin Kickbox and Salsa Hip House, at the Venice Eco-Fest this Saturday. Takes place at the Muscle Beach Ampitheatre on the Venice Beach Boardwalk. I go on at 5:05 and have 20 minutes to strut my stuff and do my thing.

I'm putting the word out there to folks who've taken my classes and anyone else interested who'd like to come join me on stage. Turn this into a fun dance party. Why not? I'll do a swift routine for both classes and do a simple demo getting the audience involved.

Here are some links with more details about the event.

See you Saturday!

Paule-Valerie Press Release
Sweat it up, have a blast and work it out at the Venice Eco-Fest 2010 this Saturday

Dance Fitness Schedule This Week

2010-06-28T12:44:00.000-07:00

To the L.A. dance fitness peeps who read this, I'm teaching 2 extra classes this week, so wanted to give you the deets on the full schedule:

Tues 6/29 Afro-Latin Kickbox, Bodies in Motion Westside @ 7:15pm (I'm subbing for Izett's Xtreme Step class as he will be out of town). Here's a sample of what you'll experience - ALK Dancing and ALK Punches and Kicks

Wed 6/30 Groove Method, Your Neighborhood Studio, Culver City @ 7:00pm (I'm co-teaching with GROOVE Creator Misty and fellow Groover Tamara). What's Grooving? www.TheGrooveMethod.com. And what are folks saying about it? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvRZrxuaHO4. Here's a snippet of me doing the Groove Thang - Valerie Facilitating Groove

Thurs 7/1 Salsa Hip House, Bodies in Motion Westside @ 7:15pm (regularly scheduled class)

Fri 7/2 Afro-Latin Kickbox, Crenshaw Yoga and Dance Studio @ 6:00pm (regularly scheduled class)

Fri 7/2 Salsa Hip House, Crenshaw Yoga and Dance Studio @ 7:30pm (regularly scheduled class)

Make sure to check out class videos online - www.YouTube.com/PauleValerie

The Fun Lifestyle Fitness Community is on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Paule-Valeries-Fun-Lifestyle-Fitness/120821154616093?ref=sgm

Thought 4 The Day: Perhaps you're really grateful for how things are transpiring in a few areas of your life. And perhaps you're in resentment about those areas in your life that aren't quite working the way you'd like. Does the resentment take away from the gratitude? Nope. Don't beat yourself over it. Relax into the raw emotions of whatever it is you're feeling. Don't resist & don't rush it. Your feelings will change and so will the circumstances. In the meantime, enjoy what's going right and continue to resonate in that! - Paule-Valerie

May your day unfold organically and in bliss

www.FunLifestyleFitness.com

Can I host my OWN show?

2010-06-25T04:00:00.000-07:00

Yes I can! Will it be on The Oprah Winfrey Network? Not so sure about that. Time will tell. It's out of my hands. I bring up Oprah because I had attended her very well-attended casting call in Laguna Niguel last weekend. Interesting turn of events, considering I wasn't going to apply at all initially.

I'd originally found out about the OWN/Mark Burnett Productions audition last month. At first I was gung ho to submit a video online, but that gung-ho-ness wore down when I found out the videos were chosen by viewer votes. I would've submitted a video if it would have gone straight to producers or casting directors for selection. However, that wasn't the case. So I shelved the idea of auditioning for the show, at least via video.

THEN I found out there was a live casting call...however, the location was 60something miles outside of where I live. At 8:30 on a Saturday morning. 8:30 casting call time meant that I'd have to get there at least by 6am to avoid a monster line situation. That means I'd have to wake up by no later than 4am. And I was scheduled to teach dance classes the night before. Would I be able to make it home in time and get enough rest? On top of that, I was scheduled to teach my dance classes at my studio's open house the same day of the casting call. Could I make it to Laguna Niguel and back in time? How long would the casting call line really be? I just didn't know what to expect. So I just shelved the audition altogether. Que sera sera.

Well at the end of it all I ended up going. Two weeks before the auditions I had 3 friends call, email and Facebook me (all within a 2 hour time frame) about auditioning for the OWN show. So I perked up and paid attention to this numeric "coincidence." **In Western numerology, the number 3 is considered a lucky number.** So I put my intention to go and go I did. I even buddied up with a pal and got to share a very humorous and worthwhile experience with someone else.

On the day of I awoke at 3:30am having gotten only 3 hours of sleep. Yikes! Made it to the location by 6. What we saw was a fairly LONG line. To our pleasant surprise though, the line actually MOVED. By 7am we were at the top of the hill and received our wristbands with our time slot to return between 9 and 10 to pitch our shows to the casting folks. We chilled at a Starbucks down the hill for the next 2 hours, returned by 9:15, stayed on line for a bit, met some amusing and interesting characters, pitched our shows and were on our way leaving the casting call by 10:15. Not bad at all! I was back in L.A. by 1pm with plenty of time to spare for my dance classes.

Callbacks for the show were the day after the initial casting, on a Sunday. Selected participants would've gotten a phone call that Saturday inviting them to a more detailed audition the next day. I didn't receive a call so I imagine, unless by some incredible change of rules, that I was not one of the selected. All is good though. I spent the day in great company and utilized my energy towards a worthwhile passion. What better reason to wake up at the butt-crack of dawn if not to follow your dreams?

On the topic of TV hosting, this reminds me of a short electronic book I wrote that I never shared about on this blog. It's called The Beginner's Do-It-Yourself Guide to TV Hosting...on a Low Budget. The book outlines my initial journey of going from nothing (no headshots, no agent, no reel, no auditions) to having created a website, having shot a few of my own videos, editing them together myself and soliciting agents, acquiring an agent and then getting to a point where professionally I'm on track to achieving my host goals. Oh yeah, and I had to do all this with minimal dough because I was in a bout of financial dire straits when I first embarked on this path.

The EBook is currently available via the following website www.TVHosting101.weebly.com. Right now I'm charging FREE for it, but don't know how long that will last. I'm just going with intuition here.

That's all from me regarding the world of host-dom. More to come...

PauleValerie.com
FunLifestyleFitness.com

Two Dance Fitness Events This Weekend Featuring Yours Truly!

2010-06-25T01:31:00.001-07:00

Yeah! I'm looking forward to sharing my love for dance fitness on two separate occasions this weekend. On Saturday, I'll be co-teaching a special Groove Method Master Class with GROOVE's dynamic creator Misty Tripoli at 10:15am. The class is at Bodies in Motion Westside, 12100 W Olympic Blvd in Los Angeles.

I first met Misty in 2006 at USC when Nike held a week-long event of free classes featuring their Nike Elite presenters. Groove Method was one of the classes. Misty had live drumming and a great style. Fast forward 4 years later and I'm co-teaching with her. What a trip. Funny how life meanders and transpires. For more info about The Groove Method check out this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvRZrxuaHO4.

On Sunday, I'll be assisting Your Neighborhood Studio's Hip Hop Fusion instructor Corey Coombs on stage as he teaches a Basic Hip Hop class at KNBC's Alive and Well L.A. Expo. The event takes place at the L.A. Convention Center's South Hall K and lasts the entire weekend 10am-5pm both Saturday and Sunday. Hip Hop Fusion is scheduled for 4:30pm on Sunday. For more information about the Alive and Well Expo, including a full schedule of events, visit http://www.nbclosangeles.com/station/community/Alive--Well-LA.html?13254235 and http://losangeles.going.com/event-765279;Alive_and_Well_LA.

Hope to see you!

FunLifestyleFitness.com

Putting Action Behind Your Faith

2010-06-11T10:30:00.001-07:00

I like to listen to a variety of inspirational folks from different walks of life. One of those folks is Texas minister Joel Osteen. He has a weekly podcast of his Sunday services and one of my favorite sermons was from his podcast episode Putting Action Behind Your Faith. It's a great episode and actually led me to ruminate a little on the message.

Episode Description as listed in iTunes:
"Scripture says, 'Faith without actions backing it up is dead. We can pray 24 hours a day and believe for a life time, but when we take our faith a step further and back it up with actions, that's when God causes extraordinary things to happen. God is moved by our faith...When you put actions to your faith, God will show up in amazing ways and help you accomplish the things that you couldn't do in your own strength. Faith with actions allows God to do the extraordinary in our lives."

My Rumination:
Reading this description and listening to Osteen's podcast had me thinking about the movie The Secret, the law of attraction, Ancient Wisdom teachings and the whole mindful-thinking-create-your-life way of being. There are skeptics to the whole "think and you shall be" way of life. "Too easy! Life ain't that simple," they say.

The way I see Osteen's message, in relation to manifesting greatness in your own life, is that it's not enough to think and hope and wish and envision oneself with a desire. It's like praying for a romantic relationship but then sitting at home watching sappy movies and eating ice cream, yet not actually going out to meet people or putting yourself out there.

Osteen says, "When you put actions to your faith, God will show up in amazing ways and help you accomplish the things that you couldn't do in your own strength." This is where that faith thing comes in. Don't get caught up on religious semantics. There's a very powerful message here. Call it God, Mahatma, Universal Force, Energy, It, Yemanya, the Presence or, if you're atheist, the Greater Belief in Yourself.

If you substitute your definition with the term God, this is how I interpret Osteen's message: Something's at work "behind the scenes" and opportunities present themselves when you do even a little something in line with that thing you want to manifest. And how it shows up is usually quite unpredictable, and oftentimes astounding.

To provide a personal example, last month I was down in the doldrums big time. I was an emotional sap and a half to say the least. I received invitations from friends to hang out and wanted to back out of a 3rd commitment that I had been the one to plan. I was in such a sour mood that I initially wanted to say no to my friends' invitations and cancel on the one that I had planned!

I thought to myself, "How great, when I'm not feeling awesome everyone comes out of the woodwork to hang out. Why can't there be this much activity when I'm on top of my game?" Well, in the moment of each of those invitations I made the choice to act opposite of my emotions (which I recognize as fleeting circumstances anyway) and said yes to each and every invitation. I had no idea what to expect but I took a chance, exercised a little faith and here's what happened:

I connected with a new friend during outing #1 and, as a result, received an invitation to experience another event that I would've never had the opportunity to enjoy otherwise;
I enjoyed an amazing day outdoors during outing #2, made new friends, reconnected with old and discovered pretty cool nature sites;
When I came home from outing #3 one action led to another and I found myself at a networking event two days later, made some important connections and took yet another action that helped catapult one of my career endeavors.

All this because I took an intuitive small action and completely let go of the outcome. I believe that the "Great Big One that I Can't See" helped orchestrate the rest.

;-)

Love, peace and hair grease.

www.FunLifestyleFitness.com
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10 Habits of Wealthy Women

2010-06-09T14:20:00.000-07:00

How can your life be fun and fit if you're constantly worried about finances? Last time I checked, it can't.

Yesterday I received my July issue of Essence Magazine. In the upper right hand corner of the magazine cover was an intriguing headline: "Best Money Secrets: What Rich Women Know." The article to which this headline alluded cited a scary statistic: The average Black woman age 18 to 54 has a net worth of just $100.

Despite the dismal news on the financial welfare of the average gal, there are plenty of women whose net worth has eradicated their money worries. Many of these women's net worth is in the millions. The following list includes 10 habits from the article that these women have implemented to help you (and me!) build a financially fit lifestyle.

Wealthy women are cash-flow conscious. They gather receipts, bank statements, bills and analyze their "money in vs. money out." They don't carry a lot of debt. They always save for themselves and reinvest back into their businesses. They are mindful of their spending and income trends and take steps to insure success in this area.
Wealthy women protect their assets and lifestyle through insurance products. They do their research on buying insurance and do things like set up long-term care for parents. God forbid a parent's health starts to fail. But if this should happen the wealthy woman with a plan in place doesn't end up paying exorbitant amounts to a nursing home or doesn't end up having to alter their own lifestyle drastically to care for the parent.
Wealthy women are obsessive about order. Their pocketbooks aren't filled with a flurry of old receipts and coupons. Forgotten business expenses and coupons can amount to leaving huge sums of money on the table. The Neat Receipts Mobile Scanner and Digital Filing System (www.neatco.com) is a product that helps any woman put order in their wallets.
Wealthy women create multiple streams of income. These women have set up systems to receive passive income regularly. Such examples are real estate investments, eBay sales and book royalties. The book Secrets to Creating Passive Income and Becoming Financially Free outlines ideas for setting up such revenue streams.
Wealthy women destroy their debt. One wealthy woman eliminated $30,000 of debt within 3 years by applying the money she'd been putting into her savings account and applying it toward her debt. After the $30K was paid in full, she started saving diligently and eventually grew her net worth to over $1M.
Wealthy women reinvest in their business. One wealthy woman advises folks to "Spend an hour a day building a business." A study in The International Journal of Business and Globalisation found that entrepreneurs have far greater net assets than employees. And for those who already have businesses, take this example: A North Carolina daycare business owner took funds from her business to purchase two more centers (instead of pulling the cash to buy a new car) and her net worth is now more than $300,000.
Wealthy women invest in stocks. Interest rates tend to be higher than CDs, interest-bearing checking accounts and savings accounts. Many wealthy women have a stock portfolio. If you have a 401K, review your asset allocation.
Wealthy women don't underfund their 401(K)s. This is not the place to be contributing paltry amounts since it will mean accumulating less wealth and working longer over time. You want to do your best to contribute the maximum amount your employer will match.
Wealthy women look out for themselves. Before you bail out your cousin who fell on hard times and needs you to help him pay next month's rent, make sure you've set aside something for yourself first. Always save for yourself first. Instead of offering financial help to a loved one, consider offering non-financials in the form of a spare bedroom or help with financial paperwork.
Wealthy women believe in their power to prosper. Banish self-deprecating thoughts like, "I'll never get out of this financial drought." And stop complaining to everyone about how broke you are. Build your inner strength, increase your self-worth, stick with solid financial growth plans and watch your net worth grow. You might check out the book The Power to Prosper: 21 Days to Financial Freedom.

After reading the Essence article I'm glad to say that I've been implementing a fair share of these habits. I've been consistently working on habits 1, 5, 6, 9 and 10 to my satisfaction. I'm working on numbers 4 and 3, though I'd like to up my game in habit 3.

Number 8 technically doesn't apply to me since I have a Roth IRA, but the concept is still the same. I'll admit, I got a little lax on the contributions for a couple of months, but I've been contributing to that regularly and I'm currently looking for a better way to maximize that by going the self-directed route. The research continues on that front!

So now I'd like to pitch a great FREE resource to you: OPERATION HOPE. Operation Hope is a non-profit organization that helps folks achieve their financial goals through sound financial education. Operation Hope has helped individuals become first time homebuyers and first time (or multiple time) business owners through counseling, free workshops, free entrepreneur training, case management and more. For more information, visit www.operationhope.org. I've been taking advantage of their programs for the past few months and I highly recommend them.

**For more information about Fun Lifestyle Fitness, visit www.FunLifestyleFitness.com and Like it on Facebook at Fun Lifestyle Fitness on Facebook.

The full version of the article "What Rich Black Women Know" includes all ten habits with anecdotes and more tips. You can find this article on page 69 of the July 2010 issue of Essence Magazine. Should be available now in bookstores and newstands. Regardless of your ethnic background or sex, anyone could benefit from the words of wisdom within.

Tools for Effective Time Management

2010-05-17T16:38:00.000-07:00

I recently became part of a mastermind group comprised of some pretty awesome kick-a$ women living their dreams and aiming for more. One of the gals in the group mentioned she was having challenges with time management: too many things to do and not nearly enough hours in the day. So I offered to help her out. I've used a particular time management system that accounts for every single hour of my day and helps break down major tasks into bite-size pieces.

I'm grateful to one of my life coaches from last year for providing a template to help with accomplishing daunting tasks. I altered some things in her system and added to it to fit my needs and personality. Here's what I came up with. Hope it helps you.

Most folks start off with a huge list of all the things they have to do. From that major action list I suggest the following:

Step 1
Create categories from your huge list. If you have a list of 25 things you need to do, group your to-dos into major areas or "chunks." For example, let's say the following types of things are on your list of 25 things to do: Go to the gym daily, meditate, research new home on MLS and find an editor for short film. You might create the following categories Personal, Home-Buying and Production Project.

Why is this important? Categorizing your things-to-do into different life areas helps you see clearer. Instead of looking at one big long list and feeling overwhelmed, categorization breaks your activities into chunks and helps makes things more manageable.

Step 2
Place all of your to-dos into their appropriate categories.

Step 3
List your major goals for each chunk, or category. What do you aim to accomplish within the next 3-6 months under each area? Using the above example, here's what this step might look like:

Personal: Three months from now I want to achieve 25% body fat and donate my baggy clothes to Goodwill.
Home-Buying: Three months from now I want to put a down payment on my house of choice in my ideal part of town.
Production Project: Three months from now I want editing to be complete on the short film I've shot.

Why is this important? Let's put it this way...You can get from New York to Mexico by just hopping in your car and driving with no destination in mind. You might get to Mexico and you might not. Or you can be infinitely more effective in getting to Mexico by having already decided that that is where you want to go. Your goal for each category is the reason behind why your list even exists. When you attach a valuable vision or worthwhile goal to your categories, it helps propel you into action on those days where you feel like doing absolutely nothing. Even if you know your reason or goal in your head, write it down on your master action list as a constant reminder for what you're working toward.

Step 4
Go through your list and assign a duration of time to each task. How long will it realistically take you to accomplish each task? As you go through each item, you might come across a few tasks that induce a sense of overwhelm because you don't know how long it will take you to do it. Chances are, this task is too big and needs to be further reduced to even smaller chunks.

For example, let's use the example in Step 1. "Find an editor for short film" is not something you can sanely put a time frame on. Finding an editor involves other tasks. When you think about it further, "Find an editor" may actually look like this:

Have phone conversation with filmmaker friend about editors she would recommend. Get contact information for these editors (30 minutes)
Write and send email to top 3 editor choices requesting 10-minute conversation to discuss current project (15 minutes)
Have the conversations with the editors (30 minutes)
Contemplate and select the best person for the job (20 minutes)

You get the drift. So something that initially induced a state of "How the heck am I going to do this?" has been reduced to manageable schedule-able tasks that don't even take more than 2 hours to complete. Do this process for every task that seems "too big." Break it down break it down break it down.

Step 5
You may now find that you've got more on your action list than when you'd originally begun (especially with the breaking down of daunting tasks.) You may be wondering how you're going to get it all done. Now it's time to prioritize. Go through each task and assign a value. I like to use the 1-5 scale, with 1 being very important and 5 being not important at all. Ask yourself for each and every task, "How important is it for me to complete this particular action? Is completing this action necessary for me to reach the goals I'd written in step 3?"

When I did this step, the pressure of "all the things I had to do" was alleviated even further because I realized there were things on there that I thought I had to do because I told myself I needed to do them a long time ago, but in the grand scheme of things, they had very little to no effect on my overarching vision.

