Update !!

Here's wishing everyone a Blessed Christmas !!!

I apologize for the silence on this blog for 2014. It's been a crazy busy year with many personal challenges and extra work in the Dancesport scene. I will be making an extra effort to stay in touch on this blog in 2015.

I hope you've all had a good year and made strides in being more fit and healthy. If not, its a good time to make new resolutions to do just that for the coming year.

Several classes on my schedule had to close this year due to falling numbers but a few new ones have materialized and will need encouragement to continue into the new year but i'm hopeful they will continue to grow in numbers and enthusiasm.

CLASSES IN 2015 :

Monday, 10am-12noon

- Royal Selangor Gold Club (RSGC), KL (members only)
- Freestyle line dance (beginners-low intermediate)

Tuesday, 10:30am-12:30noon

- Tropicana Golf & Country Club, PJ (open to public)
- Freestyle foundation & conditioning (high beginners-low intermediate)

Tuesday, 2-4pm

- Tropicana Golf & Country Club, PJ (open to public)
- Freestyle dance (intermediate)

Tuesday, 8:30-10pm

- Bukit Damansara community center, KL (open to public)
- Freestyle line dance (intermediate)

Wednesday, 10am-12noon

- Royal Selangor Golf Club (RSGC), KL (members only)
- Freestyle line dance (intermediate-low advance)

Wednesday, 7:30-9pm

- Tropicana Golf & Country Club, PJ (open to public)
- Solo Latin American dance, foundation & competitive routines

Thursday, 10am-12noon

- Tropicana Golf & Country Club, PJ (open to public)
- Freestyle conditioning & dance (mid-high advance)

Thursday, 8:30-10pm

- Glad Tidings, Sec. 13, PJ (members only)
- Freestyle foundation & conditioning (high beginners)

Friday, 11am-12noon

- Suria Yoga, Aman Suria, PJ (open to public)
- Freestyle foundation & dance (beginners)

Friday, 8:30-10pm

- Bandar Puchong Jaya (open to public)
- Freestyle line dance (intermediate)

For any further information, feel free to call me on +6 014 222 99 02.

Merry Christmas !

Wishing everyone a blessed Christmas. May all your prayers and wishes come thru.

Ms B is back !

Ms B is back in the studio !

All classes resume according to schedule from 5th March 2013, Tuesday. Brush up on your work before you come to class. See you all.

Ms. B

Ms B is out of the studio

Hello everyone,

Its that time of the year again where I leave you all for a while to work on the ADC Asian Dancesport tour. I will be away on the following dates, and all classes on those dates are canceled.

22nd Feb. - 25th Feb. 2013

27th Feb. - 4th March 2013

Classes on the 26th Feb., Tuesday, will run as normal. All other classes will resume on the 5th March 2013.

You all have 'homework' and practice to do, so don't be lazy and keep working. Remember, only Practice, Persistence & Perseverance (the 3 P's) will turn you into the dancer you want to be.

Be safe now.

Ms B

Flexibility

"Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape"








Warm up before you stretch for improved flexibility

Stretching is perhaps the most important thing you can do to improve your flexibility. However, stretching a muscle without first warming it up will not result in significant long-term improvements in flexibility - and it could lead to damage. If you really want to increase you flexibility, you'll need to stretch when your muscles are warm and elastic. And, if  you want to target specific areas for improvement in flexibility, you will need to develop a flexibility-training program.

In fact, to improve your overall flexibility, the ideal time to stretch a muscle is after you've exercised and raised your body's temperature.  When you're weight training, for example, this would be right after you've performed your strength-training set for that particular muscles group. Your muscles are warm and primed. Some people prefer to save their stretching for their final cool down after they're finished with their entire exercise program, which works well if you're short of time.

Work stretching into your workout

Try stretching throughout a workout after each muscle group has been challenged. At the end of your complete program, take about 10-15 additional minutes for a full-body stretch. This is a great time to simply relax, tune in to your body, and reap the rewards of your gym efforts. Whichever way you prefer, the bottom line is that stretching is good for you and should be incorporated into your workout.

Quotes

Line Dance (Freestyle) List - 2013

1.    Can We Chill* - Susan Puruleski (64 counts, 2 walls)
2.    Looking 4 Myself - Sebastiaan Holtland (32 counts, 4 walls)
3.    Everytime We Touch - Laura Carvill (32 counts, 2 walls)





*   with some variations
** danced without tags / restarts

Flexibility

"Flexibility falls under the 'use it or lose it' rule. You have to practice consistently, and the one thing people tend to forget is that strength and flexibility go hand in hand."





Practice a Variety of Stretches

Exercise books and videos offer differing advice on what stretch to do, how long to hold a stretch, how often you need to stretch, and so on. The answer to all of these questions is different from person to person and every expert will give different advice. What is important is that you make sure to take the time to lengthen your muscles in some way. It helps to know the four types of stretches :

1. Active : This type of stretching is usually used within the warm-up of a training session. You can take almost any stretch and make it active by moving in and out of the stretch using your breath.
2. Dynamic : This is another efficient technique within the warm-up. It involves momentum and muscular effort in order to move primary joints that are going to be used during activity. Big shoulder circles, leg swings, hip circles, and standing spinal rotations are all considered dynamic stretches.
3. Passive : A passive stretch is considered a relaxing, cooling and calming type of stretch. Passive stretches do not require you to hold your body weight while lengthening a muscle. These are mostly done in the seated or lying down position, and exhaling is emphasized to recruit the relaxation response.
4. Static : A static stretch is one that has no movement involved but muscles are recruited to hold the position. These exercises are usually, but not always, weight bearing in nature. Holding a High Lunge with your arms over your head, a Downward Facing Dog pose, and a Kneeling Hamstring Stretch are all considered static stretches.

