friday favourite: rachael mcenaney

i believe this is my second friday favourite! sowey there was none last week as i enjoyed myself in jakarta through-out the whole weekend... w00tz! i wanna sit down and write about it someday. so watch this space for the updates ya. or better still, i have not even upload the pics on my flickr yet; but to those of you people who is on my fb list, i am sure you have seen some of the pics that i have posted... ツ

basically my trip to jakarta was all about 'lansing'. and talking about lansing (line dancing), do read more about the benefits here. some people still had the old thinking that line dancing is for older generations, maybe because when line dancing started it was almost all country music. but now since most styles of music is catered for it including rock & roll, swing, pop and chart music; many young people have come into the picture.

line dancers around the world knows rachael mcenaney. in fact she is one of my favourite line dance choreographers. she was born with a family background of ballroom and latin champions will celebrate her 30th birthday this august. this year is probably her best year in terms of achievement and awards. will she reach higher ground? we're sure she will, especially with her love of dance. since 4, she has discovered and trains in many different forms of dance including ballet, tap, jazz, ballroom, latin, salsa, hip hop and many others.

rachael finished college in 1999 with excellent GCES results and A levels in sports studies, french & german. rachael began teaching linedance in york, england at the young age of 15 and she completed her first competition at the UCWDC european championships in 1999 and emerged as a star the following year. since then, she has won numerous accolades and awards for her instruction and choreography (see her achievement & awards here). according to her, she was inspired by at least the following personalities: rob fowler, pedro machado, jo thompson szymanski and paul mcadam among others.

among most of her choreographies that became local line dancers' favourite: jesse james, BCO, snap your fingers, and ooh! i like that. i practiced with my lansing friends to the latter last week in pj, and ooh! i like that... we had so much fun and laughter...

"the dancer believes that his art has something to say which cannot be expressed in words or in any other way than by dancing... there are times when the simple dignity of movement can fulfill the function of a volume of words. there are movements which impinge upon the nerves with a strength that is incomparable, for movement has power to stir the senses and emotions, unique in itself. this is the dancer's justification for being, and his reason for searching further for deeper aspects of his art." ~ doris humphrey, 1937

"dancers are an admirable bunch of people. the way they work. the stress is extraordinary. it's a difficult career. i think it's hellish; the fact that they are over the hill as they're emotionally maturing. that calls for a terrific strength of character." ~ lady d. macmillan

shu la jin...

this blog post has actually been sitting in the draft folder for more than 3 weeks! *phew* and since its kinda an interesting one, i must say that its better i post this good information for everyone no matter what.

shu la jin is a form of exercise that has been founded by madam chin sau ying. eventually i knew that my line dance group has been doing it almost everyday as a form of warming up before our line dance routine. i didn't join them anyway as i normally opt and prefer for a breeze walk up and down the resident's hill near my former secondary school. then only walked down to laman budaya to join them for line dancing.

i only became more aware of this kind of exercise when madam chin dropped-by recently to introduce and promote it to kualè people.

madam chin brought a lady who looked so healthy; that no one could ever imagined she used to be a stroke victim if she didn't tell us of her past story. she practiced shu la jin and look at her...

they showed us some newspaper cut-outs written about the exercise.


rules and regulations of shu la jin exercise:

1. only madam chin sau ying, being the founder and master of shu la jin, shall have the sole right to appoint her assistant instructors.


2. appointed assistant instructors shall fully understand the objective of shu la jin.


3. learner are expected to co-operate by helping each other to enjoy good health and love and to perform charity.


4. learner shall not be selfish or greedy and shall instead devote themselves voluntarily to promote the exercise of shu la jin.


5. learner shall seek permission from madam chin sau ying prior to carrying out any plans or activities concerning shu la jin.


6. learner shall not conduct any private business or activities within the compound where shu la jin exercise is held.


7. nobody is allowed to collect money in the name of shu la jin unless the collection is meant for charity donation and such collection is approved by madam chin sau ying.

it was just so happened i brought my oly along that morning. more over i guess an introduction of this shu la jin exercise via a video that i managed to capture would be much helpful~

shu la jin from ku E on Vimeo.

if you like this blog post and are interested to know more about shu la jin, do email me or leave your comment in the comment box; and i would be much glad to get my friend to pass madam chin's contacts to you.

of physical exercise...

i have just came back from my morning routines. normally i do that during weekends (both saturday and sunday) only. but now i decided to do it daily with effective yesterday. owh... how i feel so good and refreshing... i also joined a group of ladies for line dance at the tepi sungei, after my walks at the bukit residen. well i found out that they actually meet everyday except sunday.