Step 6
You've got your tasks and you've got how long it will take to do each task. Now whip out your calendar, PDA or planner and schedule them in. Schedule in your high priority items FIRST then work your way down. Remember to schedule in mealtimes and add some transition-time in between tasks so you're not jumping from one action directly to the next.

Good luck!

Share your tips in the comments section below!

Don't let it cancel! Your credit card, that is

2010-04-02T14:32:00.000-07:00

How's your financial fitness? Here's a tip from a Credit and Money Management workshop I attended at Operation Hope last weekend: Keep your old credit cards active by charging even a $5 purchase every 90 days or so. Otherwise the credit card company will eventually deactivate that account due to zero activity.

Perhaps a deactivation isn't a big deal to you if you've only had that card for a short period of time; but it should be a concern if it's a card you've had for years. Let's say you've finally paid off the balance and you have no inclination of allowing it to creep up on you again. You may think, "So what? That's one less card for me to get back into trouble with." Think again.

Old cards in good standing = higher credit rating. It shows a positive track record with the credit bureaus Experian, Transunion and Equifax. Your credit rating is what determines your borrow "worthiness" to lenders when you apply for things like car loans and bank loans. Set yourself up for as high a rating as possible. I'm writing to provide some nuggets of useful info for you, but I'm also writing because this hits personally for me.

I have an old card with a zero balance that I DESPISE using because the APR is ridiculous. However, it's the first credit card I got on my own years back. I had another card that deactivated 2 years ago because I never used it, but I don't want the same thing to happen to this one, especially after the newfound information I received from the money and credit management workshop.

Within this week I plan to charge a paltry amount on this card. I aim to repeat this action every couple of months to keep the card active. Trust me, within 48 hours of making these charges, I will be going online to pay it off. And it doesn't matter that I pay it off so quickly. As long as there's activity, that's what counts.

So I get to have my cake and eat it too. I get to keep the balance at zero and help my rating. Maybe this is common knowledge for some of you, but for those who didn't know I hope this helps you on your journey to living a financially fit life.

The Groove Method Promo Video

2010-03-31T00:05:00.000-07:00

Opportunities are abounding this month. An inspirational chica and friend asked me to record interviews and do a very basic promo video for the workout that she created - The Groove Method. She knows one of my passions is TV hosting, hence the cause for the request. She travels the world teaching The Groove Method and is back in Los Angeles to introduce LA to this method of working out.

What is The Groove Method? It's a workout designed for you to allow your body to move the way it naturally moves to music. No choreography here. Groove Method allows you to release your inhibitions about how you look while you move and to just let your body go. Let it flow. Something miraculous happens when we allow our bodies to express the way it wants to. Surprisingly, we may give ourselves permission to express ourselves the way that feels best to us in other areas of our life.

I shot the testimonials this past Saturday - on my handy dandy Flip - and will be editing and posting hopefully by end of this week, early next week the latest. The Groove Method will be having a 2-day teacher training at the end of this month at Your Neighborhood Studio in Culver City. Yours truly will be there earning my Facilitator certificate so that I too can add The Groove Method to my dance fitness teaching repertoire.

More to come...

My Demos Went Well!

2010-03-25T17:14:00.001-07:00

Last month I was asked by an instructor and dancer, whom I highly respect, if I teach dance classes. She's the manager of a dance and yoga studio and wanted to expand the classes offered at the venue; hence, the reason behind her inquiry. Now although I've had my AFAA certification for a few months I haven't found a home base yet at a studio or gym. Why? Two main reasons:

I hadn't yet found something I was that passionate to teach. Cardio can be fun and all but teaching a hi/lo impact, Zumba or Toning class didn't quite gel with me.
Nervousness. I had 3 specific ideas for classes, but I was timid about actually teaching them yet alone crafting something interesting together to present at a studio.

Well I'm happy to say that I didn't allow my nerves to get the better of me. This instructor/dancer friend asked me to submit a pitch package of my classes. Let me tell you, I was terrified. I almost didn't do it. After about 2 weeks of stagnation I finally worked up the nerve to send the package. I told myself earlier this year that 2010 would be the year of YES! Like the Jim Carrey movie Yes Man. If it doesn't hurt me or another person then I'll say yes to opportunities that arise and let the hows figure themselves out.

My contact got back to me rather quickly and said she and the studio owner loved the pitch and would like to see a demo featuring 10-15 minute samples of each class format. OMG! If I was nervous before, I was about to go into convulsions thinking about actually putting together a class and then presenting it in front of HER. What if thoughts began swirling in my mind. "What if I suck? What if she hates it? What if she thinks I'm amateur-esque?"

But I let my mouth speak before my nerves had a chance to talk me out of it. Once again I said yes. We set the demo date for 3 weeks later and although, as the weeks dwindled, a circumstance arose that would've allowed me to procrastinate and postpone the demo, I said NO to the circumstance and YES to getting it done on schedule. And get it done I did. I worked on my presentations and focused on the joy I experience when I'm dancing and sharing my passion and talent for movement and speech with others.

The demo took place Sunday, March 21st and it went well. I had fun. My cueing and presentation flowed fluidly with grace and ease and the studio manager and owner enjoyed my work. So much so that they asked me to teach regularly at this studio.

I'm in the midst of working out final details regarding dates and times, but I'm so happy that I went through this experience. I pushed myself past my comfort zone and the result was a happy one.

Oh yeah, what are these classes I created and will thus teach?
- AfroLatin Box and Tone
- Salsa Hip Hop'n House

More to come....

No More Excuses! Turn That Dream into Reality

2010-03-20T13:27:00.000-07:00

I'm happy to announce that I've produced my first audio program - No More Excuses: How to Turn Your Passion from Make-Believe to Real. The audio includes 7 steps on how anyone can go from thinking about that dream passion they'd love to birth into reality to actually creating conditions for that dream to EXIST in reality.

I created this program because inspiring, uplifting and motivating people is a passion of mine. That's also why I write this blog. My intention is for people to read this blog and gain tools, tips and insights that will help brighten their life as a result. But that's a sidenote.

The process in No More Excuses is my methodology of how I went from dreaming about becoming a dance fitness instructor and working on-camera to finally doing both. The road had its fair share of tributaries and started off uncertain, but I underwent alot of self-growth and real world work to get to where I am now. And I'm always progressing. This is what I discuss in the program.

To find out how you can get this FREE program, go to:
http://makebelievetoreal.weebly.com/

From Spectator to Star of Your Life

2010-03-09T09:58:00.001-08:00

If you’re tired of being a spectator in your own life, it’s time to jump on the stage and become the star. That’s exactly what you’ll be motivated to do when you read Act From the Inside Out, an inspirational and empowering book by author and actress Shelene Atanacio.

http://www.actnowbook.com

By revealing how anyone can creatively change their life by using acting techniques and tools, Atanacio takes her readers out of their comfort zone so they can rewrite their life script. Act From the Inside Out uses practical lessons and exercises from the author’s acting career to show us how to delve inward to find our purpose and live life to the fullest. A motivational, transformational, enlightening and spiritual read, it’s as fresh and unique as the author who penned it.

http://www.actnowbook.com

Far from a generic self-help guide, Act From the Inside Out is a comprehensive and transformational book that is certain to be one of the most empowering reads of the year. You’ll be entertained at the author’s stories and enlightened by her message as each page takes you further down the journey of self-growth. As you’re awakened toward your purpose, you’ll learn how to live it with conviction and passion through Atanacio’s experience and interviews from notable experts in the acting industry.

As she retells interesting scenes from her acting career and the challenges that came with them, Atanacio effectively transfers her acting skills to real life, relating them to self-knowledge, fear, rejection, mastering the subconscious mind, and stepping out of our comfort zones. Then, she gives the reader step by step, interactive and fun exercises so they, too, can write a life script that will be a page turner.

Shelene Atanacio excels in her role as an author, and you will in your life roles, too, when you Act From the Inside Out!

Gifts today with purchase today March 9, 2010! Check out http://www.actnowbook.com for more information.

I am a firm advocate of The Jar System

2010-02-26T11:09:00.000-08:00

Last year I attended Harv Eker's Millionaire Mind 3-Day seminar. Over the course of those 3 days I was introduced to a money management system Harv created called "The Jar System." Through this system you allocate every single source of income into different accounts, or jars. The different jars fall under the following categories:

Financial Freedom Account
Education
Play
Long Term Savings for Spending
Necessities
Give

Each jar gets a certain percentage of your income. Whether you're on unemployment, disability or making bank with your current job, everyone can benefit from this system. If you use this system you will find money when you need it. And surprisingly, you can live on less (your necessities) than you initially think you can.

I have a perfect example of where money turned up when I initially think I didn't have because of the Jar System. I recently got headshots done for my hosting and commercials career. The next thing I really wanted to do was enroll in classes to work on my audition technique. I came across a Commercials Audition class that cost $200. In my regular checking account I had just enough for all my expenses for the month and wondered how I could create more money to take this class. I did NOT want to charge it on my credit card. I started to get bummed thinking that I might not be able to register for class.

Well low and behold I remembered that I have an Education account, set up for specific purposes like this. The 10% of each check I had been immediately allocating to to this account had accumulated to more than enough to cover this class. Boom! Done deal. I was beyond thrilled. I get another training credit to my resume and I didn't have to worry about where I'd come up with the dough for the class.

I'm telling you. The Jar System works! You can either keep physical jars of money or create separate savings or checking accounts for the above-mentioned categories. The income percentage breakdown is as follows:

Necessities - 55%
Play - 10%
Long Term Savings for Spending - 10%
Education - 10%
Financial Freedom Account - 10%
Give - 5%

Got questions? Write a comment!

Back from Dancing in San Francisco

2010-02-26T10:31:00.000-08:00

Dang it's been almost 2 weeks since I've written! Interesting how quickly time can fly. Well last week my dance group attended the 2nd annual rueda festival in San Francisco. Had a blast! In addition to performances by many salsa and rueda groups, the festival provided a myriad of workshops in AfroCuban, Orisha Folklore (from the Yoruba tradition), Rumba, casino and salsa suelte. I might be missing a few!

I arrived Friday morning and hit the ground running with 4 back-to-back classes in rumba, Orisha and folklore. Loved it loved it loved it. Throughout the weekend I rubbed shoulders with phenomenal instructors such as Jose Barroso and Felix "Pupy" Insua (an uber talented and very fine-looking 60-something year old gentleman). I had so much fun and my spirit was souring taking all these workshops. In total I took 9 classes between Friday and Sunday.

My dance group performance itself was a hit! We looked good and it felt great. I was particularly proud because I put together the final piece of the routine - a stepping sequence - formations, rhythm and all.

The photo above is a picture of the team's outfit for the performance. The theme of the performance was Anaheim Angels vs. LA Dodgers, hence the Dodgers top. As I put together and manage the website for the group (www.AfriKasineras.com) I've uploaded other performance photos and written about our experience in the Blog section. Check it out!

Love From An Unexpected Source

2010-02-12T00:29:00.000-08:00

Yesterday (technically 2 days ago) I visited Lake Shrine in the Pacific Palisades. I was feeling emotionally down so I visited the chapel, garden and lake on the property in order to do some introspection and basically, to get away. Being on those serene grounds, where some of Gandhi's ashes lay, does something to me. Cell phone use and loud talking is discouraged and that kind of sacred space is what I needed.

So I've wrapped up a 15 minute meditation on a porcelain-esque bench designed with 2 swans facing each other and I've decided it's time to have a peaceful walk around the grounds before I head home. Well I've barely walked 100 feet when low and behold before me I see a cutie patootie black cat bathing herself on a wooden bench. I approach her calmly and offer her my hand. I have a thing for cats as I have a little one at home.

So I have a seat on the bench next to her and this cutie pie proceeds to climb onto my lap. She makes herself comfortable on me and starts licking my fingers. I'm telling you, this is exactly what I needed considering how down I was prior to arriving on the grounds. It was as if Providence was telling me through this cat that I am adored and showered with love. My heart felt so expansive and I felt so much love for this creature. It was the icing on a newly made fresh, warm and delicious cake.

Considering Valentine's Day is two days from now, this experience is actually pretty fitting. I know there are quite a few folks who despise Valentine's Day because they're not in relationship; however, you don't need to be in a significant other partnership in order to feel the sensation of intense love. Love is everywhere. It's already in you and all around you. You just have to open yourself enough to tap into it. Fall in love with life...in the many ways it manifests itself - animals, friends, volunteer organizations, YOURSELF ;) You catch the drift. I felt this incredible love sensation once again earlier today after I spent some time teaching and hanging with the youth at an organization I've been volunteering with since 2008. Wow. Love is readily available to us all.

Happy Valentine's Day

Thai massage and sauna - needed it!

2010-01-30T18:17:00.001-08:00

I've been holding on to a massage/sauna coupon for a Thai spa that's not too far from my old residence in Hollywood. But I never used that coupon...up until yesterday. 3 years later and it's finally being used. Wow! The last time I had a massage was in June or July of last year. I used to think massages and saunas were luxuries, not necessities. But I've come to find they are more necessary than I originally thought.

I'm pretty physically active, which means that toxins accumulate in my system from lactic acid and all other sorts of buildup that happens when you utilize your muscles on a consistent moderate to heavy basis. Massage loosens up the muscles, thereby releasing the gunk that accumulates and leaves your body refreshed and ready to get back out there for more!

I felt so good after the massage and sauna. And I only paid around $45 for both with my coupon. It was my first time ever using a sauna. Actually it was my first time ever doing Thai massage either. The lady who was working on me was a pleasant woman with a funny little sense of humor. Some of the stretching sensations did feel awkward, but overall I was enthralled with the experience. Warm clean blankets. Zen music. Serenity. I'd been running around all day so to wind down with this self-treat was divine.

As for the sauna, this place didn't have an actual room, but rather they had these aluminum-foil looking mini spaceship sauna contraptions that you sit in for about 10-20 minutes. It was slightly claustrophobic, but I didn't freak out as there was a plastic window I could look through. All that sweat and heat was surprisingly refreshing. I felt like a new person afterwards.

So here are details on the location in case you're interested in checking it out. The woman I worked with is Noi.

Thai Herb and Spa
5231 West Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90027-5709
(323) 661-7086

Don't Swipe It, Whip It Out Instead

2010-01-27T13:56:00.004-08:00

I've begun using cash for purchases like grocery and household items, saving receipts and marking my expenses every other day or so in my personal profit and loss spreadsheet. I've heard forever ago that people who use cash more than credit tend to have a better handle on their finances and actually spend less. Subconsciously we disconnect from the swipe, but when we whip out the cash, it's physically departing our possession. Hence the connection is more mindful.

I'm not a big credit card person, but I use my debit card for most purchases. It still has the same disconnecting effect though. I've been more apt to make frequent trips to the store charging $3 here and there. $9 there and here. Not so much recently. I actually think twice before making such trips. And the results to my self-esteem are empowering. I know exactly how much cash is in my wallet and that feels awesome. I remember the day when I used to not have a clue.

Folks, when you make your income deposits, take out a certain amount in CASH that you've designated to spend on necessities and play for the week and LEAVE THE CARD AT HOME. The results to your self-esteem on your ability to manage your finances will be astounding and oh so much fun.

How NOT to Teach an Exercise Class

2010-01-27T13:56:00.003-08:00

Now that I've begun teaching I'm more aware of how different instructors do their thing. I've always been mindful, but I'm moreso these days. Today I visited a class that was supposed to be a choreography breakdown class. Yeah right! Name of the class and instructor shall remain anonymous to protect the innocent; however, I was shocked.

When I walked into this class I was given a sheet breaking down the names of different moves and the steps involved. There were over 15 steps on this sheet and the class was only an hour long. I've been in similar-styled classes where the instructor will pass out a sheet with choreography breakdown, but never have I experienced the instructor attempting to go over virtually every single move on the sheet in one class sitting....which is exactly what the instructor in this particular class did.

I don't know about you, but when I take a choreography-rich class, I feel a sense of accomplishment when I leave having retained at least 1-2 moves with seamless transitions. Not the case here! The pace was way too fast and the instructor literally went over all but 2 moves on the lengthy choreography sheet. By the time he reviewed the moves from the beginning of the class I'd already long forgotten them. I ended up going off to a corner of the class and doing my own thing for the remaining 20 minutes of class. Basically, I'd given up. Brain overload.

It's been a while since I've had such a dissatisfying class experience that I didn't even approach the instructor afterwards to express my sentiments and recommendation for how the class could be structured a little better. For newbies. For a class that says "Intro." This lack of approaching is completely my bad. I should've said something afterwards.

Because I don't like ranting for the sake of ranting, let's end this on an uplifting note.

What Did I Learn from This?

Be sure to approach instructors of classes I'm taking for the first time and let them know that I'm not familiar with their style. Usually this is all that's needed and the instructor will be sure to pace accordingly throughout the class. The better instructors scan their classes and are mindful of who's new without the student having to approach them. They may also do a quick announcement at the beginning of class and then take a quick survey of who's new and break things down accordingly.
For my own teaching, I'll be sure to pay attention to the newbies and oldies and structure a class that will adequately address both. PACING PACING PACING. Gotta know when to slow down and speed things up and also when to outright stop introducing new moves to an already jam-packed class.

How can I put a "fun" spin on this post, being that this whole blog is about Fun Lifestyle Fitness?
Well, it's fun to take a lackluster experience and turn it into something that you can use to approach a similar situation differently and better in the future. It ain't all that deep at the end of the day anyway.

Cheers!

Found a yummy way to get my greens in

2010-01-17T10:59:00.000-08:00

I normally don't write about the nutritional side of fitness in this blog, but I felt so compelled to expand my wings a bit due to a new discovery. I've recently been slacking in the "getting all my leafy greens and berries in" department; however, a fellow dancer turned me on to something she consumes every day that allows her to get in her fair share of nutrients on a daily basis.

She makes a special magic shake. I call it magic because I'm continually surprised by the things I can get away putting in there (things I would never actually eat with each other) without making the shake taste nasty. As a matter of fact, the taste is DELICIOUS.

I've made berry smoothies in the past and tried to adopt it as a morning antioxidant booster, but the taste really bored me after a while so it became something I didn't keep up. As for veggies, V8's got way too much salt. So here's the lowdown on this special magic shake. The main ingredients of the shake are:

Aria protein powder
Agave organic sweetener
Almond Breeze
Banana

These ingredients can be purchased from Trader Joe's. In terms of fruit and veggies to add to this concoction, take your pick. For my leafy greens, I usually add a handful of a romaine lettuce mix. Kale works good too. For non-green veggies, I throw in a handful of baby carrots.

So here's what I do. Feel free to substitute the Almond Breeze with water:

Add 8-10 oz of Almond Breeze to a blender (the more you add, the thinner the consistency of the shake)
Add 2 scoops of the Aria protein powder
Add 1 banana
Add all the fruits and veggies you desire - I add romaine lettuce, baby carrots, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, basically any kind of berry
Drizzle some of the Agave sweetener to your liking.
Blend on high until all ingredients are mixed in smoothly.
Drink and enjoy

Different Ways to Meditate

2010-01-13T23:58:00.000-08:00

I've been reading Katherine Woodward Thomas' book Calling in the One and I recently came across a paragraph on page 184 that has compelled me to write a blog post. It's on the subject of meditation.

