Classes through January 2019 for FCPS employees (updated)

Welcome to a new year! Rebound fitness classes started January 11 and will continue through the end of January 2019 for employees of Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) at 4:30 pm on Thursdays in the Fitness Center of the Gatehouse Administrative Center. (Plus, I am still looking for a place I can teach classes that would be open to the public. Got an idea? Suggest it.)

Staff from other FCPS schools are welcome at the Gatehouse Fitness Center, as long as the start time works for you and I have enough rebound boots in the right sizes for whoever shows up.

I teach jumping and bouncing and dancing class on rebound boots a little differently than most people in Northern Virginia. It's formatted similarly to a dance fitness class, because each song has moves that go with just that song, and we use 9-10 songs per class (depending on their length). Also, the class is structured to teach basic moves first, and move up through the options into more complicated choreography. You can join the class any week, as we always cover the basics in the warm-up, and all songs have options for easier or more challenging workouts.

If you're not part of the solution...

Below is an article I wrote for Money, Marketing & More, published in May 1999. I found it again recently, and realized the more things change, the more they are the same. If anything, I would say it all more vehemently today. Back then, it seemed that violence and general disrespect were seeping into the fabric of our social existence; this week it seems more like the centerpiece on the family dinner table, boldly challenging whether we have a social contract anymore.

Becoming Part of the Solution

Most people reading this can remember the saying from the 1960s, "If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem." Not everyone can give up their "real" life and lead a revolution, but each of us can take small steps toward solving larger problems that plague our communities.

For some time, I've wanted to write an editorial on various forms of disrespect, and how disrespect is on the same continuum with violence. I detest unwanted, unsolicited fax advertising; someone disrespects my time and resources enough to think it's OK to use them for their purposes instead of my own. I rant about rude, unsafe drivers who don't realize other drivers are just trying to get somewhere too, and wonder how many of us being courteous on the highways it will take to balance the "road karma." Now, in the wake of the Littleton school massacre, just after my own daughter was assaulted with a rock on a walk this weekend in her own neighborhood in broad daylight, my concern has been galvanized into action.

If we do not want to live in a world where everyone is a fair target for everyone else, we must examine our own actions and see how they contribute to the problem. Further, we must try to see the implications of our actions and change what a project manager would call the "precursors," the things that precede and enable an action.

Three key areas I see for being part of the solution are avoidance, modeling, and communication. You can avoid being in the situations that you feel contribute to the problem. You can model the alternative behaviors and attitudes in your daily life. The easiest...and most difficult: you can communicate your views, in conversation with friends and neighbors, letters to the editor, public forums, and heartfelt talks with your children.

I'm a big proponent of doing things your own way, so the following list of potential actions is not the end-all and be-all. Use it as a starting point for your own dialogue with yourself. If you don't like the world you currently live in, envision what you want to be different, and take action on that vision.

• Don't watch violent movies, videos, or television shows, particularly where the violence is the only entertainment value. There is no positive social value in hacking babysitters to death.
• Ask friends, neighbors, and relatives why they find violence entertaining, and ask them to stop watching it.
• Don't spend your money to support corporations that profit from violence. We're talking small actions here, not organizing a boycott, although if organizing on that level is your vision, put me on your mailing list.
• Stop taunting and cruel teasing between children as young as possible, because both those who taunt and those who are taunted can become victims and perpetrators of violence, both verbal and physical.
• Watch your language. Violence has become such an invisible part of our culture that we don't even hear ourselves say things like "We didn't just win the game; we KILLED them!" Your children are listening.
• On a more proactive note, go out of your way to connect with strangers in non-dangerous situations. Talk to the person in line at the grocery store or deli, and exchange small talk with the cashier. They are someone's next door neighbor too. I believe that when you affirm someone's humanity with friendly conversation, the rest of their day goes better, and that ripples outward to more people.
• Leave five minutes early to drive anywhere, so you can graciously allow others to merge, and generally drive courteously to balance the road karma of those who don't. The accident you prevent may save your life.
• If a specific aspect of the disrespect/violence continuum bothers you significantly, find out more about it. Search for resources or organizations on the Internet, in the phonebook, or by telling everyone you know about your concern. Learn more about what is being done in that area, or could be done, and see how you can make a difference.
• Consider carefully how to maintain safety while not giving up the great outdoors, or the night-time, or whatever else you enjoy and would miss. Take a self-defense class, but don't get cocky.

Anthropologist Margaret Meade once said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed people can change the world: indeed it's the only thing that ever has!" Choose to be one of those people.

Wednesdays in the Park(ing Lot) with Boots

Wednesdays at 7:00 pm
May 10 • 17 • 24 • 31, 2017

If you live close enough to get here, come on outside and rebound with us in Franconia, Virginia, on Wednesday evenings in May 2017. Weather permitting (no rain and above 65 degrees), we will meet at 7:00 pm for a forty minute class plus cool-down and stretching.

