Amaya (re)Acclimates

[AmayaDances]

New challenge time!! This challenge is mostly about getting back into the swing of things after the unique chaos of June and July - but also looking towards some new things on the horizon.

 

Things to keep

-tracking food

-gym twice a week

 

These things are good for me – body and mind. In the gym I’ll be focusing on increasing my endurance (move longer) and general cross-training for dance. I do want to start poking around with other stuff down the road, so prep work now isn’t a bad idea. Also, I’ll be going to a training intensive in October, so I’m stealthily preparing for 18 glorious hours of dance and movement!

 

New goals

-75% of food homemade or raw (i.e. less pre-packaged foods and eating out)

 

This is deceptively simple. In order to do this, I will need to pack my lunch most days and stop relying on pre-packaged/processed food and eating out for lunch. I think approaching it from the angle of “as much homemade as possible” feels better than “eat out less”.

 

-Daily practice sessions: Dance

 

I want to figure out the flutter!! I understand it on a technical/anatomical level, but I’ve never really put in the effort to get my body to do it. And now that there’s no impending giant gig to prepare a thousand things for, I can refocus on things I want to explore.

 

-Daily practice sessions: Japanese

 

I have been dabbling in learning for a while, but now I’m planning a trip with my friend post-Olympic season! We have started to actually narrow down dates and look at locations. She is learning Korean, so we’re going to Kyoto and Seol and we will be translating for each other. So, uh, better step it up, huh?

 

So, check in will look something like this:

Food tracked? (35 points possible, one for every day tracked)

Homemade? (40 points possible, one for every day all my food is homemade/raw, and 1 point for each week I hit 75% or more)

Dance? (35 points possible, one for every day)

Japanese? (35 points possible, one for every day)

Gym? (Goal is 10 points, though I could get more than that - each workout session is good for one point)

 

Sooooo, an A+ super score would be 150+ (because let’s be real, there will be days I’m not eating 100% homemade, and that’s okay). I will consider 120 or more a win in general.

[Tateman]

I like that idea of “as much homemade as possible” feels better than “eat out less”.  Good luck this challenge

[Manarelle]

33 minutes ago, Tateman said:

I like that idea of “as much homemade as possible” feels better than “eat out less”.  Good luck this challenge

 

Agreed. Focus on all the delicious things you can make fr yourself.  

 

1 hour ago, AmayaDances said:

I want to figure out the flutter!! I understand it on a technical/anatomical level, but I’ve never really put in the effort to get my body to do it. And now that there’s no impending giant gig to prepare a thousand things for, I can refocus on things I want to explore.

 

Down time is definitely worthwhile. What, if I may, is a flutter?

[AmayaDances]

 
Down time is definitely worthwhile. What, if I may, is a flutter?

That. Wub-wub-wub-wub with the belly.

It is done by locking the airway and contracting the diaphragm while relaxing the abs.

[GoodDoug]

I love the challenge. Very straightforward, and the simple point system makes it very real and measurable.

[DoubleTrouble]

On 7/31/2019 at 3:24 PM, AmayaDances said:

 

That. Wub-wub-wub-wub with the belly.

It is done by locking the airway and contracting the diaphragm while relaxing the abs.

 

 

I can't be the only one who tried this after reading it

[GoodDoug]

1 hour ago, DoubleTrouble said:

 

I can't be the only one who tried this after reading it

I think I just hurt myself.

 

 

[AmayaDances]

 
I can't be the only one who tried this after reading it

I think I just hurt myself.
 
[emoji6] 

Yay for trying things - but be careful! [emoji23]

It’s just something I’ve never had luck with. Bellyrolls/deep body waves/backbends I do pretty well with, but this little move has always escaped me. And, in fairness to myself, it might just be a move that doesn’t work well on my body - but I have to give it a fair shot first before determining that.

[Manarelle]

19 hours ago, DoubleTrouble said:

I can't be the only one who tried this after reading it

 

18 hours ago, GoodDoug said:

I think I just hurt myself.

 

Lol, nope. I tried it in front of the bathroom mirror and ended up laughing enough that the gentleman asked what was going on. Definitely not in my skill set.

 

4 hours ago, AmayaDances said:

It’s just something I’ve never had luck with. Bellyrolls/deep body waves/backbends I do pretty well with, but this little move has always escaped me. And, in fairness to myself, it might just be a move that doesn’t work well on my body - but I have to give it a fair shot first before determining that.