Now when I initially think of meditating, I conjure up uncomfortable images of folks trying their darndest to forego fidgeting and beating themselves up for not being able to "quiet their thoughts." Meditation can be such a challenge, but perhaps that challenge exists only because we have a limited view of what meditation encompasses. Perhaps we have such trouble meditating because we're trying to adopt someone else's definition of meditation when, because of the very personal nature of it, that definition is something we must come up with on our own or find practice that actually gels with us.

Here are a few modes Woodward offers, as there are "many ways to come home to the center of ourselves" :

We can close our eyes and silently recite a mantra.
We can rock ourselves gently to the rhythm of a Buddhist chant.
We can take a mindful walk alone on the beach.
We can put on some music and dance a plea to God.
We can create a prayer in our journal.
We can speak sacred text out loud.
We can paint love on a canvas.
We can breathe in unison with a sleeping child.
We can sit quietly inside a great cathedral to soak in its beauty and holiness.

So many options. May meditation cease to be a chore or challenge for you.

9 Different Dance Classes. One Day.

2010-01-13T23:44:00.000-08:00

I took ample advantage of the free open house Your Neighborhood Studio (dance fitness studio in Culver City) hosted last Sunday. Boy oh boy did I get my fair share of butt moving. 4 1/2 hours later I was exhausted. And rightly so. The classes I took were: Soul Dancing, Contemporary Lyrical, Cardio Ballet, Samba/Brazilian Body, Urban Hip Hop, Zumba, Burlesque, Primal Yoga and Booiaka.

Of all the classes I think I most enjoyed Cardio Ballet, primarily because I got such a good workout in a genre that was pretty much brand new to me. I also enjoyed working with the ballet barre, something I never work with since most of the dance that I do is non-ballet in nature. I'm more of a non-classical dancer so it was cool to expand my repertoire with a little bit of classical.

Well that was 3 days ago and I've pretty much recovered from the muscle soreness. I'm back into action as my dance group rehearsed twice this week for our upcoming performance at the San Francisco Rueda Festival. Fun times.

Pure House Music at Zanzibar

2010-01-07T11:48:00.001-08:00

My dance group had rehearsal last night. It was our first time going through the piece (at most 75% of it) multiple times in sequence. Our San Francisco performance is in about 6 weeks. We've got a lot of cleaning up to do, but we're making good progress.

After rehearsal I decided to check out Zanzibar Nightclub's Pure House Music night, which occurs every 1st Wednesday of the month. I was feeling a little under the weather and contemplated checking this out next month; however, I've been making it a point to exercise the principle Why wait. If you can do it now then DO IT NOW. So I stopped thinking and I went.

I'm glad I did. I got in a good 2 hour workout and was able to mess around with some ideas for a class I plan to teach. I carved out a little corner for myself (as there were about a handful of clubgoers), went into my own world and did my thing. I'm surprised there weren't more people there. Great music and the cover was only $5.

For an article I wrote about the appeal of house music and where you can go dance to it in L.A., check out Dance Fitness 101: Where can I dance to House Music in L.A.?

The Mystery of Life, H&M and Paulo Coelho: What a Combination

2010-01-05T13:02:00.001-08:00

H&M had a pretty good sale recently and while I was there I picked up their winter magazine. Some pretty good articles, including a New Year piece about their "25 best tips for a great 2010." Tip #8 was a quote by Paulo Coelho, the inspirational novelist and author of The Alchemist. The Coelho quote was "You have to take risks. We only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the unexpected to happen." I read the H&M articles two nights ago and I'm still thinking about this quote, particularly the latter sentence. I started to think about synchronicity and the mystery surrounding why certain things happen.

Case in point, last night I went to a dance class and saw a gal from a place I used to work at last year. I was actually temping at this particular job and my assignment was slated to become permanent; however, I was prematurely axed because the company was undergoing a hiring freeze. There were 2 temps in the department and I was the one that was let go. The other gal had been there 6 months longer than me and her duties encompassed a bit more than what my responsibilities were so it made sense that they kept her.

Well, that let-go last year was the catalyst of my new life, so to speak. It was the catalyst of me giving myself permission to pursue one of my long time passions - TV hosting. It was the catalyst of me actually going out with nothing but my trusty Flip Cam and shooting my own videos. It was the catalyst of me creating this blog, pursuing a certification in group fitness instruction, joining a dance group that I love and the list goes on. Granted, the time had been tumultuous, especially in the financial realm, since work in my field was scarce scarce scarce. I found myself thinking on a number of occasions, "If I hadn't been prematurely let go from this company, then I wouldn't be having these financial difficulties that I'm having now." But through the thorns of the uncertainty the rose of all I've been creating emerged.

So back to this gal from last night. We're talking and she informs me that 2 months after I left, the company ended up letting go of 40 people, including the position that the other temp got instead of me. Interesting how it all works out. My becoming a permanent fixture at that company wouldn't have worked out anyway. I would've still gotten axed and I'd be 2 months behind on creating all that I did.

I'm in awe of the synchronicity & magic that unfolds when you let life flow, though a particular happening or 2 just doesn't make any darn sense in the moment. The magic of it all inevitably reveals and I'm left looking like that surprised yellow face on the top of this blog post.

No matter what's up right now, there's a reason you can't see. Don't fret, just stay in the flow and your time to shine will emerge.

Life Can Be Such a Trip...Fret Not You've Got Your Very Own GPS

2009-12-30T09:45:00.001-08:00

Back in 2003 I took this solo performance class where the object was to create a one-man/one-woman live show by the end of the semester. The way to accumulate material for this show was to regularly journal in our performance class notebooks that we were to carry on our person at all times. You never know when the Muses will grace you with inspiration so you gotta be ready to receive and act upon it when it does. That's why we always had our notebooks with us.

In one of my musings I wrote about the role of intuition and the still small voice we all have. I wrote that, if anything, this still small voice was the blueprint that God gave us, basically our very own GPS to help us navigate through life. I used to think that this navigation system was in a holy book, but God gave it to us much closer to home than that. One day I found myself writing that the blueprint was in the still small whisper. If you shut up and quiet the mind chatter long enough to pay attention to your still small whisper you'll find that "God" speaks to you directly all the time.

Low and behold I still have that notebook and have retrieved some of my writings from the era of that performance class. These are freewrites so grammar and proper sentence structure do not apply here. Voila! for your amusement...

I feel like we all have these in-born prophets in our mind and in our hearts and they know what will make us happy and what will result in positive consequences. When we stop suppressing, opening up to them and act on those impulses no questions asked and no rebuttals, we always benefit. Always. Maybe that's what God wants. He's inside us all and wants us to listen to ourselves - truly listen to ourselves. If we shut out the clutter and act on the little inside voice, not on authority...but that li'l thing inside - could this be what God wants of us? To be happy but the key to happiness is within? Is it possible to listen to that voice always? Act on the voice. It's your guide. It's God. He's not in doctrine or dogma. Can't be contained that way. How can I be contained in a book? I'm much bigger than that. Listen to me for I am inside! God is alive, how much he loves us because he instilled his voice inside us all. The err of humanity is the ceasing of listening within.

But how do we know how to access this supposed voice? Human beings have been conditioned to move away from what we feel internally. We've been conditioned to not follow those thoughts that result in an expansive sensation that further result in us living from a place of openness and receptivity rather than closedness, doubt, fear and skepticism. In a nutshell we're more accustomed to feeling bad than to feeling good.

So once again, how do we know how to access this supposed voice? Practice and awareness. If it feels good then that's access to your bliss. If it doesn't feel good then throw it out. Keep following what feels good. Be aware of what does and what doesn't.

Divine Openings and Internal Guidance System (IGS) are great tools I've found that help folks to getting back to trusting themselves and listening. To accessing their internal wisdom, to unlocking their personal life navigation system. Podcaster Alissa Kriteman said it best, "There's no external path we need to follow. It's all inside of us. We just need to tap in."

Tap in. That's your GPS. Nuff said.

Who Knew There Was Such a Thing as a Spiritual Fitness Club

2009-12-30T08:53:00.000-08:00

I recently met a generous kind-spirited tall-statured woman who just so happens to be a life coach and Agape Licensed Spiritual Practitioner. She specializes in facilitating amazing prayer sessions and what a treat it was that I recently had the opportunity to witness her in action. I had sent her an email asking her to pray for me about a challenge I was facing. I thought she'd email me back and say something like, "Yes I will hold you in prayer." But no, she actually called me and offered prayer over the phone, to which I graciously received.

Receiving Erin's prayer is a blessing. She truly has a gift of words and carries positive energy through her fluid speech. I experienced myself having fun during our prayer. I had fun because it felt good and my energy was lifted.

I don't believe in piousness nor do I believe that prayer has to be a grand spanking ordeal. I'm not religious but I'm deeply connected to an It, That, Other, I Am, Divine Presence that runs through each and every single one of us. And just as many sports operate by the use of teams to accomplish a goal, I believe that the combination of two or more individuals in prayer functions the same way as a team. It can be a powerful tool to ease your worries, lift your energy and get things done by delegating it to (insert your definition of "G*d" ;-)

So what's this Spiritual Fitness Club? Well, I'm glad you remembered the title of this posting. Erin Stewart, the prayer diva I mentioned in the beginning of this post, is the founder of a coaching and spiritual company, Clarity Enterprise and she is launching a year long program, beginning January 11, 2010, called the Spiritual Fitness Club. And if you're reading this blog then you know I'm all about spiritual fitness! One of the offerings in this year long program is daily prayer like the one I had received recently. Take advantage if you can. I'm still resonating in the juiciness of my prayer session with Erin.

For more deets check out:
http://www.clarityenterprise.com/SFCinfo.html

Peace out homies!

Nothing Like Accountability to Get Your To-Dos DONE

2009-12-29T14:02:00.000-08:00

Wow it's been almost a month since I last wrote on here. So much has been happening. Among one of the recent happenings is the production of an audio program. Yes I've been intending on producing an audio program on the subject of living your dreams for the last few months. I created an outline and all but when push came to shove I just never actually sat bootay to chair and recorded the thing. Mind you, I have the recording software for it so it's not like I have to up and go to a studio. The studio is in my HOME!!

Antiways - as my baby bro says - I unexpectedly found myself in a mastermind accountability gathering at my friend's place last month. I thought I was going to support her life coaching endeavors but it was actually a group mastermind meeting. The subject is to create a goal that you aim to achieve within the next 30 days. Then the group meets 30 days from that day the goal is set and checks in that everyone's goal was accomplished. If not, there are dire consequences for noncompliers.

So since this audio program had been on my mind since September I decided to make the completion of this audio my 30 day goal. Well, the next meeting is 5 days from today and as of yesterday I hadn't recorded one track of this program that I could say I was definitely going to use. My consequence for not completing the goal is singing a karaoke song (not of my choosing) in front of the group as karaoke-ing slow tunes isn't a forte of mine. But as of yesterday I was considering skipping this meeting because I didn't think I'd have the program done nor did I really want to show up empty-handed and have to do karaoke.

But then the thought of punking out by not showing up altogether didn't entice me either. So I decided to buckle down and record...and record record record is what I've been doing. I'm glad to say that by the next time I meet with the group I shall have a finished program in hand. Yesterday I had no idea how the heck I would get this thing completed nor how I'd muster up the motivation to do it. But hey, the tracks are laid down.

:::SIGH OF RELIEF::: Now I must go back and edit.

My initial deadline to have the audio complete was my mid-January as I'm planning on an event with a friend of mine and wanted to have the program complete by then; however, this 30 day goal setting accountability forced me to push my deadline forward. Feels good. I'm taking a break before I go back and begin the editing process, but dang it feels good to not punk out but rather to buck up and get the going DONE.

Two Hours of Meditation? How Boring...Not!

2009-12-05T18:12:00.000-08:00

Last night marked my first night checking out the Friday night 2-hour group meditation at Self-Realization Fellowship's Lake Shrine temple in Pacific Palisades. I enjoyed it. I'm not an avid "meditator", in the sense of sticking to a consistent schedule to do the sit-in-silence thing for 20 minutes a day or so. However, I do meditate at least once a week. The duration I meditate varies.

I like being able to sit with nothing to do, nowhere to go and nothing to be except who I am in that moment. It would be nice to meditate with no running thoughts of consciousness wreaking havoc over my intention to be in complete silence (that means no mental chatter); however, this may not happen for awhile so rather than fret about it I'll just be patient with myself.

What last night was for me was a date with God and a date with myself. It was a nice treat. To drive all the way out to the temple and just sit. In public solitude. Public as there were about 20 other practitioners there. Solitude because everyone was doing their own meditation thing in silence.

During the first hour, a staff member (or maybe he was a volunteer? not sure) led a guided meditation consisting of chanting, affirmations and readings. The second hour was each man for himself. I will admit that there were moments when I thought to myself, "When will this be over?" as the impatient part of me ran its racket. But I knew this impatience would pass and I just went with it.

I plan on attending again in the future.

* I also wrote about Lake Shrine's group meditation on my LA Fitness Examiner page. Check out Get a mental and spiritual workout at Lake Shrine's free marathon group meditation.

Fitness Words of Wisdom from Judge Joe Brown's Bailiff Madame Sonia

2009-11-30T15:47:00.000-08:00

To most people she's known as Madame Sonia, as this is how she's referred to on the Judge Joe Brown show; however her full name is Sonia Montejano. What you wouldn't know about her by viewing her calm and professional demeanor on the show is that she is an avid fitness buff and loves to dance flamenco.

I first found out about Sonia when I went through a period of time watching The People's Court, Judge Judy, Judge Mathis and Judge Joe Brown on a fairly regular basis. One day I asked myself, "Are these bailiffs real?" So I did a little google'ing and found out that yes they are. What piqued my interest about Sonia, in particular, was that she shares a similar interest in fitness and dance as I do.

So I reached out to her on Facebook and asked if she'd write a guest post for my blog about being a fitness enthusiast and what she does to stay fit. She wrote back to me promptly. Here's Sonia's words of wisdom about staying fit...
-----------

"When asked to write an article on fitness for Valerie's blog page - it made me look into my lifestyle to determine just how I have managed to remain slim, despite living in a society where we are surrounded by an abundance of food. I came to realize that staying fit for me has been the direct result of my lifestyle. I'm usually in motion in one form or another, always active - everyday.

On a typical day I usually start by walking my dog - a serious 30 minutes to 1 hour walk...I prefer hills. After walking my dog I usually go for a 30 min jog of about three miles. I prefer to jog alone and don't run anything too difficult. During this time my mind relaxes and I get to think out my thoughts without interruptions - it's better than therapy.

After my morning exercise, I'm ready to take on the day. I know every person is different, but for me, I prefer to do activities in the morning (before noon and outdoors). Although I usually walk my dog everyday, I don't jog but three times per week. On the non-jog days, I'll do yoga, pilates, flamenco dance, biking, or hiking. Whenever possible I will coordinate these activities with friends - so it never seems like a "workout" it's just fun stuff to do with friends.

When it comes to being active, I don't make excuses. I hear people give reasons why they don't exercise - and the one that gets to me the most is, "I work - and that's why I don't have time to exercise". Well, I worked plenty of years - 40+ hours per week - and I always managed to jog at least 30 min during my lunch break without any difficulty. I suggest everyone avoid giving excuses to not exercise.

I do need to mention a few words on diet. Although I don't calorie count, I do watch my portions. When it comes to drinks, I avoid sodas - as they are loaded with too many empty calories. Over the years, I've learned that a small amount of food is all I need.

So there it is, it sounds simple and effortless and it is. I don't think it's about how hard you can workout one day per week. I think it's about how much fun can you have everyday. Just like that... walk everyday - and follow it by doing another fun activity for at least one hour of continuous activity - and in a few weeks you will feel healthier and with more energy.

I've just given you my secret to staying fit - and I hope to have inspired you into choosing to stick to an active lifestyle. As a result, you will look & feel fabulous."

Sonia Montejano became a staple on the Judge Joe Brown show following a 19-year career in the L.A. County Sheriff's Department. Her career included a supervisory role at the L.A. County Sheriff's Department Court Services Division in Beverly Hills where she created and enforced security plans for civil and criminal trials. Mexican by birth and raised in Los Angeles, Sonia speaks Spanish fluently and currently resides in Glendale with her husband and daughter. For a more detailed bio about Sonia, visit Judge Joe Brown's Courtroom Bios.

Keep Your Mouth Shut

2009-11-23T12:59:00.001-08:00

Sometimes it's best to do things, to embark on a path and not tell anyone about it. Don't tell anyone your reasons. Don't tell anyone what you're doing. Sometimes we let others' best intentions sway what's best for our highest good, what's best for our lives fulfilling and exceeding the potential that it's meant to reach. By allowing others' opinions to affect what our still small voice knows is the right path.

When we sit in solitude and really be with the decision that is at hand, a sense of peace may come over us. The problem comes in when our minds rationalize that this decision is actually against popular opinion so to check ourselves and make sure we're really making the right decision, we seek counsel of 6 comrades and 3 professionals (insert any number you choose). Before you know it, that initial sense of stillness and peace becomes so diluted: what's left is a rubble of confusion. Then we embark left instead of right. Right was the peace-induced path. Left doesn't sit 100% well with our insides but we rationalize that we musta been not fully in our right minds. It doesn't make sense to go right. So we don't.

Then we find days, weeks, months, years later that the path of left wasn't all it was cracked up to be. Then we look back to two distinct moments:

Moment A - the peace-induced stillness that resulted when we decided to go right
Moment B - the rationalization of our initial decision coupled with the opinions of others resulting in our going left

People mean well, but at the end of the day, you have the answer.

Try something different rather than deflecting your energy outward by seeking answers or approval from others. When you decide something for yourself that makes you feel incredible but you know will be against "popular opinion", keep your mouth shut. Go down the path your intuition says you need to be on. Then talk about it afterwards...If you choose to talk about it at all. Your life is your business. You have the answer.

This all may not sound so fun, especially the lonesome ranger aspect; however, the fun will occur once you realize the joy and amazing results that occur in your life because you chose to stick to your guns and honor your powerful intuition. Life is a blast. Trust yourself and go on your own ride.

Superslow Weightlifting: The Video

2009-11-21T19:34:00.000-08:00

In my post entitled "Can You Exercise for Only 20 Minutes Once a Week AND Still Get Results? Absolutely!" I profiled a little-known workout called Superslow Weightlifting. Included in that post was an interview I conducted with a Superslow Certified Power of 10 Trainer. I had also recorded a video showcasing the workout. If pictures speak louder than words then video is golden. Editing is complete and the video has been posted online for your viewing pleasure: Superslow YouTube Video. If you can't access the link, type or copy and paste http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hfrTu1ctIk into your web browser.

