Hey there. I swear to God there were at least a half a billionty things I thought of over the weekend that I wanted to blog about….and then I forgot like all of them. DAYUM.
Last week’s eats: all of them were easy peasy. Honestly, I forgot what the hell I ate on Monday. And I’ve tried jogging my memory all morning (jogging a memory? Don’t get how that came to be a phrase).
Tuesday: Roasted veggies with brown rice and chicken breast. Seriously, so easy. But it was a well rounded meal.
Wednesday: Pesto Chicken Paninis. I made some homemade pesto, added thinly sliced cooked chicken, tomatoes, and monterey jack.
Thursday: Scrambled Egg Sandwich. With leftover monterey jack, ketchup and sriracha! I had loaded up on veggies during the day, so I didn’t miss them in my dinner.
Friday: Pizza. Lazy man’s dinner, but so tasty! Tyler had football practice and I went to yoga, so we were both pretty happy to plop on the couch with a few pieces o’ pie.
Last week’s workouts were good, too!
Monday: Hot Yoga, 20 minute HIIT on the treadmill (90 seconds brisk walk, 30 seconds ALL OUT SPRINT), Women’s Health Big Book of Exercises pre-wedding workout.
Tuesday: Hot Yoga, 20 min spin, another WH Athlete’s Workout (used lots of cable exercises and core work!)
Wednesday: Hot Yoga, sprints outside up and down the street (followed by one cat and a big ass bunny), another WH Athlete’s Workout- completed at home and SUPER sweaty.
Thursday: Hot Yoga
Friday: Hot Yoga
Saturday: Hot Yoga
Sunday: Off
Yes yes, lots of hot yoga. But um…I paid for a month unlimited, so I’m stretching my dollar as far as it will go! So far, I have only stuck to the Traditional Hot Yoga class (same format every class) and I have LOVED it. Today I am trying the Baptiste Vinyasa class. Super excited! Plus, you guys…this yoga business is getting my bod ready for the upcoming trip to NY. wink wink
Also, today is the start of the next round of Best Body Bootcamp. I have participated in the last four rounds, and just really like getting 8 weeks of pre-determined workouts. I find I always get myself in ruts: I either stick to some of the same exercises, or I am not seeing any benefits or results from my workouts. By changing it up with what BBB provides, it really just keeps me motivated to workout because I love trying new stuff.
Things totally unrelated to exercise and eats that I feel necessary to share:
I CANNOT stop listening to this song. Over and over. And over. And….over. And yes, I’m dancing to it like a loony in front of my dogs. They are not entertained whatsoever.
If I were to go camping, I would NEED to do so in this tent:
The puppies actually got to get some sun yesterday! Cute little beasts
We managed to watch all of season 2 of Spartacus. HOLY. The show is crazy intense and I love it. Plus, male full frontal. I mean..c’mon. (yeah yeah there are naked ladies in it too)
Hi Internet. I haven’t been around much because….well, just because. Not much to excite you with as of late, I guess. But I do have some things to share before I mentally check out for the weekend.
1. I have gone to hot yoga every day this week, and each day has been a completely different practice for me. I think it’s so crazy that one day I find it easy, another day feels impossible, and yet another class I am practically laying on the mat through each move. Last night’s class was my favorite because I was able to push myself a bit further into some beautiful postures.
Dancer’s Pose (I got my HEEL above my head..like this:)
2. The world now apparently has Fluffy Cows. I need to find out where these are and go hug one of those suckers.
3. Hey, remember when blogs/twitter/instagram/facebook were just people’s way of posting original thoughts and fun stuff? Well now they have all evolved into obnoxiously obvious ways of gross promotion. 75% of my Instagram feed consists of ads, 90% of my twitter feed are retweets, shameless brand plugs, and other lame things that no longer amuse me; and my blogroll is now filled with blogs that seem to jam pack as many sponsored posts in as possible. I have seen some social media ‘biggies’ that are ambassadors for an array of products that aren’t even in the same category, yet they nor the company seem to mind since the audience reach is just so large. I’m not going to take you seriously if one day you’re promoting cheese and the next day you’re promoting something non-dairy. I just don’t get it. Well, actually I do. Those bloggers get free crap, then they get to give away that free crap which will increase their number of followers on various forms of social media. Then, the company will sponsor them to go to events, and really, who turns down a free, all-expenses paid trip, regardless of the premise? End rant. (please take no offense, alright?)
