A Big Pink Butt

Friends and Kitties!

Sheebie here.

I'd like to start by apologizing for dropping off of the commenting merry-go-round; I couldn't sustain it any longer.  Please know I still read approximately elebenty hundred blogs daily and if you suddenly, out of the blue, feel a snarky comment--it's mine!  I just sent it to you via brain waves instead of the internets.  Since Scott "gifted" me with a FitBit in December and our trip to Hawaii (where I climbed two volcanoes and realized I needed to step it up for next time) I've gotten serious about working out which consumes a couple of hours daily; time that I used to spend sitting and doing social media stuff.

I have discovered I love being active, again.  I don't know what the heck happened because I used to do aerobics and walk and lift weights, but after we moved to Nevada I became a slug, I think in large part because of the crazy shift work I did to begin with and then inactivity became habit.

Yoga started the ball rolling in 2013.  Breaking my kneecap set me back for a few months, but the silver lining was learning patience in dealing with injury and to be okay with not being "perfect".  (Which is a huge part of a yoga practice--acceptance--just being happy with what is.  It's harder than hell some days and usually only happens for a few minutes at a time.  Small steps.)  I absolutely look forward to every class I attend and never fail to do something great--maybe a really pleasurable stretch--and the feeling I get from class is euphoric, I can't put it any better than that.  You know the pleasure you get in your mouth from a delicious piece of chocolate?  It's like that, throughout your entire body.  For an HOUR.

And that damned FitBit...ruling my life...but I gotta say the thing is a wonderful tool.  There are real concrete results.  My resting heart rate is 10 bpm less, I have more energy, I can eat more (and have lost a bit of weight!) and I--for the first time in my life--can jog, comfortably, for a few minutes at a time.  I am amazed at myself, who knew?  There have been some unexpected benefits from all the walking and leg strength, too; my practice has progressed beyond my wildest expectations.  I'll be exploring this pose for a good long while before I feel confident, but I got UP and that's a major win right there.

I'm gonna use this one for a Sunday Selfie, even though I had to utilize the Hubby as the photographer:

Running Man Pose, or Eka Pada Koundinyanasana 

Eka = One,  Pada = Foot,  Koundinya  = the Sage Koundinya ,  Asana = Pose

(the link has a lovely photo of the pose)

Scott also kindly took a photograph highlighting my big pink butt.

You are Welcome.

Happy Sunday!

XX  Sheebie  XX

Join the fun at The Cat On My Head!

My Nemesis

Friends and Kitties!

Sheebie here.

The Fitbit I received for Catmas continues to goad me off my butt.

I am lucky enough to get in a couple of long walks on shift at work, doing plant checks, and on my days off I cruise the neighborhood for exercise.  It's great, except for one thing--the drastic elevation change, no matter where I go--we live in a valley.  Which means hills...

Like this one!

  There's a nice park with benches halfway up the mountain--that's today's destination.

Part way up, looking back.  It's a total of fourteen flights of stairs to the top.  And yes, I'm huffing and puffing by the time I reach the top. 

But the view, holy cats, it's so worth the work.

Beyond the mountains it was cloudy and raining in California; from here I can see the weather coming in for hours before it actually arrives.  Not that the rain makes it here, much--but that just leaves more sunny days for adding steps on my Fitbit, right?

Happy Thursday!

XX  Sheebie  XX

Electronic Slave

Friends and Kitties!

Sheebie here.

The following photo is:

a) not K-Rated (safe for Young Kittens), and

b) brought to you by the World's Most Evil holiday gift--a FitBit.

Hubby purchased both of us FitBit trackers a couple of weeks before Christmas and since neither of us are into delayed gratification we put 'em on right away...and life as we know it has changed.

Who woulda thunk that this little gadget would transform us into competitive raging stepping monsters?  Ten times a day (at least) we tot up our stats; heart rate, steps, active time, even who SLEPT better!  It make our Scrabble games look tame by comparison*.  We want our numbers to go from orange to green and get those little smiley faces on the phone app as soon as we hit our goals...apparently we are both quite easily motivated by imaginary electronic things.

It's insane, but in a good way.

Because the amount of laziness in our lives has had the damning light of true sloth shined upon it:  we were couch spuds--yes, even ME-- and we have started to change that.  Hence this photo, taken while we were out accumulating steps towards our daily totals--a.k.a. a walk on the bike path.  No longer do I sit in a boneless slump at work for hours on end, my little alarm goes off and I'm up and about, churning out some more mileage (I know all the long ways around both plants now) even if I'm only marching around the room in circles.  Scott is wearing a path in the grass up through the park and back, and he detests walking as a form of exercise.  But he's doing it.  Amazing.

Anyhoo, I've wanted a picture of myself being all defiant with this sign for some time now.  

I wonder, can I get a smiley face on my FitBit app for fulfilled photo ops?

Happy Sunday!

XX  Sheebie  XX

*we're on our third board

This is my contribution to the Sunday Selfie blog hop, sponsored by:

 The Cat on My Head.

May Ling Lets it All Hang Out

Kitties!

Miss May Ling here to tell you how to get a good arm and paw stretch.

(and to show off for Simon!)

This move is called "Air Biscuit".



First, get in a comfortable position, and let your arms hang down, with toes relaxed.



Stretch out your neck, and squeeze your toes together.

Turn your head in the opposite direction, and splay your toes out!

Repeat until you feel the burn in your toesies, or you have more air buscuits than you know what to do with.

Daddy!  Did I give you pemission to try for arty camera angles during my lesson?

I think NOT!

Oh well, we were done anyway!

No sense in overdoing it.

Remember to have a light snack and a refreshing drink after ALL exercise.

Mice Krispie Treats and Tuna Juice are excellent choices.

Kitties, have a Great Thursday!

XX  May Ling