Month: January 2020

Gish Q:

PAX: Peaches, G.I. Jane, Mona Lisa, All Star, Katahdin
Equipment: assorted mini resistance bands, mats, a die for randomization

Warm Up:
Arm circles
Potato diggers
Side stretches with with legs wide

The Thang:
Start with a cardio circuit!
Roll a die to choose an exercise, of which you will do 5 reps, focusing on form most of all. After each round, do a cardio circuit.
Hold plank or squat after completing cardio.

Cardio Circuit:
10 burpees
15 plank jacks
20 squats
15 leg lifts
10 calf raises

Renegade Rows
Put band around hands and assume plank position
Alternate raising each hand to shoulder and back down to plank

Peter Parker variation
Put band around feet and assume plank position
Lift left knee to left elbow; then right knee to right elbow .

Crunchy Boats
Put band around feet and lie back into a low boat with shoulders and straight legs off the ground
Bring feet narrow and wide
Crunch up with wide legs to touch elbows and knees

Boat Goddess
Put band around hands and assume a high boat/v with hands over head
While keeping legs off ground, pull arms out and down (goddess arms)

Ventral raise
Put band around hands and hold arms straight down
Alternate raising each hand to shoulder height and back down

Dead Bug Variation
Put band around hands and lie on back with arms wide overhead and legs at 90 degrees. Alternate straightening one leg at a time to hover above the ground while raising arms toward sky.

We ended the workout with our squat challenge workout for the day: 25 squats, 20 sumo squats, and 15 squat jumps.

The skinny: I’m not usually one to share a quote from any person, but one thing I heard this week was, “Don’t believe everything you think.” Confirmation bias is a dangerous drug, and everyone is susceptible to its false comfort. People find it much easier to be skeptical about things they hear as long as it doesn’t align with their own beliefs or preconceived ideas. We have to fight this and be open to challenging our own thoughts, whether they’re negative, as in thinking a rainy workout will be awful, or optimistic, like political struggles being resolved the way we hope. We have to remember to be open to contrasting views and know that we are probably wrong as often as we are right, and that’s perfectly natural!

Salty Q:

PAX – Q was salty, Whoopi, All Star, Geronimo, and ShopVac.

Warm up – everyone did jumping jacks till everyone in the PAX named an 80s song
-Everyone did high knees till everyone in the PAX named an 80s product
-Everyone did mountain climbers till everyone named 2 80s movies

The Thang:
We split into two teams and worked together. One team took a stack of trivia cards and went down one side of the field and the other went to the other side. We bear crawled from light pole to light pole around the entire field. Each time we got to a light pole we answered a trivia question. If the team got the answer right, they did the exercise on the back of the card. If they got the question wrong they added 10 reps to the exercise on the back of the card. Each team answered all the trivia questions and bear crawled the entire field.

COT – Salty was excited that she could bear crawl the entire field. She reminisced about a time when the Q asked the PAX to do bear crawls and she was not physically able. It was a victory!

Whoopi Q:

PAX of 14: Whoopi (Q), Salty, Crossrail (from VA), Sgt. Socks, Cap (New!), YogiRoll (New!), ShopVac, DoubleMint, Lucy, GI Jane, Nutmeg, Athena, Vanilla Ice, Gish

Warm-up: Whoopi WarmupRun to South Side Elementary steps – THREE TIMES THROUGH EACH SET OF THREE EXERCISES: SINGLE BOTTOM HALF, DOUBLE TOP HALF
Walk up
Step-ups left
Step-ups right AT BOTTOM & LANDING
5 push-ups
5 tri dips
5 plank up/downs EVERY STEP
Squat jumps
Jump ups left
Jump ups right AT BOTTOM & LANDING
5 lunges
5 toe taps
(every step) Plank balance crawl EVERY STEP
5 calf raises
Leg kick back
Bear crawl RELAY

COT: We turn our capitalist gaze towards everything— even life itself— and we attempt an economic analysis/solution for multi-dimensional issues. Viewing humanity through an economic lens turns our every human act into a potential “side hustle” or additional income stream. When the market is “the measure of all things,” then everything we do can be monetized. Oh you’re good at writing and you love to do it? Monetize it! Dancing makes you happy and you’re good at it? Sell lessons! Become an entrepreneur on the side. Be your own boss…be a girl boss! In the name of empowerment and the God of capitalist delight, turn your human self into a walking brand and convert every waking hour into a money-making opportunity. Am I saying it’s bad to be an entrepreneur? NO. What I *am* saying is that we should question the premise that tells us that we must be “productive” in our “free” time. I’m pushing back against the voice inside all of us that exalts an economic lens as a rational lens and makes the economic the “measure of all things.” I’m saying that doing something that you love for the sheer joy that it brings you is its own reward. DON’T MEASURE YOUR WORTH BY YOUR PRODUCTIVITY! This is our LIFE! Enjoy it, guilt free! 