Quotes

Endurance

"My attitude is that if you push me towards something that you think is a weakness, then I will turn that perceived weakness into a strength"






Understand the Difference Between Strength and Endurance

Muscular strength and endurance are equally important, and they are closely related in that it requires a certain amount of strength to develop endurance. For example, in order to develop upper body muscular endurance through pushups, you must have the strength to do at least one pushup. The inability to do a pushup is a lack of strength, not a lack of endurance.

For the most part, the same exercises are used to increase muscular strength and endurance. The only difference is the amount of resistance and the number of repetitions one completes in a set. In general, muscular strength is best developed by high resistance (heavy weight) and low repetition (short time period) exercises, while muscular endurance is improved by using less resistance (low weight) and higher repetitions (or a longer time period).

You can have strength without endurance. However, it is nearly impossible to develop muscular endurance without also developing strength. There are weightlifters who can bench press over 500 lbs, as long as they only have to push it up one time. However, some of these lifters are unable to do twenty pushups. So endurance training supplemented with a weight program is beneficial.

Quotes

Mental Agility

"Exercise doesn't make you smarter, but what it does do is optimize the brain for learning"





Exercise for Thirty Minutes a Day

Regular exercise is essential if you're looking to preserve your mental acuity. Aerobic exercise helps get the blood coursing through your system, carrying oxygen and glucose to your brain - two substances the brain needs in order to function. Regular exercise can also prod the brain into producing more molecules that help protect and produce the brain's neurons. Though studies are still underway to establish the link between exercise and increased brain neurons, many researchers - including those involved with Alzheimer's disease research - are studying the protective effects of regular physical exercise on the brain's neural paths for transmitting signals.

The US federal guidelines for exercise say that getting at least thirty minutes a day most days a week will help prevent heart disease, osteoporosis  diabetes, obesity, and now, perhaps, Alzheimer's. If you do nothing else, a brisk thirty minute walk every day will do wonders for your brain health.

It Also Keeps your Brain Young !

As you get older, exercise becomes even better for your overall brain health. Neuroscientists have shown that in aging populations (usually those over age 65) sustained, moderate exercise participation enhances learning and memory, improves the function of the neocortex, counteracts age-related atrophy in brain areas crucial for thinking and learning. Exercise has been cited by several researchers as being the number one factor in sustaining brain health and the ability to make new neurons in an aging brain.

Quotes

Strength

When you first start weight training, don't be surprised if you actually gain weight. This is a normal reaction for many people. The average person starting an exercise program may gain 3-5 lbs. If you're among these people, you've successfully gained lean body mass or muscles. Congratulate yourself. You deserve a pat on the back for all your hard work!



Check Your Body Composition

Your body composition refers to the percentage of fat and percentage of fat-free body mass that makes up your total body weight. Fat-free mass, also known as lean body mass, consists primarily of muscles tissue, bones, and blood, essentially all the rest of your body that is not fat.

Research suggests that the ideal percentage of body fat for men is 15-18 %. For women, the ideal range of body fat is 22-25 %. It's important to remember that these are suggested ranges. Some individuals with a higher percentage of body fat who are regularly active may still be considered at a healthy weight.

When you begin your improvement program, you might want to measure your body composition. This way, you'll have a baseline against which to measure the effectiveness of your program over time. You can see how much muscles mass you have when you get started. Every six weeks or so, you can check to see how much more muscles mass you have developed. If you're a person who is motivated by numbers, this is a concrete way to stay excited about your progress.

Quotes

Diet & Nutrition

Eighty percent (80%) of weight loss comes as a result of wise food choices.




Keep a Food Diary for at Least a Week

Do you even know how much and when you eat during a typical day? Most people don't. The best way to learn is to keep a food journal for at least a week. Using a notebook, your iPad, your smart phone, your running log, or a calendar (something you can keep a record in), write down everything you eat and when you eat it. Don't cheat! List even the breath mints you chew on during meetings. It's also helpful to note where your eating has taken place - at your desk? in the cafeteria? in front of the TV? - and how you were feeling at the time - super stressed? depressed? tipsy? This will help you identify your eating triggers and whatever bad habits you may have formed regarding eating.

After a full week you'll have a good idea of the what, when, where, and why of your eating patterns. From the brief discussion here, you should be able to see from your food diary where you're making your nutritional no-noes. How often have you skipped breakfast? How often have you eaten high fat foods like junk food, desserts, and fried foods? What are your snacking habits? How many fruits and vegetables do you eat in a typical week? How often do you eat because you're feeling blue or stressed, rather than hungry? Which foods do you gravitate toward to elevate your moods?

Quotes

From the desk of Ms. B :

Wishing all my students, past & present, a very blessed Hari Raya.

With warmest regards, Ms. B xoxox

New Class ? - Line Dance Performance

From the desk of Ms. B :

When I started the Freestyle Performance class I was concerned if people would really understand what it meant and if it would take off. Several have already come and gone (some in total shock, others in bewilderment) when they realized the word 'performance' meant training sessions with choreography, patterning and a lot of stamina & energy. Those remaining have so far taken everything I've thrown at them in their stride and I'm grateful to them for trusting me to guide them thru this new venture.

Since Freestyle has very wide syllabus and is truly meant for those with some experience at this level, I'm now very keen to start a LINE DANCE PERFORMANCE class. I enjoy the crisp, clean lines that line dance demands for shows & competitions. If anyone is interested in such a class/training, please drop me a note here or message me at +6014.222.9902

Ms. B

From the desk of Ms. B :