 

Yup, some people are flexible/ move in different ways better. Good to try, though, and find out for sure. 

[WhiteGhost]

On 8/1/2019 at 1:30 AM, AmayaDances said:

so I’m stealthily preparing for 18 glorious hours of dance and movement!

So assassiny

 

[raptron]

On 7/31/2019 at 1:30 PM, AmayaDances said:

This is deceptively simple. In order to do this, I will need to pack my lunch most days and stop relying on pre-packaged/processed food and eating out for lunch. I think approaching it from the angle of “as much homemade as possible” feels better than “eat out less”.

Definitely has an added mental checklist/awarenes/planning element that I think gets underestimated sometimes, but it's coming more to the forefront of your mind as a goal, so I bet you'll be able to make the habit!

 

On 7/31/2019 at 1:30 PM, AmayaDances said:

I want to figure out the flutter!! I understand it on a technical/anatomical level, but I’ve never really put in the effort to get my body to do it. And now that there’s no impending giant gig to prepare a thousand things for, I can refocus on things I want to explore.

Woah, that's a neat move.

 

On 7/31/2019 at 1:30 PM, AmayaDances said:

I have been dabbling in learning for a while, but now I’m planning a trip with my friend post-Olympic season! We have started to actually narrow down dates and look at locations. She is learning Korean, so we’re going to Kyoto and Seol and we will be translating for each other. So, uh, better step it up, huh?

Ah, so fun!

 

On 7/31/2019 at 1:30 PM, AmayaDances said:

Sooooo, an A+ super score would be 150+ (because let’s be real, there will be days I’m not eating 100% homemade, and that’s okay). I will consider 120 or more a win in general.

Sweet.

[AmayaDances]

Food tracked? Yes!
Homemade? 80%
Dance? Yes!
Japanese? Yes!
Gym: not today
Points: 3

Not a bad day one, all in all. Especially considering I have been in a not-ideal mental space - the past few days have been really tough (large scale, not really in the personal sphere). I’ve been having a tough time sleeping, and also I had my first bout of sleep paralysis in years on Saturday. I sure haven’t missed that.

For movement today I focused on hip mobility and also followed along with some workshop snippets from a few dancers spotlighting the flutter. I followed that up with my Japanese - focused on kanji today, and will be for a while, because there’s a lot there. Also did a lot of listening to street interviews in Japan - I couldn’t understand a lot, but I could pick out words here and there, which feels like progress!

[raptron]

10 hours ago, AmayaDances said:

 I’ve been having a tough time sleeping, and also I had my first bout of sleep paralysis in years on Saturday. I sure haven’t missed that.

Aghhh, no fun at all.

[AmayaDances]

Aghhh, no fun at all.

Right!? As long as it doesn’t become a regular thing, it will be okay.

Anyway - check in time:

Food tracked? Yes!
Homemade? 80%
Dance? Very yes!
Japanese? Working on it.
Gym: not today
Points: 3

What a day!! Had a dance event - So practice today centered around that. The Downtown Development Association put on a free dance event with instructors from studios all around town and I observed the hip hop class and jumped into the ballroom one before I taught my little intro class. I am exhausted, but it was soooo fun.

I am gonna get some Japanese in before bed. But first I’m taking a moment to chill and also snacking on peppers, celery, and potato chips (which really means I didn’t decide to just stuff my face with chips [emoji28]).

[Manarelle]

11 hours ago, AmayaDances said:

What a day!! Had a dance event - So practice today centered around that. The Downtown Development Association put on a free dance event with instructors from studios all around town and I observed the hip hop class and jumped into the ballroom one before I taught my little intro class. I am exhausted, but it was soooo fun.

I am gonna get some Japanese in before bed. But first I’m taking a moment to chill and also snacking on peppers, celery, and potato chips (which really means I didn’t decide to just stuff my face with chips ).

 

The dance event sounds like a lot of fun, glad you for to play with other styles. And hey, a medley with chips is definitely better than just chips, so I'd call that a win.  

[WhiteGhost]

On 8/6/2019 at 10:44 AM, AmayaDances said:

focused on kanji today, and will be for a while, because there’s a lot there

Definitely a lot!  How many would you estimate you can read now? 

