Have you found a workout that you love?

Can I tell you something? I absolutely love, love, love to line dance! I started back in July of 2008 and I had no idea at the time that I would love it so much. It has become my major mode of exercise. The really cool thing about line dancing is the social element. There are parties and weekend long events that take place all over the country. And it's amazing to be a part of hundreds, even thousands, of people all dancing in concert with one another.

If you've been having trouble sticking to an exercise program, try line dancing! If you are a member of dancepartythrive.com, I've got some awesome line dance workout videos you can try.  It’s the perfect solution if there are no classes in your area or you want extra practice. If line dancing isn't your thing, try it anyway--you never know, I sure didn’t know I would love it so much!  I don't expect everyone to love it like I do but my point is, try something new.  Stop trying to stick to an exercise program that you haven't been able to stick to in years.  It could be you're having trouble sticking to that workout because you don't like it.  And guess what? That's ok! Go out and explore and keep exploring until you find an activity that you truly enjoy and would do if health, weight loss, and fitness were not a consideration. Good luck!!

Antoinette

P.S. I found a video of myself at the first line dance weekend event I attended, courtesy of I AM Kenny J Productions.  I found it on YouTube, but the song was removed due to licensing issues.  The song playing is The One by Mary J. Blige but more importantly, check out the looks on everyone's faces.  they are so into it!  

Life is an Adventure!!

Life is full of so many different and wonderful things.  There is always something new or different to try. I have always wondered how people can say they are bored or unhappy with their lives.  Are you not in control of your happiness? Is it not up to you to relieve  your boredom? I have found that as I get closer to retirement I keep hearing questions like: what will you do or won't you be bored?

When did we let life become full of stressful work and no play?  Are we the sum of our jobs (which we may or may not like)? I think that in our quest for the "American Dream" we have forgotten how to relax and enjoy life. If you are close to retirement or not, why not start thinking about putting play back into your life.

About five years ago I started line dancing and found that it was a great way to have fun and to relax. Now when asked about taking trips or going to a play, my first response is when and where and not I am too busy. Several months ago I went on a off road adventure (in an open jeep up the side of a mountain) wth my daughters.  It was awesome. When are you doing to embrace the fun in your life? If not now, then when???

Remember life can be a joyful adventure if you take the time to make it one.

Shirley 

Spring means Renewal!!!

When you think of Spring you think of a time of renewal. Look around  your neighborhood and what do you see.  Lawns being tilled, flowers being planted, houses painted and gardens growing.  Trees are bursting with green leaves giving everything a new and exciting look.

Spring is not only a time of renewal for our neighborhoods but for our bodies as well.  It is a time to renew our mind, body and spirit.  During the winter you may have been sitting more than usual because of the cold and now your joints are a little stiff.  After a long dark winter it's time to get out and feel the sun on your face. You will need to wake your body up slowly. Start with a walk or bike ride to get re-acquainted with your neighbors and friends.Get out of the office at lunchtime for 5 - 10 minutes. Take the kids to the park or zoo. Instead of joining a  gym to get in shape look for activities that you can do outside and in the sunshine. Try finding something new and exciting that will keep you from getting bored.  If you like to dance try line dancing. It's something you can do anywhere, in your back yard, in your basement and at a park with the kids.  It's fun and exciting and guess what: great exercise. Check out: http://www.dancepartythrive.com.

Remember: "Spring is a time for Renewal", so get out of the house, smell the roses and find something new to start your renewal process.

Shirley

Is Time Really the Issue?

 

The number one reason people give for not exercising is, “I don’t have time” (Springen 2014).  This fact is probably the motivation behind several workout programs that are geared toward that belief.  For example Shaun T’s Focus T25® and 10 Minute Trainer by Beachbody®.  Even the CDC advises that 30 minutes of daily recommended exercise can be done “10 minutes at a time” (CDC 2014). 

I wonder though, is time really the issue?  I say that because this is what I know about people:  people make time to do the things they want to do.  If that’s true, then the real issue is that people don’t want to exercise.  And if that is true, then the next question is, “Why?”

Ok, ok.  I know I’m making some really broad, general statements but it is based on what I have observed of my family; friends; former co-workers; and acquaintances.  They always seem to have time to watch TV, read a book, or go to the mall, etc.  And of course, they find time for anything involving their children or meeting the needs of family members.  But let’s get back to exercise. 

Everyone says, “I need to work out” but very few people ever say, “I want to work out”.  If desire is the real issue, then how do we address it? 

Easy (or maybe easier said than done), find something you actually want to do!  There’s so much to choose from: walking, tennis, rollerblading, roller-skating, volleyball, hula hooping, dancing.  Try one, try them all! But most importantly, do something.  Exercise is so important to our health, we can't afford not to.

