From: Sun City Texas Community Association
Date/Time: 3/1/2020 9:00 am
Subject: Fitness Communicator - Weekly News - March 1, 2020

Fitness Communicator March 1, 2020 Goodbye and Thank You to Karen Kooken, Fitness Monitor   Message from Karen - Robert and I are hiking (backpacking) the Continental Divide Trail which begins at the Mexico/New Mexico border and ends at the Canadian border north of Glacier National Park in Montana—3100 miles through 5 states. If you go on YouTube there is a sped up version you can do in minutes which would be a lot less trouble. We estimate that we will take 6-7 months if we complete the whole thing. And yes, we do stop occasionally for showers, burgers and beer! March Series Classes  Registration began Friday, Feb. 7 at the Cowan Creek, Retreat or the Texas Drive Fitness Centers. Only pre-registered participants may attend these classes. Questions about a series class?  Email [email protected] or call 512-948-7753.   As of March 1, the Beginner Cycle series class will become a regular ticket class.   Cowan Creek   Absolute Beginner Ballet Fridays, 9:15 – 10 a.m. • Cowan Creek in the Salado room 6 classes for $24, March 6 - April 10 This is an introductory class, starting from the beginning. You don’t have to know anything! In this 6-week workshop you will learn the fundamental positions and vocabulary. Come enjoy the fun of learning ballet and reap the many benefits of gaining core strength and improved flexibility, balance and better posture. Ballet shoes are not required – socks will work. Taught by Marnie.   Ballet I Fridays, 8 – 9 a.m. • Cowan Creek 4 classes for $16, March 6 – 27 BALLET I is a class geared towards those with a more intense ballet background and knowledge of dance vocabulary. This class entails both barre and centre floor work with more complex combinations including adagio and petit allegro. If this description fits you, we would love to have you come enjoy our fun ballet class. Proper dance shoes are required. Taught by Marnie.   Meditation - Mind-Body-Spirit Hour Wednesdays 3 – 4 p.m. • Cowan Creek in the Salado Room 4 classes for $30, March 4 -25 Advance your meditation practice in this series. We will combine knowledge of chair yoga postures, stress management skills and natural remedies for total mind-body-spirit wellness. The final 20-30 minutes will be dedicated to meditation. Meditation has proven benefits in reducing symptoms of every disease and improving cognitive functioning and memory. Learn relaxation techniques that can decrease anxiety, increase inner peace and effectively transform your outlook. Taught by Ki.     Texas Drive   Beginner Country Western 2-Step Wednesdays, 5 - 6 p.m. • Texas Drive 6 classes for $45.00, March 4 – April 8 Must register with a partner. This class will be specifically for Beginners, but also for those who need to refresh the basics. Learn the dance protocol, which includes rhythm, timing, frame, etc. By the end of the session, you will feel comfortable and confident getting out on the dance floor. Remember, each session we will teach new patterns. You must wear smooth soled shoes (not rubber soles). Taught by Gregory & JB.   Beginner II Country Western 2-Step Wednesdays, 6 – 7 p.m. • Texas Drive 6 classes for $45.00, March 4 – April 8 Must register with a partner. Beginner II is designed for the “in-between” or “not sure” couple who have taken lessons before, know the basic information and have no trouble remembering patterns to last through a whole song.  Our last session was a huge hit! Don’t forget, new patterns are taught during all of our lessons. You must wear smooth soled shoes (not rubber soles). Taught by Gregory & JB.  April Series Classes  Registration begins Saturday, March 7 at the Cowan Creek, Retreat or the Texas Drive Fitness Centers. Only pre-registered participants may attend these classes. Questions about a series class?  Email [email protected] or call 512-948-7753.   Ballet I Fridays, 8 – 9 a.m. • Cowan Creek 4 classes for $16, April 3 - 24 BALLET I is a class geared towards those with a more intense ballet background and knowledge of dance vocabulary. This class entails both barre and centre floor work with more complex combinations including adagio and petit allegro. If this description fits you, we would love to have you come enjoy our fun ballet class. Proper dance shoes are required. Taught by Marnie.   Meditation - Mind-Body-Spirit Hour Wednesdays 3 – 4 p.m. • Cowan Creek in the Salado Room 5 classes for $37.50, April 1 - 29 Advance your meditation practice in this series. We will combine knowledge of chair yoga postures, stress management skills and natural remedies for total mind-body-spirit wellness. The final 20-30 minutes will be dedicated to meditation. Meditation has proven benefits in reducing symptoms of every disease and improving cognitive functioning and memory. Learn relaxation techniques that can decrease anxiety, increase inner peace and effectively transform your outlook. Taught by Ki.  