4. Single serving microwave chocolate chip cookies. Yes, they are fantastic. It’s enough to hit the spot without having to bake a huge batch of cookies- and there is no additional temptation to eat half the batch. I use this recipe, and have been toppinig it with a variety of things like fruit, nuts, and homemade almond milk ‘frosting’.
5. My wedding is in 22 days. There, that’s all I’m gonna say that’s wedding related. If I should rant about another thing, it’s social media and big life events. I get that they’re exciting, but hot dang, no one needs to know every little detail. Sure I might have said I bought my dress or visited the venue or whatever, but I didn’t write a 1000 word essay about it. You won’t care. Plus, I don’t have 1000 words to say about it. Or my invitation selection. This is just about my only huge life event so far (besides moving to Canada, but I guess since not everyone does that I found it necessary to write about in case anyone was considering doing it. In which case, don’t. It was A LOT OF WORK. PAPERWORK. Like, remember when you filled out all those college applications and your hand would cramp? Before then, you never had your SSN memorized, but it was ETCHED in your brain by the time you were done. ps: I ended up writing the WRONG social security number on all my applications, because my mother told me the wrong number, so that was fun to deal with.) So yeah, I’ll probably post some pics after the wedding, but I’m not going to give you a 100 different recaps on every little event. Same goes for when I get pregnant. I guarantee you already know by now how big fetuses are in certain stages of gestation, and all that jazz. And do you really want to know when I crave weird foods or buy maternity pants? No, because it’s most likely a given. End rant. (Actually, some days I eat so much that I already need maternity pants, sans baby in belly. Just food.) Again, take no offense.
6. Wait, so I guess one more thing about the wedding: I’m excited to PARTAY.
7. So, I don’t have an acne problem or anything, but since I ALWAYS wear crops when I workout, I tend to get minor breakouts on my legs. Gross, I know. I finally bought some Neutrogena body scrub (since I use their facewash) in the hopes that it might help eliminate some of those little red sweat bumps. Only thing it’s done so far is make me crave grapefruit every time I shower.
So yeah, everything, I MEAN EVERYTHING here is labeled in both French and English. Understandably. In the case of the body wash, I just laugh because grapefruit in french makes me laugh. Click here to hear it. But seriously, when I buy something that has cooking instructions or something, I get so lost looking between both languages. Sounds silly, but look at the back of a box of rice and try to recite the instructions in Engligh RIGHT AWAY. Guarantee you’ll see the French first and be like
8. Hey, does anyone want to write a guest post for me? It can be on anything– since my posts usually are. You can talk about fitnessy stuff, foods, BOOZE, the shape of your most recent poop…whatever.
9. Every summer, I get the urge to buy a bathing suit. I really have no idea why, because I NEVER wear them, and when I do, there are usually clothes over them, or I’m completely submerged in a body of water. NOT A LAKE. I freaking hate lakes. HATE LAKES. They’re pretty to look at, sit by, boat on, but not swim in. Why? Because the water is so dark, you can’t see your feet. And who knows what lake creatures there are in the lake. Fish? HELLS NO PEOPLE. I do not tolerate no stinking fishies. I do remember one summer in college my parents and I and my ex boyfriend went out on the lake on our boat. When we got to the center, my dad anchored and my ex jumped in to swim. Not me, I was in my bathing suit with my clothes worn over them and perfectly happy in the sun. BUT NOOOOOOOOO my mom thought it would be funny to push me in. Guys, I’m a good swimmer and all, but I screamed bloody murder. I was kicking my legs SO HARD in an effort to practically propel my body out of the water. After a dozen or so screams (and I’m sure some broken blood vessels in my face) my mom finally threw me a bunch of life vests so that I could make a make-shift floating device and SEE all of my extremities. I could have punched my mother for that one.