Cheers!

The Peaceful Laughing Observer Within

2009-11-20T18:05:00.000-08:00

My friend Emily is a talented writer, as I've recently come to realize. She sent me one of her creations and I was so moved by it that I asked her if I could post it on my blog. I think why I was particularly moved was because I've been going through some stuff the past couple days that this poem shifted into perspective. At the end of it all, it's all small stuff, nothing's that serious and we're more than we think we are.

Without further ado, here's the piece:

Realignment
by Emily Baldwin

I call on the powers

of this Universe to take me

back to myself,

to the last hour of my 23rd year,

to the gun he put to my head,

to the birthday I spent in jail,

to the friends I didn't have to help,

to the barrage of frantic phone calls

my parents

refused to answer.

To the cold, grey cell

to my newly straightened hair –

the fresh smell of the outside world,

a rude imposition to the stale stink of Lysol

that hung heavy around me

like guilt.

To the padded, velcro dress

they made me wear

when I told them it wasn’t true,

that I was distressed

by the false accusations

and might be thinking

of killing myself.

To the place

on the concrete slab

in solitary confinement

where I sat heaving –

violently, dizzy, nauseous –

a little girl disowned,

an imploding martyr,

realizing her Jihad

was now impotent.

Not a why going unasked

in my begging to tell them

that I didn’t deserve this –

to believe that

they absolutely had

the wrong person.

I want to appear

there in that room with her,

and observe

my own muted emotion,

observe - the part of me

that would be

somewhat unmoved

to see the horror

in my own eyes.

I wish I could say I would

take her in my arms,

wrap her in white light,

and tell her not to be afraid,

like Amma would,

but I think more than anything,

I’d just want to explain

the way the other Law works.

I’d explain that she was here

because her potential

separated itself

from her circumstance,

creating a schism, a shift – a gap,

and the gap wanted to close,

as gaps do.

That because she knew

there was more to her

than this shitty, backwoods town,

more to her than these drugs

and this psychopathic boyfriend,

that because she was more

than a prisoner to this man’s abuse,

more than a puppet

for running his scam business,

that because she knew

this was not her lot in life,

it came for her

to break her out,

by putting her in jail.

She was in realignment.

I’d want to tell her about the other side –

about what could come in

after this was smoked out.

I’d see for her what she could not see for herself:

You could have more health, vitality, and power in your life than you could ever imagine

because of this.

You could be more authentic, carry yourself with high integrity, and have stronger, more meaningful relationships

because of this.

You could sing to the world what it means to be truly free and live each and every day grateful, grateful, grateful for your freedom

because of this.

You could live from a strong, grounded center, and never allow yourself to dim your light for anyone else ever again

because of this.

You could cast aside all judgment against others and never accept other’s opinions at face value

because of this.

You could have the ability to see the heart in all people, regardless of where they have been, who they have been, and what they have done

because of this.

You could come to truly know and love yourself and invite only those things into your life which are loving in return

because of this.

All of this,

because of this realignment.

We all have that one place within us,

suspended between

the warring forces

of good and evil

that is simply watching –

listening to it all

and laughing

back at us,

while we are crying.

Because it knows

what it’s doing.

The truth is in the

I already knew.

For a brief moment,

she lifted her head

from her begging bowl

and laughed at herself

in that room.

I remember.

To read more of Emily's writings and subscribe to her blog, visit http://wearesearchingforgod.blogspot.com/

Adventures in Bungee Jumping

2009-11-15T15:37:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a magnificent day and marked the execution of an item on my Bucket List that I've been wanting to do for years: Bungee Jump. What made this bungee trip even more memorable was the trek it took to get to and from the bridge from which we jumped. Two hours and 5 miles of hiking through rugged Angeles National Forest terrain to and from the bridge. Rocks, rocks and more rocks. The hike included traversing through 6-inch wide trails on steep ground that culminated in a 80 foot drop to a rocky death or injuries galore if one step was missed.

The hike also included windy paths through brush and beautiful sage bushes. The hike even included traipsing through knee-high deep river on multiple occasions. Shoes, socks and even pants got wet. After the first 3 "waterfull" passes I began welcoming these trips into the river. But man was the water cold.

If the hike to the bridge was something, the hike back was something even more. We wrapped up as the sun was beginning to set, which meant we'd be hiking through all that terrain and water in the dark. Now that was an experience. I've gone hiking with the Sierra Club before and I've gone hiking in the dark, but I've never hiked when it was necessary to use a headlamp. Moonlight wasn't available to guide our path and being we were in total nature, there was no artificial light either.

What a gorgeous gorgeous amazingly memorable experience. To be with other people in such magnificent nature. Walking in a valley and only able to see the silhouette of the surrounding mountains meeting a starry night sky. So dark you couldn't see the person's face next to you. At certain points we walked through rocky inclines and declines and needed to utilize the headlamps. On about three occasions I turned around to view a trail of meandering lights. These lights were the headlamps of the other 8-10 hikers/jumpers behind me. So dark I could only make out faint silhouettes of their bodies, but the trail of lights looked like fireflies. It was definitely a memorable sight.

The way this trip came about was a miracle in and of itself. First, I didn't necessarily have a bank account full of dough with an extra some odd dollars lying around to pay for my jumps. However, something I read about a year ago stayed with me. It went something like this: What is that thing that you say you'll wait until you're more successful or have more money before you do it? Why keep waiting? Do it now.

I've used "perceived lack of funds" as an excuse for why I didn't do a lot of things. But then I attended this event called the Millionaire Mind Intensive and I learned something that has changed the way I view my finances. It's called the Jar System and, in a nutshell, creates different categories for your income no matter how much you make. So I decided to cut with the excuses and to allow myself to take some enjoyment with the little dough I was bringing in. I set aside a certain percentage of each check to go towards my PLAY jar, an account designated for enjoyment of self. One day I realized I had enough in the account to pay for a bungee jump trip. And the rest was history. From an original mindset of "I don't have enough money to do what I really want to do" I was able to create a situation where I could do exactly what I wanted to do. The amount of income didn't change. Only my thoughts and subsequently my actions.

Second reason why this was a miracle for me was after I booked the trip I became quite unsure if it would actually happen. This bungee jump excursion has been in the works for 3 months. I first scheduled it for mid August. It got canceled due to the summertime fires in the Angeles National Forest. Attempt #2 was set for mid September, but a repeat of what happened in August occurred. The rangers or powers-that-be for the forest designated the area un-hike-able due to the smoke remnants from the fire. Major downer! October went by and this trip was still on my mind. The weather was getting colder and I had through Dec 31st to reschedule this trip. What made it a bit more complicated was that I wasn't going solo; rather this was a coordinated effort as I was going with friends. I decided to just pick a date in November and we made it happen. Third time was the charm.

So I'm on this 12-foot wide (or maybe less) platform about to make my jump. Oddly enough, I wasn't nervous and my heart was not pounding at this point. I'm about to jump and I'm thinking, "Let's just rip this band aid off already." The jumpmaster behind me told me to look towards my target on the cliff opposite from where I was standing, point my arms towards the target (Superman-style) and leap away from the ledge. He counts down. 5-4-3-2-1. My feet leave the platform.

I'm feeling pretty okay and confident. Then I let out the scream to end all screams as I went plummeting so ungracefully downward. All advice about proper form and the body being in either Superman or T-formation went right out the window. The sensation of nothing but air around me turned me into a screaming panic flailing around for some sense of stability. But about a second or two later, I felt myself snapping back upward to the underside of the bridge. This sensation felt pretty good. But then "oh-no-screams-galore" happened again as I went tumbling back down. Despite my maddening reaction, this was actually a hell of a lot of fun. The jumpmaster hoisted me back up to the bridge after my bounces came to a halt.

But I wasn't done. Go-getter that I am signed up for two jumps. I waited for the next person to go and then I was back out on that platform again. This time I leapt backwards. I thought it would be better. That I wouldn't scream this time. But oh no. Screaming banshee resurfaced. And try as I might to keep my eyes open during the drop, my instinct had those suckers shut within milliseconds of the plummet. I've always been like this - be it roller coasters, freefall rides at amusement parks or slingshot rides. I start to feel the otherworldly sensation induced by high velocity and lack of control over where I'm going and boom! Eyes shut and I scream in terror. Milliseconds later I'm usually cool...until the next drop happens. Other than that initial descent, I have a blast.

So the question is: Will I be repeating this experience? Um, probably not..at least for a while. I'm sure glad I get to cross off this big endeavor from my Bucket List though. Next up, skydiving and ziplining. I said I don't like the sensation that results from freefalling yet I want to go skydiving??

Yeah.

Why? You ask.

I say, Why not?

:-D

Run For No Reason

2009-10-29T20:33:00.000-07:00

Earlier today I was in a rush because I'd parked my car in a curious spot. The temporary sign said "No parking Thursday 6am - 6pm Commercial Permit Vehicles Only." However #1 - The sign was close enough to, but not exactly right smack in front of, the residential area curbside parking space that I was eyeballing. So I wasn't 100% sure if this sign referred to that particular spot. However #2 - There were no other available free parking spaces. So I decided to take my chance and run real quick into the costume shop 300 feet away from where I parked my car.

No cigar. They didn't have my stethoscope prop for my very simple Halloween costume. But they did direct me to the medical supply store just up the street. I power walked to the store. Score! Stethoscope in stock. As I stood at the counter, something in the way I was shifting my weight must've been a giveaway because the cashier said, "You're not parked in a good spot are you?" I smiled, said something I don't remember now, signed my receipt and left the store.

With long strides I ran down the street to the corner in order to get to my vehicle before the parking police had a chance to. When I saw I was in the clear, however, I didn't stop running. Sprinting felt good, so I kept running...all the way to my car. For no reason. Other than I wanted to.

What would you like to do for no other reason than you just really want to? Now go do it.

The Nia Workout

2009-10-26T17:26:00.001-07:00

Just writing a real quick post about a new workout that I just found out about over the weekend. I met a bunch of gals from Lululemon Athletica and they were describing a workout they love to do. The workout is called Nia. I'm surprised that I'd never heard of it before as I consider myself something of a queen bee of unique fitness. But then again this world is so vast and ideas are limitless. Gonna check this out and hopefully will write about it in depth on a future post. From what I understand it is a fusion of various dances, martial arts and meditation.

'Til next time...

Let 'Em Walk. Then Rinse and Repeat.

2009-10-21T10:53:00.000-07:00

My past few Facebook posts have been the inspiration for my blog posts of late so I'll continue to run with it. This morning I wrote on FB: It's not about how many people are in your corner, but rather the quality. If someone bounces, don't chase 'em. The natural order and wash cycle of things will let the right folks remain and attract new peeps, the appropriate ones to be around as you progress through the next stage of the personal evolutionary wash cycle of your life. Then rinse and repeat.

I fell asleep last night listening to my iPod and Joel Osteen's podcast was on the playlist. When I awoke this morning Joel was describing an Old Testament story where God told Gideon to reduce the size of his army from 32,000 to 300 soldiers. At the end of the story Joel noted that it's not the size of your army that's important, but the quality.

I applied this story and message to something I'm going through right now, regarding saying sayonara to someone who used to be a close friend. I'm coming to terms with the fact that we are not the same people we were when we were close. I've also come to realize that we're so different on a fundamental aspect that means more to me than I was willing to admit. Difference in and of itself is no issue, but when it's on a core matter of monumental importance to either party, then the point of contention but must be addressed. If harmony can't be reached, someone may just have to walk away.

This friend and I are still on good terms, however it's hit me that we cannot be for each other what we used to be. This saddens me. To help soothe and make sense of this loss, I've decided to remain conscious to the natural order of my own evolutionary wash cycle. I'm in a different stage of my life than I was when we were bosom buddies. I know the people who are in my inner circle right now are supposed to be there. And granted, this former close friend is still in my life (and I'm grateful for it), but this person now occupies a different space on my bullseye chart. No longer in the inner circle, but in the outer rings. This wasn't the first time this has happened and it won't be the last: The coming, going and shifting of friends and others will repeat in this wash cycle called life. It's a given. Humans are not static beings. Why should our relationships be any different?

----------------
P.S.

Here are some other Joel Osteen quotes I enjoyed from his podcast episode Living Without Crutches, which you can download for free on iTunes:

"You don't need people in your life that are enabling a limitation."

"If you're not willing to let people walk away, you'll miss out on God's best. Don't be surprised in the coming days if God streamlines things and begins to weed out certain people. He's not trying to take you backwards, he's getting you prepared to go to a new level."

What If Everyday Were a Cosmic Orgasm?

2009-10-20T11:41:00.000-07:00

Wow. That image lights me up. And I'm not talking about a literal "getting it on" everyday kind of orgasm. What I refer to is a state of being where your sense of purpose is fulfilled and you are excited about your life. There was a time, five years ago to be exact, when I was living back in Florida unbalanced, unfulfilled, unhappy, direction-less and unsure about the possibility of being one of those "happy and lucky" people that I'm sure existed somewhere out there.

I remember existing (as opposed to living) day in and day out afraid to be excited about any one thing for an extended period of time. I was terrified that my smidgen of sunlight-filled contentment, peace and excitement would result in a terrifying crash landing of epic proportions. I functioned as if it were easier for me to live in fear and sadness rather than excitement. My reasoning was "it's better to stay down so nothing will surprise me when worse happens than it is to live a life I loved because disaster was inevitable." I don't know when the heck this line of thinking inseminated my mind, but it did and I was living this fear-based reality for years.

Well a slew of events, happenstances, conversations, reflections, reading and much more has resulted in a shift...a shift in what I believe is possible for my life. I can allow myself to toy with the idea of living a life I'm proud of and excited to be living everyday. To be filled to the internal brim with bursts of joy because I'm expressing my talents and gifts and relating to people at a profound level. I can acknowledge the egotistical "voice" that acts as our protector. Acknowledge it and then choose to act opposite of what it recommends, because what it recommends is what will keep me away from my life purpose and happiness.

It's funny how we humans are wired. We inherently want to be fulfilled, loved and expressive yet we act counter to our inherent nature each and everyday. I finally realized the extent of the damage I was causing to my sense of well-being and I decided to buck up and do the opposite of the pesky voice's supposed guidance.

Were the prior two paragraphs too "airy fairy" for you? Let me break it down with a real life example: I've been fascinated with being a presenter and/or performer on-camera since youth. No reason other than it's just something that intrigued the heck out of me. Something that never left me since the age of 6. I pursued it in secret by taking drama classes at the age of 12 and continually daydreaming myself on TV and speaking to audiences. However, I decided against pursuing any kind of real on-camera career because my "voice" told me: You'll never succeed. You won't even get a chance. Nobody looks like you on TV. Your nose is too big and your hair too rough. You won't make it. You're not a size 6. Forget it. You may be talented, but give up this on-air desire. Not gonna happen. So despite my burning desire to actually perform, to listen to my intuition and go for it, I spent years denying this desire. I spent time going after "practical" careers, like becoming a lawyer or behind-the-scenes entertainment positions. In these careers I'd be able to use my smarts where I'm destined to be a success and I wouldn't have to attempt fitting a standard that I would never fit.

Well oddly enough I haven't gotten far in these practical careers. Some time has passed since those days of listening to that particular voice. As of earlier this year I cut the excuses and decided to actively shoot my own videos and showcase my passion and talent for presenting and hosting. I decided to give in to my intuition, to my real inner voice and act despite the words of the so-called "protector" voice. Life is becoming more and more cosmically orgasmic everyday. I'm ecstatic to share what I love and to do it no holds barred.

I wish everyone could be like that. How much more satisfied would we be as a nation, as a planet, if everyone were tapped into their purpose? If everyone allowed what lights them up to express itself on some level everyday. I believe life CAN be an ecstatic experience, not reserved for brief moments occurring every now and then and definitely not just reserved for intimate relations in the bedroom, hallway, bathroom, wherever you choose to get your freak on. Ecstasy on the level of life itself can be deliberately created.

Giving yourself permission to get ecstatic and follow the spark is the first step. It definitely was mine.

Hair is Just Hair, Wear Yours with Flair

2009-10-19T15:15:00.001-07:00

The status update I posted on Facebook today was: "Life is like silly putty. You really can mold it to what enables you to live vibrantly. But you gotta first mold your mind and being into the shapes that best serve you. The exteriors will follow suit."

This post stemmed from a decision I made about hairstyle and a conversation that ensued with my hairstylist regarding Chris Rock's new movie Good Hair. Two months ago my stylist recommended I give my hair a break from the style I was donning for the past year by keeping extensions out and letting all of my own natural hair breathe. I had my hair in twists (they look like braids for those who don't know). I'm very particular to my prior style since it's my favorite of all the styles I've done so I wasn't very excited about this recommendation in the beginning. However, I'm committed to hair health so twists had to come out. But how would I style it in the meantime?

And what does this have to do with living vibrantly? Well, to cut to the chase I'm wearing my hair in a fro now, as in afro. Out in public. This is something I would've never seen myself doing 5 years ago. As a black female growing up in the US I've been exposed to very few images in the media of black women, let alone black women who have their hair natural...not pressed nor relaxed but natural in their kinky fabulous glory. I didn't think wearing a fro was attractive while I was growing up and quite frankly, I thought my natural hair texture was a curse from God, partially because combing through my hair has literally driven me to tears. Dude, sometimes it just hurts. But you know what, it's just texture. As my hairstylist says, "You've just got a tight curl pattern." Nothing in the hair itself says good or bad. However, the notions PEOPLE assign it does.

In reference to my FB status above, I wasn't living vibrantly when I was ashamed of the hair with which I came on this planet. I've lived most of my life with some kind of chemical, kink-remover or extension in my hair since the age of about 8, if not younger. Not by choice when you're that young. It's just something little black girls do. At a certain age, you go get a perm/relaxer or start pressing the hair with a hot comb.

I used to pray that the texture and length of my hair would miraculously change overnight in order to be "more presentable" and "manageable." I used to pray at the age of 10 that one day I'd wake up with silky smooth suave long hair. But you know what? This view didn't serve me. How does it serve me to have low self esteem about something which I can do nothing about? How does it serve me to deny parts of myself that are perfectly healthy? Who was I rejecting myself for? Society? A potential date? Other women? All of the above. Beliefs are just beliefs and I believe that everyone is gorgeous in their own right and your hair is exactly the way it needs to be. Done done and done. End of story. Jesus, who set the standards of beauty that entice so many people to self-ridicule and try to change themselves in order to fill? Those standards got set somehow but we perpetuate them. By believing and buying into them.

My journey away from silky and suave standards came to fruit when I decided to keep my natural hair texture of tight not-gonna-get-the-comb-through-it-in-one-swoop curls in play. I stopped doing weaves. I stopped getting the hair pressed and I ceased relaxing about 2 1/2 years ago. Dang I feel free.

Going back to the above FB quote, the shape that best serves me is the one where I let myself be. I let my naturalness be what it is. I recently chose the "fro do" not to make a statement to others or prove anything to myself. I chose the fro just cause. It's easy. It's me. I wanted to let my hair breathe in all its natural glory - just as it is. It deserves to see the light of day in its full extent. Why not? It's just hair.