Gish “Thunder & Lightning(ish)” Q:

PAX: G.I. Jane, Peaches, Margarette, Proton, Salty

Disclaimer: I am not a professional. Neither FIA, Johnson City, nor I are to be held responsible for any accidents or injuries. Modify up or down as you need and listen to your body.

Warm Up (in cadence):
-high knees
-arm circles
-jumping jacks
-slow knees in and outEquipment:
-mats
-water
-light dumbbells (5-10 lbs)

The Thang:
-Complete each exercise
-Perform 10 Burpees or a Sprint between each exercise
-hold squat or plank while other FiAs complete their burpees/sprint and move to next exercise together100 Toe Taps (each side) 90 Leg Lifts 80 Overhead Presses 70 Bridges 60 Clams (each side) 50 Russian Twists 40 Flashers 30 Hip Dips (each side)[ 20 Bulgarian SplitSquats (each side) 10 Sit-ups ] <— We didn’t get to the last two exercises due to time constraints.

The Skinny:
So, for Christmas, my daughter got a piano from my in-laws. I am SO jazzed about this, being a musician for my entire life, but I found myself struggling in the first few days of having the instrument set up because I reeeaaally wanted my girl to start playing, and it was taking her time to warm up to it. Whenever I asked her to work with me on the piano, she would just ask to do something else. I understood. I can get overexcited and annoying! I wanted to encourage her without pushing her, so I just stayed chill but told her I got an app on the iPad she can use with the piano. A couple days later, she asked to use the app and started practicing on her own. She spent hours practicing with no prompts from me! She had just found a tool that helped her progress at her own speed and difficulty level without any human ego, judgement, or competition. A couple days later, she did even more, and she seems to be excelling with joy in her own progress.

This process of hers was a great reminder for me. Sometimes things just won’t click, no matter how much we might want them. You might get frustrated with your goals or the people and tools intended to assist you in reaching said goals. It’s so important, however, to keep your heart and mind open to new avenues, tools, or relationships that will help you progress in your own individual way. FiA is definitely a tool for me to keep up progress in my physical and mental health. I’m not so great at staying open to new relationships/friendships because of whatever terrible or petty stuff that lives in my past, but FIA also provides an arsenal of social support that I am learning to utilize and pay back into to strengthen myself and others. You usually have it in you, no matter what IT is, but we just have to winkle it out with the correct tool for the individual and occasion.

You FiA ladies are each an integral part of my complete tool kit. Thanks for keeping me progressing and pushing through the tough times together!

Calamity Jean Q:

PAX: Calamity Jean, Msafari, Gish, G.I. Jane, Trailblazer, Houston, Forever21

Warm Up: arm circles (IC), general stretching of the legsWorkout: Normal exercises including lunges, burpees, crunches, lateral arm raises and jumping rope; also incorporated running, weighted ball toss and each FIA picking an exercise to do as a team.content://media/external/file/27701

C.O.T: I used to share quotes with a friend, and this is one of my favorites: “Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.” Sounds good, right? I found it to be……challenging at best. 2019 was a lot of hard lessons learned and painful transitionings. I was timid, fearful and my own biggest obstacle. Babe Ruth once said, “Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game”. He was talking about baseball, but I feel as if it’s a great life quote. This is our year to reach our goals and fulfill our dreams. Just because it seems hard doesn’t mean it’s impossible, and when a door won’t open look for a window.2020 is the year of transformation, and I’m ready for it. So if something seems different about me-maybe I seem more confident, self-assured, focused; maybe I glow differently. If you can’t quite put your finger on it just know that this year I am going fearlessly in pursuit of what sets my soul on fire, and I hope you do too.