On a clear night, we jump into the sunset and dance as the moon rises. And...May 10 is a full moon.


As the weather improves, we will have more rebounding boots to rent for those who want to join in the fun. For now, there are only three pairs:
• extra-small (women's 5-6)
• small (women's 7-8) and
• medium (women's 9-10).
If you need to rent boots, I need to know ahead of time so I bring the right sizes with me. If you have your own boots, the only reason to let me know ahead of time is so I can contact you if we have to cancel that night.


The cost is $5 if you have your own boots, and $10 if you need to rent boots. Beginners are always welcome, as every class starts with a warm-up and basic moves. Check Loraine Says Jump on Facebook for the most up-to-date information, or email me at LGoodenough@cox.net.

Back in the Instructor Boots in April 2017

Kangoo Jumps® LIVE - Fairfax, VA, from 2-4 pm October 23, 2016

SHORT NOTICE -- Sunday, October 23, 2016, come to the lucy activewear store at 11899 Grand Commons Avenue, Fairfax, VA,  2-4 pm, and see some Kangoo Jumps® rebounding in action! I will be there in my boots, along with another licensed instructor, Kathy Howell. We are hoping to bring enough to share (i.e., boots you can try on). There are about a dozen places in the DC-VA-MD area to take rebounding classes, and we are happy to help you find someone near you. You will find us easily -- I'm the one with purple roots in her hair.

Back in my boots, and barely off the ground

Gently, low to the ground, sometimes more walking through the choreography than jumping at all...I am back in my Kangoo Jumps rebound boots. Yesterday was eleven weeks after total hip replacement surgery, and I have been in my boots 4 times in the last week. This is absolutely not standard practice for this amount of time post-op.

Lest you worry, I am being careful. I am easing back into rebounding. I have (mostly) done my physical therapy before the surgery and since the surgery, and returned to my other dance fitness a few weeks ago. Caution is not forgotten. However, you don't rebuild muscle by watching other people work out. When the instructor says, "Go at your own pace," I take him at his word. Sometimes I do different choreography altogether, or at least modify what others are doing to match my capabilities at that moment.

I am also (mostly) eating in ways that support my healing, where I can see it and where I can't. I am taking specific supplements that support my energy, healing, and help keep further arthritis at bay.

For now, I am slowly regaining the skills I once had and I realize some will return faster than others. By being mindful and observant, and patient (OK, as patient as possible for me), and allowing for progress to happen at a natural (not forced or time-sensitive) pace, I fully expect to be able to teach Kangoo Jumps classes again in 2017.

For now, I am grateful to be back in my boots, and happy to be jumping low to the ground. Enough time later for flying!

The Bionic Hip...Just Add W.A.T.E.R.

After resisting a diagnosis of osteoarthritis for a couple years, I finally decided to have my right hip joint replaced six weeks ago. In order for everyone who was part of the process to understand that I had very high expectations for after the surgery, I began calling it my Bionic Hip even before I  had it installed. Somewhere along the way, I may have started to believe my own publicity on this. I certainly was disappointed at how slow the immediate recovery was, before I left the hospital. It gradually dawned on me after coming home that it was just like planting a seed in my garden, I had to add W.A.T.E.R.

Water - Both inside (hydration, wash out remaining anesthesia and medications, encourage new growth) and out (feeling good and clean is healthy too), water and other healthy liquids are critical. (OK, for me, coffee is critical too, but no more than two cups a day for now; and hey, it's made with water.) Plus, swimming in water is a recent addition to this, now that the scar has healed enough.

Appropriate foods - A good balance of proteins, carbs, and healthy fats; don't starve your body for building materials for healing; fruits and veggies also counteract pain medicine side effects, besides being good for you anyway. Healthy treats are good for marking milestones (each week post-op) - thanks to my co-workers for a well-timed Edible Arrangement!

Time - Progress is gradual, step by step, and rushing can actually slow the healing. Invest time in doing the rehab work, and allow the time for healing to be thorough rather than quick. I know some people who see me at Chakaboom Fitness, already dancing again, think I am rushing it, but — believe me — I am being careful of the specific prohibitions from the doctor and the physical therapist. I want to heal well enough to be back in my magic rebound boots before 2017.

Effort - This is key: do the rehab work, keep your form accurate, try to understand how each specific movement is meant to help. Some moves help re-grow muscle and bone, some are for untraining bad habits picked up pre-op, some are strengthening and some are stretching gradually.

Rest - Some days you need more rest than others, but don't shortchange yourself even if you are not feeling tired. You know how hard you are working at rehab and ADL (activities of daily life) but you have no idea how hard your body is working inside at healing muscles and bones. Your stamina will come back if you don't force it.

My unnatural Bionic Hip is just like my very natural garden — just add WATER and wait for the magic to begin.