I understand that some people hold the view that fros look like a head of pubic hair or something more or less vile. I understand that some people don't believe one will be given the opportunity for corporate success with a fro or other natural hairstyle. But ever since I did this little thing called Landmark Forum, I've made the distinction that most things, if not all things, people say just don't mean anything. What someone says or does has no meaning in and of itself. What impacts my life is the meaning and weight me myself and I gives to what was said and done.

Well, ever since I made the decision to keep my hair natural I love it. Less ridiculous upkeep for one thing. Another, I'm publicly accepting, loving and acknowledging who I am. My life before I molded this view of "hair is just hair, wear yours with flair" consisted of me not accepting my kinks and short hair. Desiring desperately to be something other than what I was. Self esteem not too high unless I was faking the funk with some texture-altering product. My view NOW is pretty much, "This is me. Take it or leave it. Look at it or don't. It's none of your business and what you do or think is none of mine."

Now this is not to say that I will never go back to relaxing, extensions, pressing or hairstyles other than natural. I like variety and I like trying different looks. The difference between my decision to go back and forth NOW comes from a place of preference rather than self-denial or trying to change self.

Mold your thoughts, transform your life. Sometimes you gotta start with the hair.

-----------------------------------------

P.S. One of my friends sent me this link about hair and media. I think it's priceless.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_tqt7iKyWA3E/R8yEZ1ot62I/AAAAAAAAABY/FqZ9sRWKUd8/s320/disney+hair.jpg

Stagnant Complacency is the Living Equivalent to Death

2009-10-16T11:41:00.000-07:00

I wrote this on my Facebook status update this morning. Actually, the whole post went something like this, "Evolution. How can you raise the bar in your life? Take the next step. If you know your thing in your field, can you teach it? If you're comfortable in your intermediate classes can you progress to advanced? Can you add the next weight level in your physical strength training? Stagnant complacency is the living equivalent to death."

Where did this come from? Actually, a relatively simple occurrence the other night sparked a conversation I had with myself about the nature of progress, upping my game and taking myself to the next level. The teeny tiny situation went a little something like this: I'm in a dance group and we resumed weekly rehearsals earlier this week for a new piece we're putting together. At one point during the rehearsal, the head honcha artistic director needed someone to keep the count out loud while she cued the names of the moves we were to do to for the first minute of the piece.

Now, I'm a trained musician in piano, alto sax and percussion (though I haven't played any of the above consistently in 5 years) so publicly keeping count is something that shoulda come naturally to me. However, I didn't initially volunteer to keep the count and when I examined my reasoning, the lightning quick thoughts that flashed through my consciousness were "What if my count's off? I'll look like a fool. I'll mess up on everything if I try to dance and count out loud." So simple. So quick it was barely noticeable that this is what I was thinking. Very subversive and counterproductive to the powerful me that puts myself out there.

In any case, whoever was initially counting was off beat and we had to stop going over the moves. The director made another request for someone to keep the time because she couldn't count and call the moves concurrently. Silence. Then she tried to quickly brainstorm another solution. It was getting too complicated so I just shut off my mind, opened my mouth and volunteered to keep the count. At first, dancing, verbally keeping the time and keeping note of the moves that corresponded to the verbal cues was a bit hectic, but within seconds I was settled in. And I realized that I felt my game improve in that minute and change I was counting out loud. Because it forced me to utilize various muscles synchronistically. Forced me to be more on point. Forced me to be more focused.

Yeah this reflection ensued from that little occurrence. But I figured there's something worth noting and journaling if I'm still thinking about it and the lesson learned 2 days after the fact. Life does that to me sometimes. Makes me perk up, notice the seemingly small things and extrapolate from there.

Next up on the dance front: The director asked me and 2 other gals trained in African dance to choreograph some moves to a couple counts of music. Once again quick thoughts were, "OMG really? I don't know enough. I've got these people fooled. They think I know my stuff. I don't know squat." But when I got home I was able to go through the database of moves in my head, acknowledge that I do know enough for what is asked and bam! I put together a segment to present at next week's rehearsal. If I have time over the weekend, I'll go over some video I've got and come up with a few more options.

Continuing to outgrow my shell...

Can You Exercise for Only 20 Minutes Once a Week AND Still Get Results? Absolutely!

2009-10-13T12:07:00.000-07:00

Sounds too good to be true huh? I know. But it's not a gimmick. It's a workout called Superslow Weightlifting. I recently found out about this activity a month ago and decided to do an interview for this blog with a certified Superslow Power of Ten trainer, Melinda Hughes. Through our Q&A I hope to shed some light on this fascinating workout.

I also shot a video segment over the weekend where I undergo a Superslow session at PureStrength in Studio City, CA. Wow what an experience. I've never done anything like this before. Once editing is done, I'll post and share with you. So without further ado, I present to you Superslow. (Please check with your physician before performing this or any other form of exercise :-).

PV: First off, what exactly is Superslow Weightlifting and how does differ from regular weightlifting?

Melinda: Superslow is a more efficient form of weightlifting. Your complete total body workout lasts only 20 minutes once a week. The prescribed 20 minutes per week allows your body its natural course to recover and build the long term, sustained strength you desire from a workout. High intensity muscular stimulation taxes the muscle to exhaustion. With an adequate rest period, the muscle will overcompensate for the exertion and grow. In this way, you continue to gain muscular strength and composition. More muscle makes for a more efficient metabolism.

PV: What would be considered an adequate rest period?

Melinda: At PureStrength, we find the majority of our clients need between five to seven days to recover from a workout. Recovery is necessary because while lifting weights, our muscles are temporarily weakened. Exercise causes tiny tears in muscle fibers, which the body must then repair, causing the muscle to grow stronger. If you workout too often, you continuously weaken your muscles without allowing them time to repair, and you do not grow stronger.

The reason the recovery period after a Superslow workout is so much longer than after traditional weight training sessions is because a Superslow workout is so concentrated and intense; therefore, your muscles have a more significant stimulus to which they must adapt. Most weight training programs do not offer your body that increased stimulus and thus do not require such a rest period.

PV: Does the 5 to 7-day rest period your clients undergo with Superslow mean that they don't perform any other form of exercise during that rest period? Or would it be okay for a person to engage in other activities (even regular strength training) during that time?

Melinda: We encourage our clients to live an active lifestyle engaging in activities they enjoy. The focused workout they do at PureStrength is the foundation. Exercise is very different from recreation. Exercise is a focused and scientific effort to stimulate various health benefits. Recreation refers to an activity an individual might chose that enhances mental and physical health, usually practicing a specific skill (i.e. running, dancing, hiking, yoga).

Exercise is not necessary if the client is participating in activities they don't find enjoyable for the purpose of weight loss or building muscle. Those who take pilates classes, dance lessons, or go on hikes because they enjoy these activities are encouraged to continue to do so. We advise clients to rest (abstain from other forms of exercise/recreation) the day before and the day after their Superslow workout (but only when the workouts increase in intensity and the client begins to reach muscle failure, which usually occurs in the second month of sessions).

PV: How did Superslow get to be called "superslow"? Are the repetitions done at an incredibly slow pace?

Melinda: Exactly. Each repetition consists of a positive and a negative. The positive or “concentric” movement is the lifting of the weight. The negative or “eccentric” movement is the lowering of the weight. In Superslow, each phase of the repetition lasts a full 10 seconds, which makes each repetition 20 seconds long. The reason Superslow utilizes this slow cadence is twofold--1. It’s safer and 2. It’s more effective. When you lift a weight in 10 seconds, you eliminate momentum. Momentum is dangerous. Most injuries in the weight room occur when people fling weights around using momentum. They do not have control of the weight. During a Superslow workout, you always have control of the weight. Furthermore, without momentum as a helping force, the exercise becomes much more effective as now only the muscle must move the weight.

PV: Many fitness professionals and certification organizations like AFAA (Aerobics & Fitness Association of America) recommend the average person undergo a training program consisting of 2-3 strength training sessions per week for each major muscle group. How is Superslow more beneficial than working this usual prescription? Do you hit all major muscle groups during that singular 20 minute session? 20 minutes once a week just sounds so out there!

Melinda: Everyone has the same initial reaction--“20 minutes? What a gimmick!” A standard Superslow workout will consist of one set on 4-6 machines. On each machine, muscle failure is reached. Muscle failure is the point at which the muscle is no longer able to lift the weight. No matter how hard you try, you cannot lift the weight. At this point, one continues to try to lift the weight for an additional 10 seconds. The weight will not move-- but it’s the attempt to move the weight that is essential.

It is important to realize that the goal of weight training is not to lift the weight and finish the repetition but to exhaust the muscle and eventually grow stronger. After an intense Superslow workout, our clients are exhausted. Through compound movements on specialized equipment, they work every major muscle group, including the cardiovascular system (remember, the heart is a muscle, too!). Many people don’t know that proper weight training is the most effective cardiovascular workout. Most weight training programs do not tax the muscles as efficiently or thoroughly as Superslow, which is why most fitness professionals, organizations, and publications recommend weight training 2-3 times per week.

The idea of training different muscle groups on alternating days is unfortunately a widespread fallacy. When we perform a bicep curl, the bicep is not the only muscle that becomes stronger. The body releases growth hormones which ignite chemical processes that promote the growth of all the body’s muscles. This indirect effect of exercise is why a person with a broken leg who continues to train the upper body will recover more quickly and maintain more strength in the injured leg than a person who does not train at all.

Fortunately, more and more people are realizing the numerous values associated with high intensity once a week weight training. Some books recently published touting Superslow’s numerous benefits are Power of Ten by Adam Zickerman, Body by Science by Dr. Doug McGuff, and The Slowburn Fitness Revolution by Fredrick Hahn--all versions of Superslow.

PV: How did you personally get into Superslow weightlifting?

Melinda: I was a nutrition student who owned a beautiful and very expensive Nautilus elliptical machine. I ate right and diligently spent an hour each day on my elliptical. I would also lift weights (free weights), working different muscle groups for a half hour each day. With all this exercise (10.5 hours each week) and healthy eating, I was in OK shape. But I wanted to be in great shape. I researched personal trainers and found Melissa Gunn at PureStrength.

After a brief phone chat, something intrigued me about the 20 minutes once a week. I thought it was a total gimmick of course but wanted to see for myself. What if I could really be in great shape by exercising only 20 minutes once a week? I tried it. I felt it. It changed my life. I had more energy. I slept better. The knee pain I had become accustomed to after long walks had disappeared. My back was stronger, and my scoliosis wasn’t as pronounced because I had been able to correct muscular imbalances. I was happy. I was strong. And I was healthy. In 20 minutes per week. So one day after a training session with Melissa, I exclaimed, “I wish I had your job!” And now I am very happy to be working with her at PureStrength.

PV: I had never heard of Superslow before we met. How long has it been around?

Melinda: Superslow was coined in the early 1980s by a man named Ken Hutchins who worked with Arthur Jones, the inventor of the Nautilus weight machines. Ken Hutchins and his wife Brenda conducted an osteoporosis study at the University of Florida with 80 and 90 year-olds to see if weight training would reverse extreme cases of osteoporosis. He found that the traditional weight training protocol was too dangerous as the participants in the study had fragile bones susceptible to fractures.

Hutchins slowed the protocol to the 10 second cadence and found the results astonishing. The study’s participants saw remarkable improvements. Those who once depended on assistance for daily life tasks were now able to care for themselves. Hutchins and his wife began training themselves and others with the Superslow protocol and found that even in healthy individuals, this method built strength much more rapidly than traditional methods. Today, many people train at Superslow facilities.

PV: Would you consider this style of fitness fun? Why or why not?

Melinda: Well, I certainly wouldn’t say it’s “fun” while I’m experiencing muscular failure. But it’s fun to become stronger, feel healthier, and stay younger. It’s fun to feel that rush after my workout when I know I’ve really pushed my body to its limits. It’s fun when I see friends and family members and they say, “You look great! What the heck have you been doing!?” It’s fun to feel great in my clothes and wear my “skinny” jeans everyday. And as a trainer, it’s fun to guide other people through the experience. To be with a client when they get it, when they feel it, when they see it. To work with people ages 15-84 and watch their lives change--inspiring!!

Melinda Hughes moved to Los Angeles from Ohio five years ago to pursue an acting career after graduating from Denison University with a BFA in Theatre Performance. She began studying nutrition online through Hawthorn University while earning her SAG card as an extra. Her passion for both fitness and film grew. Now in addition to acting, Melinda writes screenplays, works as a fitness model and trains clients at PureStrength. You can find more about Melinda at www.melinda-hughes.com.

Pretty Cool Horn-Tooting News: Yours Truly is a Winning Woman

2009-10-10T17:01:00.000-07:00

I found out yesterday that an alumni publication from my alma mater has featured me in their Winning Women online series. I'm honored, surprised and stoked. Nothing like doing a Richard Simmons video to get you some ink!

You can find the article here - This TV Host is Sweating to the Oldies with Richard Simmons

The video in the article is footage from one of our rehearsals and not the actual Simmons taping.

Find out more about the Dueling Tampons publication here - About DuelingTampons.com.

Enjoy!

Today is Not Yesterday

2009-10-06T11:08:00.001-07:00

June is a magazine writer and has her sights set on writing a piece profiling the author of a critically acclaimed book. One of the top goals on June's list is to conduct the interview to end all interviews with this author.

June first made contact with the author's assistant six months ago. At that time the assistant said she'd run the piece proposal by the author. Two weeks after her initial contact June contacted the writer's office again. This time the assistant said, "Thanks for your inquiry but Timothy has declined."

A month after her decline, June revised her proposal and pitched again to the author's assistant. The assistant's automatic response was, "As we had stated last time, Timothy has declined." The persistent bugger that June is rebutted, "I know. That was last time. I've revised my angle. Can you please run it by Timothy again?" Not wanting to come off as a jerk the assistant said ok. Two weeks later June follows up. "Timothy has declined but thank you."

A month and a half later June contacts the assistant's office again. She has revised her proposal and asks for Timothy's approval to do an interview. The assistant knows who June is all too well and at this point stops June mid-sentence and says, "Ms. Gerber. Timothy has already told you twice that he is not interested in doing this story." June replies, "It's not the same story and until Timothy tells me to stop calling the office altogether, then I will continue pitching for this interview." With a stroke of admiration for June's tenacity, the assistant agrees to share the proposal with Timothy. Two weeks later June follows up. The answer is no.

At this point the assistant inquires, "So I guess I'll hear from you in about another month right?"
"You sure will." June responds.
The assistant asks, "How do you keep doing it when you know the answer will be no?"
June replies, "See that's the thing. I don't know. I no longer operate my life under the notion that same is as same does. Today is not yesterday. I don't know what could happen between now and two weeks from now that would be the thing providing an open doorway for Timothy to say yes. Today is not yesterday."

Three months and three proposals later, June got her interview.

----------------------
This story is a figment of my imagination. But I wanted to write about the principle that today is not yesterday. I recently attended a Landmark Forum and I was confronted with closing the book on certain aspects of my past that I was continuing to live in the present. Too many times we live life under the umbrella called same shit different day. Walking around with that umbrella doesn't make for a very promising today.

We live the same uninspired mindset operating under the notion that the past is the present is the future. A no response yesterday means a no response today. Pain yesterday means pain today. No greatness. Just cynicism and resignation.

What would it take to create a new perspective? Perhaps the smallest act taken on a leap of faith would open a world of possibility. Miracles happen on faith the size of a mustard seed, right? Shake things up a bit and DO something differently. A surprise might await you.

A 4th Degree Black Belt Called Me an Animal

2009-10-06T09:41:00.000-07:00

Oh what a night.

Around the middle of the afternoon yesterday one of my friends texts me to go check out a boxing class at a fitness studio in Sherman Oaks that we've been meaning to go to for months. I printed out my coupon for my first class way back in July but since we've rescheduled so many times I figured "Oh what the hey, this isn't gonna happen. Would be cool, but whatever." I became detached from ever taking this class but still kept that free 1st class coupon at the bottom stack of the papers in my printer.

So my friend texts me to go FINALLY take this class and I'm like "Oh awesome." I didn't have any promising exercise class prospects for the remainder of the night and although Sherman Oaks is a bit out of the way, my motivation to take the class, shock my muscles and have fun was way greater than my not wanting to make the drive.

After checking out the gym's website, my initial perception was this is one of those large intimidating glossy Hollywood gyms swarming with folks more interested in looking cute than in working out. I thought pretensiousness would abound. How pleasantly wrong I was.

The studio is actually small. Two exercise rooms and it wasn't swarming with people. There was a total of about 7 folks in my class (me included) and the instructor was perfect. She was passionate about what she was teaching, obviously an incredibly talented boxer and a great teacher. She knew how to motivate and teach technique. The people in the class were actually rather nice as well.

I walked in having no idea what to expect. And that's probably why I was able to have as much fun as I did. I came in with no expectations so I was free to just listen to the instructor and be present to what was going on in the class moment by moment. I was getting so into the boxing that at random moments the instructor would call me an animal. I just get into this zone and feel free to unleash on the bag, the air, whatever. I guess I just really like boxing. I've done alot of cardio kickboxing, but there's nothing like making physical impact.

We did all kinds of drills with bags, partners, dummies. We did a lot. And it's so inspiring to have a really good female instructor. There's only one other memorable boxing class I've taken that was actually memorable for me and that was instructed by a man.

Anyhoo, this was no cardio boxing class. All that impact with the punching has my deltoids, biceps and lats pretty sore. I can also feel it in my right hamstring. My hands are even trembling when I try to hold them steady. But I'm drinking my water and will rest those muscles today. Feels great to work out like that.

For anyone in the L.A. area who's chomping at the bit wondering where they can go to take this class, I shall now unveil the name of the studio: Pulse Fitness Studio in Sherman Oaks. Monday night boxing. You'll get a kick out of it.

We Have Speed...Tape is Rolling...and Action!

2009-09-27T11:56:00.000-07:00

Two days ago marked the culmination of a month's worth of rehearsing dance steps with toning cords to music from the 60s and 70s. Fitness icon Richard Simmons has re-emerged to create another installment of his Sweatin' to the Oldies brand. I had the fortunate pleasure of being one of the cast members in the recent Toning to the Oldies video.

I arrived on the dark set a little before 7am at the Sunset Bronson Studios in Hollywood. I had heard the set looked amazing but I didn't realize how much so. It was done really really well. There were jungle gyms, see-saws, Singin' in the Rain type lampposts. The theme was an old school really colorful block party. Think Sesame Street.

The cast got the whole 9 yards done...hair, makeup, steamed wardrobe. We actually started taping around 9:30am. We wrapped around 6pm. Yes it was a long day, but it was a lot of fun. People make experiences grand, terrible or somewhere in between. The fact that we had spent so much time in rehearsals in preparation for the taping allowed us to form good bonds. I was comfortable and relaxed on set. I even broke out into this hysterical laughing fit in between one of the takes. It was all Richard's fault! That man is a riot. So hilarious.