Tips from the Trainers Food for Thought   Eating. Somebody has to do it, right?   When it comes to food, let’s first get the hard part out of the way--the part that is very hard to digest (Get it? Digest? Thank you. Thank you. I’m here every day.)   Food has only one organic purpose: to provide sustenance to our bodies. That’s it. Every other purpose for which we use or consume food is man-made, brought on by our own devices and motivations. At the end of the day, food doesn’t care how good it tastes to you, or how it helps you get over the latest heartbreak as you spoon tons of chocolate ice-cream into your mouth while watching Titanic over and over again. It’s true. I mean, if ice-cream could talk back, we wouldn’t need therapists.   Food’s creation is up for debate, depending on however you believe life and its necessities to be created. The point here is that we were never given an instruction manual on how to put together our food so it can serve at the pleasure of our taste buds. As a consequence, experts, gurus, and yes, personal trainers attempt to decipher all that encompasses food, from its satiating effects to its molecular breakdown, and then fit all that into our lifestyles and body needs. But all in all, it’s really up to us, you, to motivate yourself to consume food for what it is first supposed to be—a tool to keep you healthy and thriving—before any success will be gained from dietary changes.   We all whine about it. “Why does everything that is so bad, taste so good?” Well, the answer is simple. The things that are bad for us were never supposed to be here in the first place. We, man, created them. For example, the beans from the cacao plant (cocoa beans) are arguably one of the best things we could ever put in our bodies—but—maybe not so palatable. Enter the creation of chocolate. For centuries, clever inventors have created various forms of tasteful chocolate treats. Then down the line, of course, Milton Hershey came along and stole the show. It’s called processing.   The purpose of this Tip is to encourage all of us (trainer’s need encouragement too) to remember the basics of why we eat, and to be more mindful to treat food as a conduit for good health first, and then to see food as something else second, whatever that something else happens to be for you. Food, at its very core, is a need that we’ve turned into a gift.   And this is one of the best ways to view food in the fight to stay healthy. If we think of food in the sense of something special or distinctive for an occasion, consequently straying from food’s natural intent of sustenance, then it might lessen our food guilt, and might even make us eat more healthy most of the time. In essence, when we think of food in this context, we are more apt to value food, and perhaps see it as something special enough to share occasionally, or practice self-love in treating ourselves when we accomplish a goal, or simply as a reward for hard work. We might stop taking food for granted.   None of us want to live as if we are food zombies, eating fish, spinach, and a dry potato every night. That’s not the purpose of this Tip either. But it doesn’t hurt to start with the basics that life has offered us in its purest, unprocessed form, and then give it a little love so that we may, in turn, love the things we eat without completely killing nature’s intent.   It might make that birthday cake taste a little sweeter, or that pizza a little more luscious, or that glass of wine a little more…(hey, whatever you want wine to be.) Just a little food for thought…talk to you next week. -J-    From the personal training staff: John Rutan, Don Moore, JB Baier, Victoria Young, Allison Worley, Julie O’Connor, Michelle Dwyer, Brendi Middleton, Mike Stuchl, Lois Johnson, Rachelle Jensen, and Byron Goff. Questions about personal training? Visit our website or email John Rutan at [email protected]. Fitness Schedules & Class Descriptions  View/Print PDF Cowan Creek>> Texas Drive>> View Online Cowan Creek >> Texas Drive>>  View/Print PDF Class Descriptions>> Contact Us   Michelle Mason, Fitness Director [email protected]   Beth White, Group Fitness Coordinator [email protected]   John Rutan, Personal Training Coordinator [email protected]   Dick Jenkins, Fitness Operations Supervisor [email protected]     Visit the fitness website >> Fitness Centers Weekly Attendance Please Remember to Log in Each Day!  Your attendance record is important in planning for space, budgeting, equipment and programming. Following are the numbers of residents who logged in last week:   Texas Drive – 4978 Cowan Creek – 3286 The Retreat – 808  Call our Fitness Information Lines: Texas Dr. 512-948-7750 • Cowan Creek 512-948-7780 • The Retreat 512-948-7763  // Click an icon below to connect with Sun City Texas // ‌ ‌ ‌

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