10. I honestly have no idea how, but I’ve stopped drinking coffee. And we just got a Tassimo machine. Hmmm..
11. All my workouts this week (in addition to HY) have been from the Women’s Health Big Book of Exercises. It got me to start using the cable machines, which I haven’t in a LONG time. The moves target the same muscles in some of the free weight exercises I have been doing, but SLOW DOWN SUZY they made me sore. Basically, I have been a happy, sore lady all week.
12. Ok, I haven’t been happy ALL the time. There are stresses with the job hunt and what not. If I get into THAT, you’ll be reading yet another rant. And I think 2 is plenty for this post.
13. I haven’t craved a drink all week. Does that mean I need anti-intervention? I guess the weather has been so on and off that my body can’t decide what it wants.
14. I should probably change out of my nightgown and turn some lights on now, because it’s totally not acceptable on a Friday afternoon. I think yoga pants and the glow of the TV should suffice.
My mind is currently full of wedding crap (the financial aspect, making sure I pack EVERYTHING, making sure I am in appropriate contact with each vendor beforehand, yadda yadda) I am at the point where it’s just hard to imagine having fun at the damn thing. Whatever, I’m not going to go into it because you don’t need to hear about my problems….that’s why I have dogs- they are my therapists.
Moving on to last week’s eats. They were all really boring, but mostly because I was either at yoga/gym around dinner time or Tyler had golf/football. I also don’t think I am going to write my planned itinerary anymore since I tend to stray from it on just about every day.
Monday: Strawberry Turkey Salad to be honest, I hated it. But, I wanted to use what was in the fridge.
Tuesday: I didn’t really have dinner, but I had a turkey club around 3pm and wasn’t hungry for more than a handful of strawberries and cherries the rest of the night.
Wednesday/Thursday: I threw together a random pasta salad with Sausage
Friday: We got some Vietnamese food to go. It was my first time having Vietnamese, and I didn’t LOVE it.
Now, EXERCISE!
Sun, 6/3: REST
Mon, 6/4: Hot Yoga, upper body pyramid workout, 20 min run
Tues, 6/5: Hot Yoga, lower body pyramid workout, 20 min spin
Wed, 6/6: Hot Yoga, Fitness Kickboxing
Thurs, 6/7: Hot Yoga
Fri, 6/8: Hot Yoga
Sat, 6/9: Hot Yoga
Well, I am sore. This week has had a whole bunch of new workouts and boy am I feeling it today. I was messaging Athena last weekend about how I felt in a rut with my workouts, since none of them were leaving me sore the next day. I was even trying new exercises, varying sets, progressions, you name it. Nothing was working. Then I started my 30-day unlimited Hot Yoga pass last Friday and I somehow got back on the wagon with some crazy workouts. And I have woken up blissfully sore every morning since. Yeah yeah yeah, I know about recovery and all that, but I have also been mindful of targeting different muscle groups and what not so it’s a different sore each day.
The last workout I posted was the upper body pyramid workout. I admitted that I didn’t feel anything afterwards. Apparently I forgot about DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness), because I ate my words the next day! My chest and triceps were aching. Then on Tuesday, I did the same pyramid format but with upper body exercises:
Yesterday I tried yet another new workout! My friend Christie invited me to the martial arts studio, 5 Elements Martial Arts, where she works (her sister owns the studio) to take a Fitness Kickboxing class. I have only taken (and taught) cardio kickboxing before, so I was excited to give it a try! Christie lended me the equipment- hand wraps, gloves and shin pads. Her sister taught the class and did a mixture of combinations with the bag and floor work. It was definitely a much different kickboxing workout when you are actually punching a bag than punching air! I really loved the class and hope to go more, but it is on the other side of town (I know, lame excuse, but it takes forever to get there!). Perhaps in addition to the anchor I want Tyler to install for my TRX (instead of using the door) he can also put one in for a punching bag? Just a thought. I mean, it did help me get out a lot of stress and anger 😉
Combined with all these workouts, I have also been going to a Hot Yoga class every day. I have already noticed a lot of improvement, and am always excited for the next class. I think my recent leap of faith to try yoga led me to be less nervous with trying the kickboxing class– although it really helped to know someone there. I made it my goal to try at least one new-to-me workout during the month of June and I already have that accomplished! I am looking to try other new things, so if you have suggestions (like, where is the best Barre studio in Calgary. What about pilates?!)