Oh and the food during lunch was absolutely delicious. They had these decadently savory and soft chocolate chip cookies. Oh my! Couldn't pass that up. It was probably the best chocolate chip cookie I've ever had in my life.

Can't wait to see the finished DVD.

Live Out Loud

2009-09-27T10:54:00.000-07:00

When I think of the expression "live out loud" I immediately think of the following words:

Boldness
Unapologetic
Lively
Choice

This expression means quite a bit to me because I've spent quite a few years living the exact opposite. Pretty much hiding who I am from myself and subsequently, from the world. By stifling my true desires and passions I thought life would be easier. I should give up wanting or thinking about certain things because _______ (insert reason X), ______ (insert reason Y) and _____ (insert reason Z).

But a strange thing happens when you try to stifle who you really are...when you stifle the things you really want to do. You think that if you stifle then your desires will go away. You think by stifling and talking yourself out of these "crazy notions" that you can now "grow up" and really "be practical." But the opposite happens. That which you're trying to get rid of doesn't go away. In fact, the pain gets worse. You wake up one day and realize that you're really really really dissatisfied. This dissatisfaction doesn't just exist in your state of feeling, but it manifests and infiltrates multiple areas of your life. It becomes prevalent in your physical environment and unfortunately (when it gets extremely bad) it becomes prevalent in your physical body in the form of aches, pains and illness.

So the solution? Choose to Do you. Be you.

"Oh but it's so hard. I'd have to change my entire life."
"Oh but people won't get me if I try to do X, Y and Z."
"Oh but I don't know if I can do it."
"Oh but what if something bad happens when I try."
"Oh but ____ won't let me do it."
"Oh but ____ conditions aren't to my favor for me to do it."

These are some of the thoughts that will occur, but let's look at it some of this a little closer.

As Mark Twain said, "I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened." Perhaps many, if not most, people live in a "what if" fantasy world. The fantasy being "what if this happens." The "what if"ain't a pretty scenario and is actually some form of worry that would never happen in a million years. So instead of doing what they really desire they "what if" themselves to eventual life dissatisfaction.

There comes a point when you put your foot down and realize that your worries are not real. They are your mind's way of protecting you from some hypothetical troublesome situation that in fact, does not exist. As a conscious individual it's now up to you to decide to which part you will listen - the fearful mind that wishes to keep you in a safe little box, or the fearless heart that says life satisfaction is on the path of doing your thing.

Choice.

Live Out Loud:

Be bold. Great things happen outside your circle of comfort. I landed a spot as a cast member in a fitness icon's exercise video as a result of taking a very bold and quite unconventional action. I would've never had the opportunity to have had the great experience that I did had I not gotten over myself, quieted my undeserving thoughts, hunkered down, geared up and taken action.

Don't apologize for who you are and what you have to offer to yourself and other people. It's a given: Some people won't give a s#!t about you. For pete's sake Oprah has as many dissenters as she has fans. I haven't seen her relinquishing her enterprises because of it. Keep your focus on YOU and your supporters. The rest will take care of itself.

When you're doing what you want, you're lively. You're contributing to the world by acknowledging your place in it and doing what you're meant to do. The odds of your health being stellar rises exponentially and the likelihood of you actually be satisfied with your life is virtually absolute.

Exercise your choice. First decide if you'll squelch what's in you or if you'll allow it to burst forth. If you decide the former, don't complain if you end up living unhappily. You chose it. If you decide the latter, choose your next steps. Baby steps are fine. The Universe rewards action, no matter how miniscule our human minds think it is. Size of action is irrelevant. Choose to be in action.

That's all I have to say about that for now. I'm out.

Who Says You Need a Headshot to Get an Agent?

2009-09-23T13:36:00.001-07:00

After three months of diligent marketing to potential agents, my efforts have paid off! It's official folks. I have a talent agent. She represents me for hosting and commercial gigs. I'm in awe and, funny enough, exhausted. It's like that tired you feel after you've taken a really good exercise class or had an amazing run on the track. You just want to rest a bit and let your body feel the sensations of the good work you've done. That's where I am right now.

Six months ago I knew what I wanted - to start booking gigs as a TV host and to acquire an agent to assist with those endeavors - but I had no clue how I was gonna get there. I had no way of marketing myself to anybody because I didn't have any materials to show for what I love to do. No website. Not even one video. So then action time came around.

The gears in my head started spinning...What did I need to do in order to market myself? My thought process briefly went something like this:

I need to get Headshots. But those come pricey and baby girl (that's me) did NOT have the budget for it. Next option. There's gotta be another way.
Videos. Once again, baby girl didn't have the budget to get any professional demos done. But WAIT A MINUTE. I have the Flip Cam and editing software I begged my parents to get me for my birthday last year. Score! I'll shoot my own videos.

So I sought my own shoots and created a video blog about something I'm passionate about - fun fitness activities!! Because those videos involved me partaking in some aspect of hosting I again thought to myself, "Hmm, why don't I create my own reel?" I'd seen enough reels of professional hosts to know what format to follow and with my bootleg Flip Cam software, I edited my own stuff.

As I was doing all this I decided to keep myself accountable by enlisting the aid of someone I call my mastermind partner. We meet regularly and discuss our goals and plans with each other to provide support, feedback and some much-needed "keep-it-real-coaching." I'm a HUGE advocate of coaching (life coaching, financial coaching, etc.)

I cannot undermine the importance of having an outside party you go to for the intention of creating a better life for yourself. I don't care if you call them your life coach, mastermind partner or mentor. They can pinpoint your blindspots and they will inevitably see what you are doing to sabotage yourself. They have insights you can't possibly be privy too because no man is an island unto himself. Life coaches can cost a hefty price, but mastermind partnering doesn't have to cost you a dime. On that note, be careful who you invite into your sphere. You want someone who can match your energy, who won't be threatened by the awesome things you are up to and plan to do.

Lastly, I enlisted professional help through the form of a magnificent creative career coach. She helps creative people create fulfilling careers from their artistic pursuits. She usually charges over $100 per hour for one-on-one coaching, which I could not afford. But I knew that what she had to offer was valuable. When I found out she had a coaching program at a lower price point, I whipped out my credit card and decided to take a calculated financial risk and allow myself to invest in myself. By following her coaching, I was able to create a plan and take bold actions to get on the radar of folks who I wanted to know about me. Three months after implementing my plan I landed a few agent meetings and now I am represented. By the way, I never got headshots done that entire time.

I'm celebrating this win and realizing that there's much more to do. But I have faith in myself and in the people around me. Let the journey continue.

"Keep the energy in motion. Trust in the process, get rid of your attachment to the outcome and realize you're in your game for the long haul. Miracles happen when you let go and realize that you will be more than fine regardless what happens. That your happiness is not contingent upon the outcome. Your happiness is in the NOW. This letting go actually creates the space for that magic to work it's way into your life. Trust that your efforts are supported and that they WILL pay off. The Universe will applaud you for taking action, no matter how 'miniscule' you think your action is." - Paule Valerie :)

Trusting Your Gut and Knowing When to Say Yes

2009-09-21T13:31:00.000-07:00

At the end of June I declined a callback for an audition. What?! Was I crazy?

When I first read the audition and project info I thought to myself, "Oh cool. I get to do a free trial of this cool product and get the chance to be on TV if selected." I went to the audition feeling pretty good. Then I got a phone call that I received a callback audition. Even cooler right?

But then they sent over the release forms and everything and when I started to think about what was really involved in partaking in this process, I became uneasy. Not fearful, but uneasy. There's a difference. I know when I'm backing out of something because I'm afraid to stretch myself to the next level vs. having an unsettling sense that I should not do a certain thing. What I was experiencing was the latter. Signing those forms just didn't feel in alignment with what I should be doing. I had specific reasons for not doing the project if selected. But then another part of me was like, "Well, how bad can this really be?" I tried to see if I could reason away the unease.

As I toyed with my reasoning I thought about something one of my coach's said in a past session. She referenced a term coined by a life coach named Cheryl Richardson. It's called The Absolute Yes. It basically states that when an opportunity arises, unless I'm 100% yes for it, then my answer has to be NO. Plain and simple.

We can play the "if this, then that" game with ourselves way too much and overthink certain things to death, but often the answer is pretty loud and clear right smack in our gut. I stopped messing around with myself, called the casting office and told them I would no longer be able to attend the callback. They were pleasant and understood completely. We both hung up and I felt great and relieved.

Nobody should make you do anything that is not in complete alignment with what you feel is right. Not even you. It's okay to back out of things if it no longer aligns with what is best for you. Trust yourself, trim the fat, get balanced and know that more and better is on the way.

Trimming the Fat...and I'm Not Talking About Food Here

2009-09-21T13:24:00.000-07:00

You gotta create space in your life if you want a consistent stream of good to flow in. Eliminate the fat, let stuff go and trust that more and better is on the way. I've found that maintaining a balanced life is a constant dance of letting things go in order to bring in the new.

Saying "no" can be such a lovely experience. Scary, but lovely. Back in June, I'd cut out one major activity from my life - something I'd been doing once a week since March. It began as a source of joy but as time wore on and other priorities began to surface in my life, I found that I wasn't excited to do this thing anymore. But I felt guilty about "quitting" because in a ways, I'd just begun and I had been investing dough into this endeavor.

But then I utilized a tool a friend recommended to me earlier this year: I did a cost/benefit analysis. I divided a sheet of paper into 2 columns. On the left I wrote what is this activity costing me. On the right I wrote how this activity benefits me. And the clincher is, the costs and benefits have to be current, as in what is the benefit of doing this thing or keeping this thing in my life as of today? Not what the future payoff will be, but what is the payoff now.

At the conclusion of this analysis, it was clear to me that the only things keeping me to this activity were pride and a sense of obligation, which are never legit enough reasons to hang onto anything, people included. So when I officially let go of this activity at the end of June, I felt such JOY and relief. Wow. It's now September and I've not once regretted that decision. You gotta create space in your life if you want a consistent stream of good to flow in.

World Moves: Chaabi Dancing at a Moroccan Wedding

2009-09-16T12:38:00.000-07:00

While watching the Jim Carrey movie Yes Man I came across a song that led me to purchase a world music album featuring a pretty cool fusion of electronic and Arabic music.

For the curious, the album is Neftakhir and the artists are Maghrebika feat. Bill Laswell. Maghrebika is comprised of musicians and singers of Algerian and Moroccan roots. Bill Laswell is an American producer, record label owner and master bassist. The mastery of his bass playing is evidenced throughout the album, but I digress.

One of the songs on the album, and which actually appeared in the movie, is called El B'Nia. I had one of my musician friends listen to this song and he reported that the song is traditional Moroccan Chaabi music. I was really digging the sound so I began to wonder what Chaabi DANCING looks like. Since I consider myself something of a multi-genre dance enthusiast I'm always on the lookout for different ways to move my body, especially if I'm feeling the music. So my friend does some research and sends me a YouTube link of Chaabi playing at a Moroccan wedding.

I've not seen anything like this I have to say. One thing kept floating through my mind while watching the video - "free form." Talk about pure expression. Looks like fun to me. I'm sure I could burn quite a few calories partaking in this style of dance. But my head might hurt after awhile. Watch the video to see what I mean...

Here's the link for your viewing enjoyment - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmktBlQkr5A

Apparently there are different types of Chaabi. Upon doing a quick Google search I found that Moroccan Chaabi is not to be confused with Algerian Chaabi. As this music genre is completely new to me I couldn't begin to explain or even know what the difference is. I'm just fascinated by the wealth of movement and music that exists in this vast world in which we live.

Why Aren't You Accomplishing Your To-Do List?

2009-09-13T11:31:00.000-07:00

Do you find yourself consistently putting off certain tasks from week to week? You don't want to outright delete them from your list because you have to do them. However, instead of actually doing them, you just look at them on your calendar and find yourself moving the to-do date to the next day. And the cycle repeats itself.

Well, maybe those tasks are just too broad. One of my coaches has helped me realize that my perspective on some of my tasks were way too big. For example, I registered for my fitness certification exam in June. The exam itself was scheduled for mid-September. I had had 2 1/2 months to study from the date I registered and received my materials to the date the exam actually took place. So why did I find myself panicking on August 1st because the exam was a month away and I hadn't cracked open that textbook at all? I even wrote about my exam study procrastination in my first post of this blog - http://funlifefitness.blogspot.com/2009/08/national-certifications-oh-my.html.

Well, let's look a little deeper. The task I had written down to accomplish the goal of taking the exam was to "Study for Exam." That's it. No wonder I kept putting it off. I have a 500 page textbook, a second smaller textbook and study guide. How the heck does one just "study" with such daunting materials in front of them. If your mind can't wrap itself around a specific task, then your likelihood of doing it will be virtually nil. I can attest to that.

So you break down your task to bite-size chunks. "Study for Exam" soon became:

Schedule 1 hour each day to answer specific questions pertaining to only the chapters listed in the Study Guide. Start on the hour and end on the hour.
Schedule 30 minutes to create flash cards from challenging textbook and study guide terminology.
Schedule 45 minutes to create routine for practical component.
Rehearse routine for 15 minutes.
Etc. etc.

All of a sudden studying for the exam was a manageable task because I had created bite-sized mini-tasks. I eventually worked myself up to studying the text and study guide 3-4 hours about every other day 2 weeks before the exam. I also had scheduled enough time to rehearse all my routines that come time of the exam, I didn't have to really think about what I was saying and doing but could actually perform and present my material. As a result of all this specific task-creation, I honestly felt that I had done all I could to adequately study.

Much more manageable!

So now, take a look at your own life. How can you make your "procrastinatable" tasks manageable by turning them into bite-size to-dos? You'll thank yourself later.

Don't You Just Love that Post Exam Feeling?

2009-09-13T09:51:00.000-07:00

I sure do!

I've been thinking about it since January, seeking it out at my gym since February, registered in June, been officially studying since August and as of yesterday, my written and practical exam for AFAA's (Aerobics and Fitness Association of America) Primary Group Fitness Certification is now complete! :::BREATHE HUGE SIGH OF RELIEF::: Now I sit back and wait a few weeks for my results. Out of my hands now.

A passing score grants the test taker a certificate to teach group exercise classes at most, if not all, gyms and fitness facilities nationwide. I figure it's time to take my passion for fitness to the next level and up my game from class participant to instructor. Many gyms and facilities (like mine) provide their own certification programs, but it was more cost effective for me to pay what I'd be paying for a particular gym's cert program and get certified through a national organization. That way my certificate is good at any gym as opposed to being stuck at only one.

I was so nerve wracked when I first started reading up on this exam in January. One of the first things I read on AFAA's website was that this exam is "For group exercise instructors whose training and educational background has prepared them to take the AFAA Primary Group Exercise Certification exam." This sentence almost deterred me from even signing up because a) I wasn't yet an instructor and b) I hadn't had any official "training and educational background" that I would've considered preparation for this exam. Nothing official other than years and years and countless hours taking every mainstream exercise class imaginable and doing a heck of a lot of specialty and dance classes.

Timing wasn't right for February's exam so bit by bit, I sought out all the appropriate info. After adequate research and decision-making, the timing became right in June. So on one breezy June afternoon I drove on over to AFAA's headquarters in Sherman Oaks (I live a few miles over the hill in Hollywood..why pay for them to ship me the materials?) and registered for the exam in person. I even got some study tips from the sales director.

Part 1 and huge step of this certification trek was complete - registering! Now all the nerves started to kick in. Looking at this daunting 500-page textbook I began to freak out.

What if I don't pass? I just paid almost $200 for this exam and these study materials. I will feel like such a failure.
Will I be able to retain all this material?
Will I be prepared? How do I tackle this beast?
Etc. ad hesiusm. Ad nauseum.

But then I finally got over all that because August 1st rolled around (a month and a half before the exam!) and I still hadn't cracked open the hellacious-looking textbook and study guide. So I created a study plan of attack, stuck to it and by the time the exam rolled around I felt adequately prepared.

Part of that preparation came from the graciousness of another fitness blogger, Krista Leopold, who created a series of 5 posts called "Steps to Getting AFAA Certified." I'm posting the link here if any of you feel called to go through the certification steps in the future - http://groupfitpower.com/blog/2007/09/25/steps-to-getting-afaa-certified/. She does a phenomenal job outlining what to expect on exam day and how to prepare for the practical.

Now I wait for my results. In the meantime I think I'm gonna crack open my textbook again, read more and review for the fun of it. I actually enjoy reading about exercise science and knowing the technical aspects behind something I like so much. And the way I see it, it can't hurt to really know my stuff.

******
Final Note: Last but not least, I ended up getting an extra Study Guide and Practice Exam (so worth the investment by the way). Neither have been written in. I will pass them along to you if you find yourself crossing the certification path now or in the future. Just let me know.

Performance at the African Art and Music Festival

2009-09-07T17:23:00.000-07:00

This Labor Day weekend has been good and busy. One of the goings-on was my dance group's 4th performance (3rd for me). We performed at the first annual African Art and Music Festival in the Leimert Park Village of Los Angeles. "We" being Afri-K-Sineras (pronouce like AfriCaSineras), an all female dance ensemble that specializes in a fusion of Cuban style salsa called casino and African dance influences. I love performing as a member of this group since these are two of my favorite styles of dance - African and casino. So I guess it's perfect that I'm in this group.

Now back to the festival. One of the gals in the group brought this event to our attention about two weeks ago and at first, I have to say, I was unsure if we'd be able to get it together in time. But it worked out. All ten of us were available to perform and we even were all able to show up for a pre-performance rehearsal two days before the event. Sweet!

Our performance was received very well as we received standing ovations and all.

The festival had such a great turnout. I'm sure this will not be the last year they do it. There were tons of booths, artwork, music, food, people....Great time.

Getting Back in the Exercise Game After Quitting

2009-09-01T10:01:00.000-07:00

How the heck do you motivate yourself to resume your healthy activity level (after taking some time off) when your mind and emotions aren't entirely into it? I found myself going through this experience a few days ago. Hopefully what helped me resume course will help you if you ever find yourself in a similar situation . . .

I was in a supreme slump of all slumps this past week and as a result fell off the exercise bandwagon. I usually work out at the gym or some dance class 4-6 times a week. Well last week I had an "F--- the world" mentality and took a much-needed mental, emotional and physical break from my responsibilities as I was very close to burning out. Well this break also included working out one day instead of multiple days and eating not-the-best food.

Well slump came to a conclusion over the weekend and I told myself that it's time to resume my schedule on all fronts, especially exercise-wise. Sunday rolled around and I began scrolling through my brain for the exercise classes I knew of on Monday. But I wasn't entirely motivated to attend any of those classes being that I felt so lethargic, bloated and puffy. Yuck. Didn't feel like my spry and energetic self - the self that's like "Oh yeah let's go workout." So this self that was inhabiting my body needed an extra pushing. And she needed that much more pushing because the classes I was scrolling through did not really motivate me much. So what did I end up doing?