Anyone who know me knows I love line dancing.  I love it so much that I travel to line dance workshops and I’m constantly on YouTube looking up dances.  I even created a workout, HustleFit™, that is based on how I like to learn and practice line dances.  I invite you to try it out at www.dancepartythrive.com.   Oh, and don’t feel like you have to stick with any one thing.  I’m going to try a kickboxing class with my sister later this month.  Who knows, I might find something new that I enjoy.  Hmm---can I cross line dancing with kickboxing?  LOL-- even if I could, who would do it? 

 

Antoinette

What is fun for You??

Do you remember the fun things you did as a child? When you went outside to play what did you do?  Did you jump rope, hula hoop, roller skate, play dodge ball, stick ball or just ride your bike? Can you remember the joy you had in doing these things?  Isn't it amazing that while you were doing any number of these things you were also keeping your body healthy and fit.  You played hard, slept hard and woke up the next morning refreshed and ready for whatever the day held.

Why then as adults  have we forgotten how to have fun. We have taken the joy out of healthy living by doing what we think will gain us the best results. We do a number of things that we may dislike such as, jogging, running on the tread mill, lifting weights, or exercising 2 - 4 hours a day. If these things are your idea of fun then I say enjoy.  But if not, find something that is fun for you.. Because if you don't like whatever form of exercise you select, you will not stick to it.  Several years ago I was introduced to line dancing.  I found that I loved it. It is fun,  the  music is great (takes me back to younger days) and I get a great workout doing something that I enjoy. So when you are planning your healthy life changes put something in your plan that you love and will be fun for you.  Doing something fun will go a long way to ensuring that you meet your goals and keep them. Think FUN!!!

Shirley

Go Hard or Go Home, Baby!

There’s a line dance called, “Go hard or Go Home”.  Where I live, people refer to it as “the Mary J.”  It’s a pretty advanced line dance that was created years ago and it was one of the first advanced dances I ever learned. 

What makes a line dance advanced?  An advanced line dance will have:

·         longer rotations, meaning it will be a long time before it starts over (for you dancers out there, probably more than 64 counts)

·         complex steps

·         and sometimes, but not always, a faster tempo

 

I love advanced dances!  They get my heart going, I love the complexity of the routines, and they usually have great music.  Doing an advanced line dance is like doing a high-intensity workout, so I decided to call our high-intensity dances and workouts, “Go Hard or Go Home”.  Depending on the workout routine, I might sneak a “Go Hard or Go Home” dance into it (like the one I’m going to start in our live class next week J).  But I’ve also put together some “Go Hard or Go Home” workouts and all I can say is, “Whew!”  Get ready!  

 

Antoinette

Let's Kick It Up a Notch!

There’s a part in almost every workout when the music gets a little faster, a little more intense.  This means you’re moving a little faster, with a little more effort.  You’ve just gone from low intensity to mid- intensity (this happens at the club but you’re probably having too much fun to notice J).  At Hustle Fit, we categorize mid-intensity dances as, “Kick It Up a Notch”.  It just means that you’re warmed up and you’re ready to do more.  We recently conducted a survey and 93.75% of the people who participated said they prefer mid-intensity workouts.  That’s great news because the bulk of our workouts fall into the “Kick it Up a Notch” category.  Here is an example of a mid-intensity dance—we’ll be using this in our upcoming live class.

 

As with any workout, if you’re trying it for the first time or if you don’t exercise regularly, do not overdo it.  Keep it low intensity (take out jumps, keep movements small, drop the arms, etc.) and as your endurance improves, you’ll be able to bring those elements back in.  Or in another words, “Kick It Up a Notch!”

 

Antoinette

Let's Get This Party Started!

I'm going to change gears this week and talk a little about exercise (and anyone who knows me knows that I can't talk about exercise without talking about line dancing, lol).  

Remember your clubbing days?  You didn't jump right in and go all out on the dance floor the minute you got the club, right?  You put a lot of time into getting dressed--picking the right outfit, putting on your makeup, picking the right shoes.  Putting on your favorite body lotions, creams, and perfumes and getting your hair just right.  You didn't want to ruin all that work that by sweating it all out on the dance floor within the first 15 minutes of your arrival.  So you took it easy and you warmed up with a two-step, a turn every now and then, a little booty shake.  If you did anything more complicated than that, you took your time with it.  I would call this part of the night low intensity-you're working but it's manageable and you can probably talk with being too out of breath.  In an exercise class, this would be the warm-up.  At Hustle Fit we call it, "Let's Get This Party Started". 

 

Every workout begins with a Let's Get This Party Started dance however, we also have entire workouts created with just Let's Get This Party Started dances. Let's Get This Party Workouts are a great way to learn basic steps at a good tempo.  I use the above dance, "As Good As I Am" as way to help people learn the "kick and cross".   That's a tricky move for some and learning it slow for the
first time is definitely better than learning it fast and while traveling...
 

I hope this gives you a little insight into Hustle Fit.  I can't wait to see you in class or online (we'll be launching soon!).