On to fitness-y things from these here internet box:
I am convinced that if my friends Athena and Ashley and I were friends and boys in the 80’s, we would look like this
Also, Athena- I think you need to teach #7 from this video:
I SERIOUSLY CANNOT STOP LAUGHING AT THIS ONE. I REALLY WISH I WAS AROUND TO TAKE THIS IN A GROUP EX CLASS. HAHAHAHAHAHAH
Happy Winesday Wednesday, y’all! Sadly, I am not indulging today BUT I am going to continue writing about the good stuff.
Michael posted this pic to my facebook page:
He wrote that is was a Sam Summer clone he made. Dry hopped with Hallertauer hops and infused with Lemon zest and Grains of paradise. Sounds good! Speaking of Sam Summer, Tyler and I are stil in debate over what two beers to have on tap for the wedding. We agreed one would be Bud Light to appeal to the masses, and the other is between Sam Summer and Heineken. Perhaps we will just end up going with 3 kegs.
Jon @thehoss41 (twitter) sent a pic with this appropriate hashtag: #betterthanwine. Ha! I don’t discriminate.
Mary @marykcurran (twitter) had tweeted me a pic a LONGGGGG time ago with a malbec she enjoyed with her friend with salad and pizza. Apparently some privacy settings were active on the stupid twitter box, so I never saw them! Rest assured, that problem has been amended! Phew
Keith (http://keithsodyssey.blogspot.ca/) emailed me a pic of some Cab Sauv with the description: This was bottled July 2007, and there is only one more bottle left. It was never really one of my favourites, even though I love me a good Tempranillo. There is a Spanish one I made almost exactly the same time, and I think it is by far the better. This is just a hair thin and sharp. The other problem is that damn label. This is the hardest one to remove of any of the kits I’ve ever done. Soak in hot water to soften. Scrape it off with a tool designed to spread cement floor grout. (I live to improvise). The swab at it with a generous helping of Goo Gone. Then wash with Comet. At the end the bottle is clean, but there is still a very faint residue that sheds water slightly better than glass, so I can still tell where it was. I’ll be glad to see the last of these.
I totally had the same problem trying to get off my Massachusetts inspection sticker from my front windshield. Lots of Goo Gone, lots of scraping, and lots of filmy residue. Thanks a lot, MA for the lasting gift.
Monique Instagrammed this am-ahhhh-zing pic the other day. Love the pose and the sound of the bevvy!
For my contribution, let’s just pretend this is me (cuz I am guilty of this all.the.time. except not in public, because I hardly drink in public anymore. Le shame)
This is disheartening: nutrition labels on booze? C’mon, people! Booze is what helps me relax about that!
Have you ever seen this video clip from Funny or Die? Hahahaha I think it’s hilarious!
From my FAVORITE episode of Friends:
And one of my favorite I Love Lucy episodes:
(I also love the one where she gets drunk from doing multiple takes for a Vitameatavegimen)
Please please please send me your pics for #winesdaywednesday!!! (email, twitter, instagram, facebook, you name it!)
Thursday: Scrambled Egg Sandwich. With leftover monterey jack, ketchup and sriracha! I had loaded up on veggies during the day, so I didn’t miss them in my dinner.
nutcaseinpoint 