My answer came rather unexpectedly. Absolutely wasn't looking for it, but the answer made me realize that I needed to get back to basics. Simply stated, what activity is hella fun for me to engage in-that will serve as my reintroduction to working out? So Sunday evening rolls around. It's about 6:30 and I'm driving around Santa Monica near 3rd St. I'd just finished attending a get-together in the area and didn't quite feel like going home yet. So my agenda was to park the car and walk around a bit. For those of you who don't live in LA, 3rd St Promenade is an area near the Santa Monica Pier that runs a few blocks north/south on 3rd St. There are shops, restaurants and street performers. It's a pretty cool place. Well, I'm walking about and I remember that on Sundays there is a section of the Promenade that has outdoor salsa dancing. I make my way towards that direction.

I wasn't sure if anyone would be there because it's been awhile since the last time I had gone. However, salsa dancers and music were there in full force. Cool. I make my way over and the rest is history. I danced and I danced and I danced and I met some really awesome people and I danced some more until I couldn't fully apply pressure onto the balls of my feet because they were hurting from all the dancing I had done. Major fun. I know I burned tons of calories in the 3 hours that I was dancing it up. And I did it in an informal "move my body just for the sake of it" way.

When I got home my endorphins were in full blast and I felt so good. Bloatedness, lethargy and puffiness begone! I was motivated to take care of my body again, physically and nutritionally. This was the jumpstart I needed to begin my week physically.

So back to the question with which I began this post: How do you motivate yourself to resume your activity level (after taking some time off) when your mind and emotions aren't entirely into it? Keep things simple and find a FUN and inspiring way to shake your rump. Engage in an activity that you absolutely love or something that you can do for hours and hours and it doesn't feel like work.

It's okay to fall off or quit whatever schedules you've set for yourself. The body needs to just take a friggin' break every now and then. I was on a "mindfulness meditation" teleclass with instructor Daniel Davis earlier this year and something he mentioned about meditation helped put things in perspective regarding meditation, but living life in general: Meditation isn't so much about always staying in that meditative state, keeping your mind focused on thinking about nothing; but rather it's about continually coming back to center. The training isn't in keeping wandering thoughts out of your head, but training yourself to resume your practice when you notice you're off. This is how I likened my experience last week. And now I'm glad to say, I'm getting back to center.

Isn't It Great When What You Do for Fun Puts Money in Your Pocket?

2009-08-22T19:20:00.000-07:00

Did you know that your hobbies can save you on your taxes? I first found this out when I got together with my tax advisor a little while back. If you didn't know this then I bet this new piece of information may cause you to think twice before throwing away receipts on anything you purchase in conjunction with that thing you do just because you love to do it.

Do you have a passion for salsa dancing? Playing tennis? I bet there are expenses that come with those loves...good salsa shoes, dance lessons, tennis gear, club rental fees, etc. Keep track of these costs. I've been keeping track of what I spent on my hobbies this year on a separate spreadsheet (in addition to hanging onto the actual receipts) and holy smokes it adds up! By including these purchases on my taxes I can get a tax break. Count me in!

There are some things to be aware of though in order to determine if your activity is actually a hobby and also to determine how much you can actually deduct. I found a bunch of articles online to assist with those distinctions. Here are some of them:

Hobbies vs. Business Tips from H&R Block

Business Or Hobby Article from IRS

Operating Losses: Prove Your Hobby Is A Business - Nolo.com

Make Your Hobby Pay for Itself - Bankrate.com

May your passions fulfill your pocket as they do your soul ;-)

What Do You Get When You Combine 3 Hours of Good Music with a Shoe Box Full of Over a Month's Worth of Old Mail?

2009-08-22T13:01:00.000-07:00

Filing Day!!!

I'm one of those people (and there are many) who is not quite fond of opening every single piece of mail every single day that it arrives. Before April of this year I literally used to keep mail piled up in a basket for months at a time. I only ever opened things I knew needed my immediate attention, like my Netflix DVDs and paychecks. Well, not anymore!

Earlier this year I systematized the process of going through my mail and handling the contents with grace and ease rather than with reluctant frustration. Now I chuck the non-urgent mail into a shoe box. When the box gets full it's time to file, recycle or trash as need be. Well, the box was uberly close to overflowing this past week so I deemed today my filing day.

I found some good playlists on my iPod and started opening, reading, shredding, recycling, trashing, rinsing and repeating. I know this filing stuff sounds like your worst nightmare. Not fun at all. But I found a way to make it fun with the music and even more than that with my mindset. The greater ideas behind what I'm doing are fun. Let me break it down for you:

I think it's fun taking control of my bills and papers and not letting them control me. I think it's much more fun to know exactly where all my money is going by actually examining my statements than letting them sit collecting dust (which I used do very fondly). I think it's fun using my "meticulousness" that I would talk about with such praise on a job interview and apply that same meticulousness to my own life. I think it's fun knowing where all my papers are - loans, bank statements, medical insurance docs. You never know when you'll need to grab them. And come tax time, you have everything all nice and neat in one place as oppose to scattered about. Doing your taxes will be a matter of grab and go as opposed to sift and find. I just think it's fun knowing.

As a result of going through this filing day I inadvertently discovered two things:

I decided to calculate my net worth on a whim since I was already in filing and watching-my-financial-back mode. To my unexpected and pleasant surprise my net worth increased by $200 from last month. Sweet! I'm still not where I'd like to be. :( But I'm taking concrete and conscious steps to get there. Energy goes where attention flows.
As I was checking statements I decided to hop online onto Quicken and see where I stood at that particular moment. Something was off. The balance in my accounts looked funny. So I signed onto online banking and low and behold, I found 3 erroneous charges. These charges were monthly service charges that I had spent 30 minutes rectifying with an account manager 2 weeks ago. (Eagle eyes. Gotta have them when you're finances come into play.) So I got on the phone immediately with my bank and had them rectify the situation yet again. If I hadn't gone through and paid attention to my finances I would've never realized an extra $34 flying away just like that. That's $34 of grocery money..gas money...dance class money. It's $34 that need not be going to the bank.

So that's how I spent the first 3 hours of my day. I encourage you to get into the habit of scheduling your own filing days if you don't already. The least that will happen is a reduction in the amount of clutter in your house. The most that can happen is you discover a blip in your statements and save yourself some moolah. And these days, every buck saved is golden.

What Goes On Behind the Scenes of a Workout Video?

2009-08-20T16:22:00.000-07:00

Tuesday night marked the first day of rehearsal for my Richard Simmons Toning/Sweatin' to the Oldies workout video gig. I've been watching and doing workout videos (well not so much anymore as I prefer live classes) since I was 10 or 11 years old. Crunch Fitness on ESPN was my absolute favorite because they had a different instructor and completely different exercise everyday. But I digress.

I've always wondered about the process of creating a workout video, especially when there are like 10 other people on set dancing and working out behind the instructor. Does the shoot function much like a regular exercise class where the instructor starts teaching and everyone follows? It's more impromptu than not right? Oh no no no no no.

Takes practice. Rehearsals and practice. We've got a bunch more rehearsals to go. Who'd a thunk it? But it's a tres cool experience and Richard is a hoot. Fun fitness for sure.

To be continued...

Do You Really Need that Landline?

2009-08-19T13:41:00.001-07:00

I'm currently in financial conservation mode, as are tons of other people in the world right now. I got my internet and landline phone bill yesterday and I realized I really needed to cut the cord on my extraneous landline expense, pun intended.

I've had my current internet connection since February of this year. At the time that I signed up for the connection I got the landline in the package as well. Who would do such a thing in this age of cell phone prevalence? Well at the time I signed up the numbers worked out in such a way that it would have cost me virtually the same amount to get the standalone internet deal as it would have to get the internet and landline deal. So I decided to go for the "2 for 1" package. Mishaps happened along the path of signing up to actually being online. Much aggravation and 3 weeks after my initial installation selection date, I'm finally up and running. However, due to the lackluster experience I was able to talk to the provider and get 1 month free internet service along with 5 months half off. Score!

Well well well, 5 months is now over. Upon looking at my bill yesterday, what I'd thought about the landline the first time I received the bill in March was confirmed: I really don't need to be spending this extra 15 bucks a month on a service I barely use. I do have to say there were more than a handful of times over the past few months where the landline has come in handy as I've had my fair share of shoddy cell phone signals and inaccessible voicemail. But I allowed myself to keep the service because heck, I was only paying $25 a month for both internet and landline. But that was an illusion, because full price is now back in action.

So I call my provider and I speak with a chipper Southern fella named Larry. Larry asks me if I would give him permission to talk to me about other products and services that the provider offers that might be suitable to my situation. I'm happy that he asked but hell no! I'm on the phone to reduce my expenses, not allow myself to be convinced to keep them or even worse, increase them. Don't allow the sales rep to up sell you anything. Don't even let yourself think about it. What is your purpose for getting on this call? Stick to your plan and don't allow the winds to blow you off course as they will inevitably try to do.

30 minutes later my current plan is scheduled to be discontinued and my internet-only plan will take its place. Whoop Dee Doo! $15. All that to save a measly $15. But you know what? It's not just $15. And here's where the fun comes in. $15 over 2 months = 2 rad dance classes at $15 a piece that I could have taken instead of paying fees and taxes for a service I rarely use. $15 x 10 months = money I'm NOT spending to pay down my credit card balance. $180 is a year's worth of $15 monthly fees that is not going into an interest-bearing account to build my financial freedom nest egg. In the words of Daffy, "Despicable!" A monthly fee you really don't need is never really just the amount of that solitary monthly payment. Think of it over the long term.

It was convenient for me to have a landline, but it wasn't necessary. What are you hanging onto for convenience sake but could really do without? If you got rid of it, what could you swap it out for instead? Think about it. Then take action and do it. Oh, and have fun ;-)

Spicing Up the Salsa with Some African Elements: My Weekend in Palm Springs

2009-08-17T22:57:00.000-07:00

Geez Louise has it really been 7 days since my last post? Oh how time flies.

Well I was out of commission and not in blog posting mindset nor capability since Thursday. Prepping for meetings and most importantly, prepping for my weekend, which was rather fabulous. Spent it in Palm Springs, CA. For those of you unaware, this is the DESERT, over 100 miles east of Los Angeles. Reason for this trip? My dance group Afri-K-Sineras had a performance at the annual Salsa Congress in the beautiful Wyndham Hotel.

I carpooled over there with a good friend and fellow dance team member. We arrived Friday night past 9:00. Traffic wasn't too bad. Made it over there in about 2 hours or so. So I get there and so much dancing is going on in the ballrooms. I grab my hotel room key, jet upstairs, put down the bags, change into my $75 fancy pants salsa shoes and boy do I put them to good use. I head back downstairs and engage in some fervent dancing. I put those shoes to such good use that I wound up with a handful of blisters on my toes and couldn't really wear them for the rest of the weekend. Haha what a trip! At least they are now broken in. (I hope!) And at least the brand of salsa I actually prefer to dance to does not require the use of heels.

Oh what do I mean by "brand of salsa?" Well, there's ballroom type salsa, usually typified with quick spins, a plenitude of tricks and turns, expensive footwear, costumes made of feathers, boa constrictors, sequins, etc. Then there's Cuban salsa, aka casino. First let's start off with the footwear. I often times don't wear heels when dancing casino as this style of dancing doesn't have much focus on spinning and turn technique. The center of gravity is lower rather than upwards. Casineros (what one is called who dances casino) dance into the earth from whence they came and keep their knees bent pretty much throughout the dance. Casino bears a lot of African elements as well and you may see casineros incorporating rumba and AfroCuban dance elements in their movements.

So I spent a bulk of my weekend taking workshops and dancing casino, particularly rueda de casino. Oh lord, rueda de what? Visuals are more descriptive than words so if you really want to know what rueda de casino is, check out this fun video I did profiling the dance - Vamos A Bailar Rueda de Casino. If you're pressed for time, check out the shorter version of the video - Rueda de Casino Short Version. This one's 2 minutes. The first one is a little over 6 minutes.

Social dancing and workshops aside, how did our dance performance go? Oh I'm so glad you asked. We were received very well. Some audience members almost shed tears and others attested to experiencing goosebumps while watching us. Our performance was definitely NOT the run of the mill show and provided a little historical background to salsa accompanied with costumes featuring raffia skirts, chains and slavemaster attire. We were also the only performance team (I believe there were over 40 total) to utilize live instrumentation via congas, clave and shekere. Are you intrigued? I don't want to spoil it for you. Visuals work louder than words. You can friend me on Facebook and see the vid in my videos section. Or check it out here - Afri-K-Sineras Performance.

This weekend has inspired me to improve my dancing, learn more and become the best dancer I can be. What can I say, movement is life folks.

Prosperity Isn't Just About Money

2009-08-12T16:44:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I finished watching a DVD I'd recently rented - Louise Hay's Receiving Prosperity. It was a one-hour talk the author and speaker gave back in 1988. (And you can absolutely tell it was in the '80s by some of the attire these folks were wearing. Wow!) Funniness on wardrobe aside, I received a lot of value from this DVD, which is why I watched it more than once and took notes. I even let it play through as I was dosing off to sleep one night. I've heard the brain mind absorbs information more readily in the subconscious state so I wanted to maximize the seepage in all the knooks and crannies of my brain mind.

First of all, what the heck does prosperity mean? It's one of those terms that means different things to different people, but I think most people view prosperity in reference to how much is in the bank or whether or not their net worth is in the red. I think that's a limited view of prosperity, even moreso after hearing what Ms. Hay had to say about it.

I view prosperity as a state of being - when you feel that you have more than enough in any number of areas in your life. For instance, if you're prosperous in relationships and love then you've probably got a good deal of family, friends and emotional support. Right now, I feel prosperous in the area of creativity. I think of a new idea and I either execute it outright or make plans for its most fruitful execution and exhibition. So according to this definition :::GASP:::, prosperity isn't reserved solely in reference to money.

What's your definition of prosperity? I'd like to hear it.

So back to this DVD. Many of Louise's principles resonated with me. I'll share one of them with you:

The way in which Louise opened the program impacted me. She stood on this large stage with arms outstretched to their fullest. With arms extended she declared, "I am open and receptive to receiving all good." Then she asked the audience to do this along with her and then asked them how it felt. I did this at home and I have to tell you, I felt a great sense of expansiveness by holding this posture and declaring this statement.

Aside from stretches in exercise class and yawning in the morning, I don't walk around too often with arms outstretched like so and having the conscious thought to tell the the Universe (call it Life, Spirit, God, whatever you want) "Hey, send me the goods because I am open to it." Being open is a crucial key to receiving luck, increasing serendipitous moments and overall goodness in life.

I used to be (and I admit sometimes still am) the kind of person who lived with arms closed, which is a metaphorical way of saying, I walked around with a big wall between me, everyone else and the world. But how will we ever let the prosperity in if we're living with crossed arms?

I know this may feel incredibly hokey but try it. I think you'll at least notice a difference from assuming your body in this open position.

There's much more I could say about this video, but I think I'll reserve remaining thoughts for subsequent posts....

Don't Punk Out...Just Walk Onto the Ledge and Jump

2009-08-11T11:07:00.000-07:00

Emotions -> Intelligent Mind ->Fearless Higher Level You
Work this process to get done what needs to. When emotions paralyze you from taking action, sometimes you have to find a way to regulate the feelings and thoughts around that necessary action and just dive in. Let me elaborate with something that happened to me yesterday...

One of my current weekly to-dos is reaching out to television producers and engaging in conversation about their upcoming projects and how, if at all, we might collaborate in the future. My initial outreach is an email touchbase. With the email program I use, I'm able to track who has opened my emails and, even better, who has clicked on my website link. If my addressees do one, but especially both, these folks have undergone a status change from cold to warm lead. My next step is to pick up the phone and call 'em.

Well, I had this great plan mapped out on paper and all I had to do was execute it:

Identified target producers two weeks ago. Check!
Sent email outreach last week. Check!
Identified who has opened the emails. Check!
Pick up the phone and call 'em. NOT!

This final step paralyzed me. It's an intimidating phone call to make and it was the first time I'd ever gone through this particular process. I've never spoken to this person before. What if I get the assistant on the phone and he or she refuses to let me get through to the producer? What if I lose my words? What if I stammer and sound like an idiot?

I felt my heart beating rapidly in my chest. More and more worrisome thoughts began to flood my mind. Why couldn't I just follow the plan?

I contemplated putting off the phone call because my nerves were just too high. HOWEVER, I referenced two intertwined lifelines I know to be true. They have served me well in the past:

Fear. Fear is only an indicator that the object of the fear is important to you. Fear is only your body mind's way of trying to protect you from getting hurt, even if the supposed pain is completely fictional and would never ever ever happen. The very fact that I'm fearful means I must take this step.
Trust. I've become pretty good at training myself to take actions that my pesky palpitations almost prevent me from taking. I had to trust that I would have the strength to pick up this phone and be the pro that I am. Every time I've taken an action that followed palpitations like the one I was experiencing yesterday, I've gotten tremendous benefit from the action. My elevated heart rate is the Universe's way of telling me that there's gold at the bottom of this bridge. And the only way I can get to it is to walk onto the ledge and jump.

So then I decided to make this a fun game and give myself a time-crunched goal. It was 11:53am when my mini panic came a gushing down and I did not want to be dealing with this later in the day nor the following day. I wanted the weight lifted! I had another mandatory phone call I had to be on by 12noon. So at 11:54 I told myself, "Alrighty. You've got 6 minutes to call this producer and establish contact. Go!"

11:55 rolls around and my action-ready Higher Self had taken over. Fingers started the dialing. I followed my prepped script and conversation ensued. The producer I'd targeted was not in the office, but the person who answered the phone was pretty much taking over projects while he was away. I got into conversation, gave him my spiel and left the conversation with a new contact and email address.

Not too shabby. And I made it right on time for my 12 noon call.

In retrospect, it seems to be a pretty minuscule affair. Jeez Louise Val, it's just a phone call. Yep. That's right. The fact is that it's just a phone call. And my logical brain mind gets it. But unfortunately, being human comes with a lot more than just dealing with facts. Our emotions and thoughts have a habit of getting involved and muddying a situation.

That's one of the challenges of being human: To stand up to the plate and do the necessary despite the emotions and the incredible fantastical stories we create. To me, part of the human experience is the practice of making the continual upgrade from Emotions to Intelligent Mind and finally to Spirit/Higher Level You. With practice, we'll be better able to resort to Higher Self status more frequently than not.

"You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith." -- Mary Manin Morrissey

"Fears are nothing more than a state of mind." -- Napoleon Hill

"Ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is freedom." -- Marilyn Ferguson

Turning Your Drab Group Exercise Cardio Class to Fab, Without Saying a Word to the Instructor ;-)

2009-08-10T23:04:00.000-07:00

Are you the kind of person who needs consistent stimulation and variation when taking a cardio class? What happens when a class that used to be a blast turns into the mundane? When push comes to shove and there are no other workout options, how do you encourage yourself to make it through that class? Hopefully, the following scenario will give you some inspiration to help you turn the drab into fab, no matter what.