 

22 hours ago, AmayaDances said:

What a day!! Had a dance event - So practice today centered around that. The Downtown Development Association put on a free dance event with instructors from studios all around town and I observed the hip hop class and jumped into the ballroom one before I taught my little intro class. I am exhausted, but it was soooo fun.

That does sound like fun

[AmayaDances]

Definitely has an added mental checklist/awareness/planning element that I think gets underestimated sometimes, but it’s coming more to the forefront of your mind as a goal, so I bet you’ll be able to make the habit!

I’ve tried “serious” meal planning in the past and it’s always fallen flat for me. It seems I crave a lot of freedom and flexibility in my diet, so I try to allow for that. It’s a lot easier now that it’s the height of farmer’s market season here. I go every Saturday and scope out what looks good and try to plan my week around what I pick up there.
 
And now that I’m thinking about it, I used to use this neat little app (because there are aps for everything, right?) that helped keep track of what you had in the fridge and would also give you a reminder if something was about to expire or needed to be used. It also had a tab to look for new dishes based on what you have on hand. I may take another look at that, actually.

 
The dance event sounds like a lot of fun, glad you for to play with other styles. And hey, a medley with chips is definitely better than just chips, so I'd call that a win. [emoji4] 

It was fun – I wasn’t going to hop into the ballroom class at first, but one of the gals brought her husband and two sons so they ended up being short one on the ladies’ side. I understand that’s uncommon. And yeah, very outside my normal dance comfort zone, but I would totally do it again.
 
And the veggies + chips strategy works quite well: the veggies need to be on a plate, so I put the chips on the plate too. Then I can’t just keep eating them out of boredom once I’m done/full because the bag is already back in the pantry. Simple, yet effective.

Definitely a lot! How many would you estimate you can read now?

Ha! Uh, depends on how you define “read” I suppose. I’d guess there are about 20 or so that I recognize, can write out, and remember the meaning/sound of. There’s maybe 15-20 more that are vaguely familiar or that I know in the context of a word but not necessarily by themselves. I have a feeling it would go faster if I’d decided to not care about being able to write, but I do think that’s an important skill if I’m ever going to be literate.

[WhiteGhost]

53 minutes ago, AmayaDances said:

I used to use this neat little app (because there are aps for everything, right?) that helped keep track of what you had in the fridge and would also give you a reminder if something was about to expire or needed to be used. It also had a tab to look for new dishes based on what you have on hand.

I need this

I currently track this with a Word doc, but an APP would make it so much easier

 

53 minutes ago, AmayaDances said:

Ha! Uh, depends on how you define “read” I suppose. I’d guess there are about 20 or so that I recognize, can write out, and remember the meaning/sound of. There’s maybe 15-20 more that are vaguely familiar or that I know in the context of a word but not necessarily by themselves. I have a feeling it would go faster if I’d decided to not care about being able to write, but I do think that’s an important skill if I’m ever going to be literate.

TBH, I think literacy in a foreign language us overrated.  I have spent the better part of my life learning languages using a all kinds of different strategies and platforms.  The ones that have worked best seem to mimic the way we learn our first language.  As babies we start out with a limited vocabulary, that is able to just get us the basic things we need, and to understand things said to us.  By the time we have immersed in the language for 4-5 years, we have a pretty good command of the spoken language, but we only start reading about that time, and writing comes even further along than that.  Honestly I am a bit baffled by the urgency people put on literacy when picking up a foreign language.  I mean, sure it is important if you really want to have a deep understanding of the language and culture, but certainly not needed for most things, especially at the beginner level.  I was already fluent in spoken Japanese before I started learning any characters, and was doing oral translation before I had learned even 100 characters.

[AmayaDances]

Quick update::

Wednesday:
Food tracked? Yes!
Homemade? 80% (this has been unusually consistent)
Dance? Yes
Japanese? Oops
Gym: not today
Points: 2

Thursday:
Food tracked? Yes!
Homemade? 100% (there we go!)
Dance? Yes!
Japanese? Yes!
Gym: not today
Points: 4

Anyone else just... so worn down by the world lately? That’s where I am at.

[Manarelle]

8 hours ago, AmayaDances said:

Anyone else just... so worn down by the world lately? That’s where I am at.

 

 

Lots going on out in the world. Don't forget self-care time. 

[AmayaDances]

TBH, I think literacy in a foreign language us overrated. 