when i was walking up the hills today, i walked by a nyonya (old chinese lady) with bicycle. i greeted her. the nyonya smiled and asked, "lu jalan solang saja ka? (you walked alone only?)". i nodded. doing my exercises alone is really not a big deal for me. i saw some ladies especially malays who went with friends, but they seems to gossip more than doing their exercises. what's up with that?

in some occasions, people would quoted me: "dah slim pun, nak slim lagik?". walaweiii... its not the matter of wanting to be slim or not occay?!!... i wanna lead myself to a healthy life... that's the most important thing... blerk!

i started doing this kind of exercises myself seriously on the first weekends of this year. then recently i thought its better for me to do it everyday instead. the hardest part of an exercise routine is getting started. once you've established a regular pattern of exercise, you'll find yourself following it. so, how do you get started? well, first of all, consult your doctor. your doctor can recommend the specific kinds of exercise for your own individual needs. generally, however, these guidelines should get you going. pssttt... i didn't get any advice from any doctor :)

first of all, exercise will only become a habit if it's fun! pick something you will enjoy doing. if you like being with a group of people, try a team sport like basketball or soccer. you don't have to be a super athlete. anyone can exercise. social activities like dancing and mall-walking are also good. if you're more of a loner, try bicycling or swimming.

don't kid yourself. be honest about what you realistically think you can do. if you have always hated to climb stairs, step aerobics probably isn't for you. maybe a walk around the neighborhood would be more pleasant. many people today are walking toward fitness.

consider your current state of physical fitness. if you haven't exercised in years, you'll definitely want to start with some modest activities. as you get adjusted, you can increase your activity.

consider your schedule. are you a morning person? then plan to exercise in the morning. if you're addicted to your snooze button, plan to exercise in the evening. start with just a small block of time, maybe fifteen minutes. as you get into your routine, you probably won't mind increasing to twenty, and then thirty minutes. for me, i did 6 rounds of walks up and down the bukit residen for about an hour non-stop. in order to be effective, you'll need to repeat your exercise routine 3 or 4 times per week.

will you exercise at home or at a fitness center? selecting a fitness center can be a challenge, but you may find the community support motivational. will you need any special equipment? the variety of exercise equipment available for purchase today can be overwhelming. be sure to buy the proper equipment.

finally, take it easy. make sure that you exercise intelligently and cautiously. follow some guidelines for beginners. exercise should improve your health, not risk it.

if you're still making excuses, at least try some of the tips here. these simple, realistic activities can become the first step toward a healthier tomorrow. or better still, go here to loose weight faster, god willing hehee... and now i am off for my second shower of the day *winks*

malaysia may ban yoga for muslims (?)

i am quoting a radically surprised news from msn news— “Malaysia may ban yoga for Muslims: cleric”

hey... whats up with that? i have just thought of starting! i even already have a pilates mat that i can use for yoga also.i know its kinda good exercise... :(

who doesn't know that yoga is from india. but in other way its a form of good exercise and alternative medicine.

from what i understand, the most important benefit of yoga is physical and mental therapy. the aging process, which is largely an artificial condition, caused mainly by autointoxication or self-poisoning, can be slowed down by practicing yoga. by keeping the body clean, flexible and well lubricated, we can significantly reduce the catabolic process of cell deterioration. to get the maximum benefits of yoga one has to combine the practices of yogasanas, pranayama and meditation.

regular practice of asanas, pranayama and meditation can help such diverse ailments such as diabetes, blood pressure, digestive disorders, arthritis, arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, asthma, varicose veins and heart conditions. laboratory tests have proved the yogi's increased abilities of consciously controlling autonomic or involuntary functions, such as temperature, heartbeat and blood pressure. research into the effects of yogic practices on HIV is currently underway with promising results.

according to medical scientists, yoga therapy is successful because of the balance created in the nervous and endocrine systems which directly influences all the other systems and organs of the body. yoga acts both as a curative and preventive therapy. the very essence of yoga lies in attaining mental peace, improved concentration powers, a relaxed state of living and harmony in relationships.

through the practice of yoga, we become aware of the interconnectedness between our emotional, mental and physical levels. gradually this awareness leads to an understanding of the more subtle areas of existence. the ultimate goal of yoga is to make it possible for you to be able to fuse together the gross material (annamaya), physical (pranamaya), mental (manomaya), intellectual (vijnanamaya) and spiritual (anandamaya) levels within your being. you can read more of the benefits of yoga here and here. alternatively, more about it can be found massively online.

looks like i just have to get going myself from a number of books or cds on yoga that i have bought. thus i have also found many good and informative yoga sites. now no one can interrupt me! we'll see... :~)