I had a pretty jam-packed day today and originally planned to attend my gym's 5pm Bootcamp class (option 1). The instructor usually has perfect music and each class' exercises are unique from the class before. However, I ended up missing this class today.

Since I cannot stand working out on machines for more than 10-15 minutes, my only other exercise class option (option 2) was the late night cardio class, but ugh. It's not my favorite. Been taking it for more than 3 years and not much has changed routine-wise nor music wise. Instructor's been playing the same CD since 2006. Can't take it anymore. I am no longer stimulated. So I had to create option 3, which was [drumroll] --- I planned to do my own fusion jump rope mix with iPod in tow for 30 minutes in the group exercise room (before mundane cardio class began). Then bust a thing or two on the elliptical for 10 minutes. Cool down and go home! 45 minutes would be good enough for me! As long as I'm stimulated mentally as well as physically.

My plans didn't pan out as I had hoped, but the actuality of the evening was better than I'd expected. And you know something? I ended up staying for 75% of the cardio class. :::GASP::: "But Valerie, I thought you said you couldn't stand it!" I was surprised too, but here's what happened...

Class begins at 9:45 so I plan to get there at 9:15. However, I arrive at 9:30 instead because of a phone call with my best friend that ran a little longer than anticipated. Uh oh. I've only got 15 minutes before class starts to do my thing in the room. Home clock hits 9:17 and I race out of my apartment. Jog to my car. 9:28 says the dashboard clock as I'm halfway en route to the gym (which is only a 7 minute drive from my pad). iPod on my ears from the moment I step into the gym. Hand meets exercise room door handle and go!

9:32. The following 15 minutes were probably the best 15 minutes of jump rope I've ever done. I created my own routines with regular jump technique a la professional boxers and rope tricks a la the kind you might see in a jump rope competition. Add in a little bit of salsa and house steps and my heart rate became nicely elevated.

Now what ensued afterwards was a surprise. I ended up staying for 45 minutes of class. The music, although I'd heard it a gazillion times before, was from one of the instructor's better CDs and he changed up the routine a bit. I was also so fired up from my jump rope jam that I was in the zone and in overall DANCE mode. So I hung out in the far back right of the class (so as not to distract anyone else) and I varied 75% of the instructor's moves. I did salsa spins instead of grapevines and busted out a bit of West African and samba here and there in place of marches, toe touches and squats. Oh and the step board did make an appearance for about 7 minutes. Got away with performing a couple of lunges and high impact choreography.

If I were looking at me from the outside I'd think I have some kind of exercise A.D.D. Something of a high energy circuit training without the strength training. Whatever you want to call it, I had a heck of a lot of fun. As far as I was concerned it was just me and the music. I left class early because I'd only planned on doing cardio. This class is divided into 45 min of cardio and 15 min of resistance training. However, I did conclude my workout with 25 pushups on my feet. To find out the significance of this feat, check out my prior post Drop and Give Me Ten!

So next time you find yourself between a rock and a hard place exercise class-wise, find a way to make it fun. This is your time. Don't allow yourself to be in misery. You're doing something incredible for your heart, muscles, circulatory and pulmonary systems so might as well enjoy it. Be as discreet as possible as to respect the instructor and your fellow classmates.

Also exercise good judgment (pun intended). If there's only 10 people in the class, you probably won't be able to get away with doing too much of your own thing and will just come across as rude. But if you're in a class of say 50 people and the room is massive (as was the case in my situation) then do your dang thang. Head to the back of the room and vary the instructor's moves to how your body desires to move. Block everyone else out and just dance. As fellow fitness enthusiast, incredible motivator and Nike Elite instructor Misty Tripoli continually advocates in her classes, "Dance your dance." Just do it.

I Would Like to Propose a Toast...

2009-08-08T11:45:00.000-07:00

Well, not really, but last night did mark my first attendance at a Toastmasters' event. Toastmasters is an international organization consisting of a myriad of individual clubs that meet regularly with the aim of enhancing members' public speaking skills. They enhance these skills through weekly, biweekly or monthly meetings. It's like public speaking bootcamp.

I'd first heard of Toastmasters earlier this year from one of my best friends. She had told me about a club in Van Nuys - about 13 miles away from me - with a biweekly meeting schedule. I've had these meetings in my phone calendar since February of this year. However, every time another Tuesday rolled around and the phone alarm rung reminding me of the Van Nuys Toastmasters club, I always found an excuse not to go. Distance being one of them (gotta drive everywhere in L.A.).

So what brought me to last night's event? Well, first it was closer to where I live and secondly, I had a very strong impetus for going: To support my friend as she gave her inaugural prepared speech since she is a newbie member of this particular club. So with my strong why for attending in hand, I trekked south during crazy congested Friday L.A. traffic to support. I had no idea what to expect and my intention was to remain a fly on the wall, only to begin buzzing as my friend spoke.

Fly on the wall? Yeah right. I'll explain more later.

So I get to the location. A cute little church south of the 10 freeway in a residential neighborhood. I walk up to the door, open it and I see before me a rather intimate setting. The meeting is in motion and the room is full of about 17 people arranged in a U-shape around 3 rectangular lunchroom style tables. I spotted my friend. She motioned me to the empty folding chair next to her. Dang it! She was seated front and center so there was no way I would be able to just slip in unnoticed.

Fifteen feet directly in front of me was the podium. The praisemaster (person who pretty much serves as master of ceremonies or meeting leader) was speaking at the podium. I was 10 minutes late but I must not have missed much because the praisemaster was still giving a rundown of the 2 hour meeting.

As the night progressed I felt that I had stepped back in time to the days of Benjamin Franklin in colonial America. I half expected to see a Thomas Jefferson-looking fellow bust out of nowhere with fancy white wig on head. Why? There was distinct older-era process and procedure performed throughout the evening. For instance, whenever the praisemaster, or whoever was presenting at the podium, called on a new speaker to approach the podium, new speaker would shake presenter's hand, look each other in the eye and before they actually spoke would always say something to the effect of "Thank you Praisemaster, members and honored guests." Then they would go into their speech. I've been to a lot of meetings and presentations and this process was very distinct, definite and had something of a back-in-time regal feel to it. I enjoyed witnessing this. Very different from what I'm used to.

There were 3 different sets of speeches performed last night. The first was what they called Table Topics. And it was the extemporaneous speaking portion of the evening. Remember I mentioned earlier that I wasn't such a fly on the wall this evening? Well, since Table Topics isn't a planned speech, they invited...no, they coerced me (in a friendly supporting way of course, my friend included) to get up and deliver a 2 minute max. speech. I succumbed to the peer pressure, went to the podium and delivered my 55 second speech on the subject of loyalty: Can you trust someone close to you to be loyal in a situation of duress?

There was no time to really prepare so my prep time to pick the main slant of my speech was literally the time it took me to walk from my seat to the podium. I shook the presenter's hand, looked her in the eye as I'd seen done before me and I dove right in. I erred on the side of keeping my timed speech short and simple partially because they were keeping track of every "uh" "um" and "ah" spoken. But I'm glad to say that I uttered no such filler words :)

It's quite the challenge to build an intriguing and engaging speech when you only find out the topic seconds before you stand to give it. But it's excellent practice for the career I'm embarking on.

When I and the other two "contestants" were done with our impromptu talks, I found out, to my surprise, that I was to be included in the voting for Best Table Topics. How interesting. I come to be a fly on the wall and now not only am I giving speeches but I'm being voted on them as well! Well, luckily I'm quite comfortable in front of an audience so it was all good. I'd been doing improv comedy this year and I've performed a bunch of times for different events and activities over the years. So me shy in front of an audience? Luckily, not so much. Nerves still kick in sometimes? Um, absolutely yes.

My friend did a very good job on her speech. It was hard to believe it was her first one. I also got deeper insight about her history and who she is as a person, which was tres cool.

Towards the end of the meeting the guests were invited, once again, to speak before all. This time, the topic was meeting feedback. I felt eyeballs on me once again so I just bumrushed the podium and gave my little meritorious spiel. I was impressed with the detail, procedure and overall organization of the evening. And I mentioned that everyone there was incredibly welcoming to guests. They really were a friendly open group of people.

After the meeting adjourned (with a gavel, of all things!) I find out more about the organization and this club in particular. They complimented me on my speaking abilities and I enjoyed their company. There is a ton of value in being part of an organization that would critique and allow me to practice my presentation skills on a consistent basis. No promises, but who knows, I might soon become a member.

The Balls of My Feet Hurt But....

2009-08-06T23:45:00.000-07:00

I had a great time this evening taking an advanced level AfroCuban dance class at a cutie patootie studio called Creative Seeds (in L.A. where I live). I've heard about the instructor who taught tonight and it's been a few months coming, but I finally got the opportunity to take a class with her. I received an email earlier this afternoon about this class and I don't know..something about the email told me "Go!" So go I did.

The instructor was so exact in her movement and generous with her explanation of the moves. She was patient in her teaching and also challenged us to pay attention to the different aspects of the steps and how different parts of our bodies were to move. I admire the way she moves and look forward to the day when I move with such precision and grace.

This class definitely challenged me, but the challenge was in a great way. After I did a number of the more challenging moves over and over there came a point when I just let the frick go and let the drums (yes there was live percussion!) carry my body through the movements. This kind of challenge is what I want and need to make me the kind of dancer I aspire to be.

What was also awesome was that Kati, the instructor, also conveyed to the students the different meanings behind the steps and dances. The different rhythms and dances are rich with history and signification because AfroCuban dance originated from African slaves brought to Cuba and thus were dances the slaves did to honor and signify the different African orishas, or deities.

The types of percussion used in these dances are the bata. There were 3 drummers tonight but I heard this class usually has 6. These drums come in different sizes, have different tonalities and are played on the drummers' laps. The batas have 2 skins so they're played on their sides kinda like marching band bass drums, except without sticks (drummers play with the palms of their hands as is done with djembes). Batas look very different from bass drums as well. I used to play batas along with douns, kenkeni, sangban and djembe (different types of West African percussion) a few years ago when I was with my university's African drum and dance troupe. That was a very impactful time of my life and I'm happy to be revisiting it with this class.

So why do the balls of my feet hurt? We danced barefoot. Usually any kind of African dance is danced barefoot so after an hour or so, you start to feel it on the balls of your feet. At least I do. But it's a small price to pay to participate in an activity that I enjoy and have so much fun.

More to come....

Drop and Give Me Ten!

2009-08-06T13:21:00.001-07:00

"Get on the floor right now and do ten push ups on your feet! Put the phone down and just do it."

That was my baby brother talking to me on the phone the other day. I told him about my bootcamp instructor's recommendation for the class and that I had decided to step up to the plate and challenge myself to do it.

Robert, the class instructor, was giving us a pep talk last week and during that talk he was stating that one of the best and fastest ways to tone the upper body is to do push ups daily. Although groans I couldn't really hear that much, I knew the ladies in the class were making all kinds of faces. Push ups + female gender = not the most enthusiastic combination.

I've never been a huge fan of push ups, except in my Budokon and Capoeira days in 2007 when I virtually lived in plank position and regularly practiced hand balances. Since then, ah, I'll admit there has been some deterioration in the supporting-the-upper-body field. But that's okay, because I know with consistent training it doesn't take that long to get the body back to its previous level of muscle performance. I've seen it in my own body and with my brother's.

So rising to the challenge I am. I'm getting off my knees. Although I no longer practice Budokon and Capoeira, I want to get back to the point where I can do floating frogs and other arm strength-reliant moves.

What brought my brother to provide some impromptu personal training during our conversation the other day? Robert recommended we all do 25 pushups at night before bed. For the ladies, aim to do them all on our feet but for starters do 5 at a time then rest. 5 then rest. 5 then rest..until we've reached 25 on our feet for the night.

My brother (an avid athlete in 3 sports for quite a few years) recommended a different approach. First, he recommends, only aim for 10 a day and do those all on your feet. Preferably do them in the morning because it's first thing OR do them at random times. I forgot his reasoning for the random timing but I remember it was good because I said to myself, "Hmm, aha."

So I've been doing my pushups for the past few days. I got my first batch of 10 in today and yesterday I did 25. I'm so proud of myself and I love the tightness I feel in my pecs, deltoids, triceps and abs. I know these body parts are workin'! This singular exercise hits all these body parts. It's amazing. I'm actually looking forward to doing my next batch of ten for the day. On my feet. And at some random time, of course.

Financial Freedom Work Party

2009-08-06T10:54:00.000-07:00

My meetup group is having our 11th meetup today. It's a bit of a drive away from where I live but it's worth it. This was the only location I found that doesn't charge to use their meeting room. You'd be surprised (or maybe not since it is L.A.) how much it costs to rent a room. I try to find options that will be most cost effective (which means free) for my members.

So today's event is called the Financial Freedom Work Party and it's a workshop that will be facilitated by life coach and awesome lady Kristine Castro. I first met her a month or two ago at one of her workshops hosted by another meetup group. I dug her energy and her teachings. Life found a way for us to remain connected and I'm now proud to say that she's my coach as I'm currently taking her 9 week teleseminar series Financial Freedom. So far very good.

So what is this meetup group? It's called Young FemMillionaires: Women Millionaires Under 30. Are there millionaires in the group? Maybe..I haven't met everyone yet. Am I a millionaire? No, not yet anyway. But I believe it's in the realm of what's possible and probable in my life :-) I believe it's in the realm of what's possible and probable in anyone's life who decides they want it and believes it. New millionaires are made each year, and I absolutely believe I can and will be one of them.

I founded this group back in March of this year as my way to reach out and find other 20something females striving to achieve excellency in their lives. I just wasn't coming across that many young does like that in my offline life so intuition told me to start a group online. Financial and career fulfillment is the focus of the meetups, but since everything in our lives is interconnected, I also post activities that will cater to more than just financial fitness.

If you're intrigued about the group, feel free to check out details at www.meetup.com/women-millionaires-under-30. Btw, there are gals in the group past 29. I've actually come across quite a few early 30somethings building great things so I've been considering changing the name to Women Millionaires Under 35. Or maybe a name change isn't necessary. I believe everyone who's supposed to be somewhere gets to where they're going regardless of what the "sign" says.

Anyhoo, I'm outta here in about another hour. Gotta prep for the event and run some errands.

Paz.

How I Wound Up Next to Richard Simmons

2009-08-05T17:29:00.001-07:00

Got some pretty tubular news recently. But before I dish the deets (details), let me back up the truck a bit...

Rewind to Friday, July 17th. My friend and I are scouting places to self-promote. She's talking to folks about her tutoring business and I'm dropping off resumes looking for part time work. I want to work with fitness professionals, gyms or studios. One such studio was Slimmons Studio, which belongs to the vibrant fitness guru Richard Simmons. I walk in and introduce myself to the lady at the desk. She tells me the head mistress who handles such inquiries is not in so I begin to write a detailed note to leave with my resume and letter of recommendation. As I'm writing, the woman at the desk is speaking with a client on the phone. After she hangs up we shoot the breeze a bit. I tell her I dance. She cocks her head a bit and I see a glimmer in her eye.

"You dance? Well then I should tell you about our audition we're having tomorrow. It's for Richard's next workout video." This HIGHLY intrigues me. I walk out of the studio that day with all of the audition information in hand. I slap my friend a high five when I return to the car. I return the next day to audition. Richard is there in person. Sassy and full of positive energy just like he is on TV. 'Twas a great and fun audition experience.

So what's the tubular news? I got cast! Read more deets on this online press release - http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200908/1249503164.html

We shoot late September and have a bunch of rehearsals beginning next week. Talk about fun fitness! This isn't quite the part-time job I had in mind when I walked into the studio, but it's definitely better than what I had expected.

Quicken: Enabling Fun Financial Fitness

2009-08-05T16:36:00.000-07:00

I had heard of the finance software called Quicken, but if you had asked me to describe what its function is as of 5 days ago, I wouldn't have been able to tell you. However, my mastermind partner enlightened me as to the uses of Quicken over this past weekend. She whipped out her iPhone and enthusiastically gave me a quick rundown of the program. So I decided to give it a try.

I can see the cause for my friend's Quicken craze. This personal finance software keeps track of your different banking and credit card accounts and sends you reminders of upcoming expenses. You can also set up alerts and Quicken will either email or text you whenever any of your accounts is in danger of diving into low (for checking accounts) or high balance (for credit cards) territory. It's a really cool money management tool.

I know most folks, especially those of the younger persuasion, practice a little thing called AVOIDANCE when it comes to personal finances. We sometimes (or often, depending on the degree of resistance) see a bill and write a check immediately to get rid of the thing. Or we see a bill and throw it in a pile. Soon it enters the area of "dang I forgot all about it." Then we accrue late fees. And sometimes we pay bills THINKING there's enough in the checking account to cover it but we're really afraid to check first in case the checking account balance is too low. Then we go into panic mode. But instead of manually checking the account first because of our fear of what we'll find, we pay the bill and then the account goes into overdraft. Overdraft fees accrue.

All this emotional trauma is unnecessary and 100% self inflicted. Quicken's easy to use and aesthetically pleasing interface will allow you to look forward to performing a financial checkup. It does 90% of the work for you. And one of the best parts is that there is a Quicken application for your iPhone. You'll have account balances and charts available at your fingertips wherever you go.

And speaking of charts, did I mention Quicken will categorize your expenses for you? I'm talking categories like "groceries, clothing, household, etc." And you can add your own categories. So you can see percentage-wise where you are spending your money. And you can make appropriate adjustments. Awareness is the first step to changing behavior.

I just started using this so I'm not a Quicken connoisseur by any means. But for the financially timid or frightened, I recommend you get on this to help you approach the money side of your life with more bravery. Who knows...you just might have fun doing it in the process. I sure do.

En Route to National Group Fitness Certification

2009-08-04T19:06:00.001-07:00

Teaching group fitness has been a goal of mine for a few years now. A little over a month ago I finally decided to sign up to get my certification. I'd actually begun the conversation with the regional director of my gym back in January. I wouldn't be able to teach at any old gym, but I'd at least be able to start there. Unfortunately, the process was tedious. When I'd originally inquired about the certification courses my gym hadn't yet done their planning meeting. Months later I finally got a somewhat definitive response. However, by that point, it didn't make sense to spend the money and go for the exclusive gym certification when 2 months from that point I'd be able to take the national certification through AFAA (Aerobics and Fitness Association of America).

My exam is in a little over a month and I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed thinking about it. I've been avoiding sitting down and studying because the study materials just look so intimidating and I've had a lot on my plate recently. The textbook is nice and hefty and of course the print is borderline miniscule, so there's a lot of reading to do. But I don't have that kind of time so I'm going to study smart. I cracked open my study guide and I'm getting the "have to know" points out of the way.

Wish me luck!