Actually, I agree. I think for most people, gaining literacy is unnecessary and probably a hinderance.

I just know that one of my (eventual) goals is to be able to read folklore and poetry as they were written, because I love them! And, at least right now, I’m not following any specific method or program - just going with what interests me in the moment.

Oh, p.s. - Fridgely is that app [emoji4]

[AmayaDances]

Friday:
Food tracked? Yes!
Homemade? 50%
Dance? No, I forgot.
Japanese? Yes
Gym: not today
Points: 2

Saturday:
Food tracked? Yes!
Homemade? 75%
Dance? Yes!
Japanese? Yes!
Gym: not today
Points: 3

These days were a bit off, but in a good way. Had a girls night on Friday, which was very needed.

Went adventuring a bit on Saturday: first to the farmers market. On the way home, my sister was talking about venues to get married at, and I had to show her my favorite little chapel - it’s hidden away on campus (where we lived growing up while my dad was attending university). Now, the adventure part comes in because EVERYTHING on campus is under construction. I wasn’t sure we’d be able to get to it at first, because a bunch of streets and sidewalks and bridges were closed and blocked off - but we found a place to park and just started walking. It was marvelous really: totally empty and quiet. I have a lot of memories in that area, so I had a great time [emoji3590]

[Manarelle]

23 hours ago, AmayaDances said:

Went adventuring a bit on Saturday: first to the farmers market. On the way home, my sister was talking about venues to get married at, and I had to show her my favorite little chapel - it’s hidden away on campus (where we lived growing up while my dad was attending university). Now, the adventure part comes in because EVERYTHING on campus is under construction. I wasn’t sure we’d be able to get to it at first, because a bunch of streets and sidewalks and bridges were closed and blocked off - but we found a place to park and just started walking. It was marvelous really: totally empty and quiet. I have a lot of memories in that area, so I had a great time

 

Quiet adventures with someone you enjoy talking to are, in my opinion, the best. Glad you got some girl time, and a literal walk down memory lane. 

[AmayaDances]

Sunday:
Food tracked? Yes!
Homemade? 100%
Dance? Yes!
Japanese? Yes!
Gym: not today
Points: 4

Points for the week: 21 + bonus point for 83% of my food being homemade/raw, so 22!

Sundays are great. They are very much my day. I spent most of it cooking up things for the rest of the week, to fend off that “oh, there’s no food at home, guess I’ll get something on the way” feeling that usually strikes mid-week. I made a huge batch of curry, and with the cold-ish rainy weather we have the next few days I’ll likely be taking some of that for lunches too.

Flutter update: Something is happening here. It’s really small, and realllly short, but I’m headed in the right direction. I was actually reading a blog post by one of my favorite dancers and she strongly advocates -not- locking the airway and holding your breath to accomplish the movement. She had a few reasons, but mostly it boils down to: sometimes that’s really noticeable (the “strained” look of the neck, and the face) and it keep you from doing a lot of other things while you flutter. I’m inclined to agree with her, so I’ve been practicing just isolating the diaphragm and moving it for now.

Plan today: Get done with work, head to the gym, head home & do stuff, dance and stretching before bed.

[raptron]

8 minutes ago, AmayaDances said:

Sunday:
Food tracked? Yes!
Homemade? 100%
Dance? Yes!
Japanese? Yes!
Gym: not today
Points: 4

Points for the week: 21 + bonus point for 83% of my food being homemade/raw, so 22!

Sundays are great. They are very much my day. I spent most of it cooking up things for the rest of the week, to fend off that “oh, there’s no food at home, guess I’ll get something on the way” feeling that usually strikes mid-week. I made a huge batch of curry, and with the cold-ish rainy weather we have the next few days I’ll likely be taking some of that for lunches too.

Flutter update: Something is happening here. It’s really small, and realllly short, but I’m headed in the right direction. I was actually reading a blog post by one of my favorite dancers and she strongly advocates -not- locking the airway and holding your breath to accomplish the movement. She had a few reasons, but mostly it boils down to: sometimes that’s really noticeable (the “strained” look of the neck, and the face) and it keep you from doing a lot of other things while you flutter. I’m inclined to agree with her, so I’ve been practicing just isolating the diaphragm and moving it for now.

Plan today: Get done with work, head to the gym, head home & do stuff, dance and stretching before bed.

Heck yeah. ALL GOOD THINGS.