Antoinette

Who Complains About Dancing?

There is only one physical activity that I can think of that people do not complain about—dancing!  Think about it. 

1.       At a party, people dance for as long as the music lasts. 

2.       People don’t complain about dancing all night but,

3.       People do hope the music is good enough so that they CAN dance all night. 

And when the DJ plays great song after great song after great song, people keep on dancing.  Even when our feet hurt (high heels were not made for dancing).  In fact, don’t we judge the skill of a DJ by his or her ability to keep the dance floor packed?  And more importantly, people are happy when they are dancing—happy and laughing as you can see in the picture below.  That’s me, center, in the red top, feeling the groove. J

 

When you think about it, isn’t dancing a form of exercise?  We just don’t think of it as such because it’s something we WANT to do rather than something we think we have to do. 

Why can’t working out be the same way?  Why can’t it be good for you and fun?  That’s what Hustle Fit™ is all about.  It was born out of my love for dancing, particularly line dancing.  It’s a lot of fun--try it out and let us know what you think. Just go to www.hustlefitonline.com and you can sign up to receive three free videos.  Enjoy!


Antoinette

Fit & Fabulous

One of our goals at Hustle Fit is the help you thrive.  We want to do more than help you lose weight or avoid illness. We want you to THRIVE.  We call it "Fit & Fabulous".  The dictionary.com defines thrive as,

1. to prosper, be fortunate, or successful 
2. to grow or develop vigorously; flourish

Thriving is a concept I was introduced to during the coursework for my Health and Wellness degree and it really resonated with me. I like the idea of approaching my life and health with the goal of thriving instead of avoiding disease and losing weight.  Now that my goal is to thrive, I'm less frustrated and I enjoy life more.  There are benefits that go beyond health.  For example--I woke up yesterday, looked around my bedroom and thought, "this is not the room of someone who is thriving".  So I jumped out of bed and spent the first two hours of day cleaning my room, lol.  

So what do you want?  Do you want to be healthy or do you want to be Fit and Fabulous?

Take Some Time for Yourself This Weekend

It's Friday, yay! 

These days it seems like people are just as busy on the weekends as they are during the week.  I say, make sure you take some time for yourself, even it it is just an hour.  Watch a movie; curl up with a good book;  or get a spa pedicure.  Go it alone or with friends, just do something fun and relaxing. 

Speaking of fun and relaxing, that's one of the reasons why I love line dancing.  It's fun, relaxing, and it's something I can do alone or with friends. 

Anywhoo--if you want to get a workout in this weekend and you're short on time, try these---

Have a great weekend!

Antoinette

Pushing Through the Funk

Today is going to be a day for putting the Dance.Party.Thrive. philosophy to the test!  Part of that philosophy, in terms of "Thrive", means that we "acknowledge our physical, mental, and spiritual needs and we meet them."  So today, we're meeting our mental needs!  We'll do a little EFT (or tapping), meditation, and of course, dancing.  And that should clear the way for us to get some business done.  

Speaking of "dancing", there might be a new dance added to tomorrow's workout:)

A Day of Thanks, Hustle, and Praise

Sure--there's always work to be done but today, we're taking time to be thankful.  We'll also take some time to do what we call, Hustle and Praise™:)

Have an awesome day!!

No Rest for the Weary

Yesterday was an awesome and busy day.  I did not get a chance to nap, in fact all I had was 20 minutes to eat a little snack (boneless spare ribs from my favorite Chinese restaurant) before I was off to host the Beginner's Bash Line Dance Party.  Which, by the way, was a lot of fun!!  We danced for three hours straight and what's cool about the Bash is that hardcore, stay until the lights go out, line dancers are emerging.  I love it! 

I planned to rest today but I have things to do but thankfully, nothing too physically taxing.  Let me just point out that I was so tired last night that I could not finish my dinner because the physical act of eating was just too much, lol! 

For all of the fitness instructors out there or anyone who uses their voice more than the average person, I highly recommend that you invest in a vocal coach or coaching program.  I have not been consistent in doing my vocal exercises and I really felt it.  So today I pulled out my copy of Roger Love's "Set Your Voice Free" and did exercises from the accompanying CD.  For the next 21 days, I'm going to do exercises every day to re-establish this habit. 

And sometime today, I'm going to refresh my memory on "Go Hard or Go Home".  I'm thinking out doing an advanced line dance workout and it will most likely be at the top of the list. 

It's going to be a busy day!

First, I stopped by our local radio station, WTCC to promote the Beginner's Bash Line Dance Party. Next, it's my volunteer assignment with the American Red Cross   -the Pioneer Valley Chapter. Then, last minute errands to ready for tonight. And finally, the Beginner's Bash Line Dance Party!!! From 7pm to 10pm, we'll be dancing non-stop! I'm fresh and energetic now but wait until tonight, lol. Hopefully, I can sneak in a nap:)