Body Design

So I've been a bit lame with the workouts. Not horrible, but not as intense as I had hoped for. I didn't work out Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

Monday, I did go to yoga--I found myself not as nimble as the week before. Tuesday I only did a lame 20-minute Denise Austen video, but better than nothing. Wednesday I had to go to the grocery store, so no workout. On a positive note, I've walked to work every day except yesterday.

And then, tonight...dun, dun, dun. I drove over thinking it would be nice to join the cycling class. Last week when I was touring the facility with my trainer they had a good leisurely class going, and I thought "this is my kind of thing." Then I showed up, and the cycling class was cancelled.

I thought about running or doing the weird impactless running machine they showed me last week, but the machines are so busy and visible, and the track is a bit crowded, so I wandered into the other class that was going at the same time "Body Design."

I think the instructor Brian wanted me to fall over and die. I can't feel my legs, and my butt cheeks are on fire. No joke...we did a bijillion squats. Walking to work tomorrow should be interesting.

Brian badgered me into promising to come back, which I cannot do because I have an appointment with my personal trainer during the class. I think I will go to Brian's cycling class next week so that I can tell him that I'm not wimping out.

Must drink more water.

Friday, Friday, Friday!

Oh wait. I don't know anyone in this town, and I have nothing to do. Fortunately, the book I'm reading just got interesting, so I have that. I also have the giant dish of tiramisu in my fridge. Let vegging Friday begin?

Tomorrow I plan to get up and go to the YMCA for another yoga class. Then I want to do some cleaning and laundry because I am just that cool.

On an awesome note, Mariya and Lacey will be here this weekend, and we are going to see the new underworld movie at the IMAX. That's the absolute highlight of this whole next month I think.

I also have the need to go to the library to see if they have the book Take the Cannoli  by Sarah Vowell. Christy swears she stole elements of my life for the book. I am interested to see what someone else (Christy) thinks I am like as a character and to see if I see myself the same way. Should be an intriguing self study.

Personal Trainer

So I met with my personal trainer today (I get 3 total for free with the start of my membership).

We set some goals.

1. Drink more water.
2. Go workout 3-4 times a week.
3. Increase the distance I can run without stopping.

Those are my 3 goals. In two weeks we will meet to see how I'm doing.

I have never been one to drink as much water as one is supposed to drink. Today we measured my body mass index (BMI), and I guess the machine measures high if you don't drink enough water. So this will be my easy way of bringing down my BMI.

The working out 3-4 times a week will be the easy goal I think. I can do that.

Increasing distance though, blergh. I have no willpower. I wimp out too easily. I want to increase my endurance though, so that is my goal. I will substitute increasing the amount of laps/time I swim for running as well. It's still endurance. I don't care if it's running or swimming.

I also learned the right way to use a rowing machine.

I will be the master of fitness...even though I'm technically taking tonight off. :)

Mmmmmm pasta.

Also, I like this personal trainer girl. She's nice, and it was nice to talk to somebody in person. I am bummed that for her it was work, and there are only three sessions (two left). I need to make some friends.

Competative Fitness

So I'm competing for workout time with my friend Molly and with Chris...separately. We tally Sunday evenings to see who wins. I don't think the winner wins anything except maybe superiority, but Chris and I talked about owing eachother elaborately cooked meals. :)

I got 1 hour in at an intense yoga class yesterday. I will be going back for that next Monday. Tonight I was debating between some "Body Design" class and a water fitness class called "Working Down Under." The description of the body design class mentioned weights, so I wasn't too thrilled about that, and the working down under class had no description and is for beginners (because all the evening water fitness classes are for beginners), so again, not so thrilled.

It doesn't matter though because actually getting myself over there turned into me making dinner. So instead, I'm going to go to the only class that will be available later: Zumba. I know, I know, I mock dance classes horribly. I'm sure it's a great workout, but I don't do the dancing thing. I'm tempted to stay home and do a yoga video before bed. Who am I kidding, I will be staying home and doing a yoga video and possibly a Denise Austen cheesy 90s workout video because, well, I love when she says "smile, we're burning fat." If you're laughing at me right now, Denise Austen's madness works--really, it does. I kind of swear by her, even though every video I own came from the dollar store several years back. Yes, I am aware that staying home to do workout videos is not social behavior.

Tomorrow's classes look awful, so I think I will make tomorrow a lap swimming night. Although, I'm also leaning towards a run.

Thursday, I have a personal trainer booked because it was free.

Friday, well maybe a lap swimming night, maybe a yoga video, maybe a run.

Saturday morning, I am for sure getting up to go to yoga because yoga on Monday was so awesome.

Sunday, lap swimming is a definite thing.

Notice how I have all these plans, but I'm already falling short today (Day 2). I am going to lose. :)

Same as Coffee

So Chris shared this little gem with me the other day, and I thought it was brilliant and was in love with it. Except there is one fatal flaw to it--parallism issues. The author switches between "me" and "you" in the list about things coffee does. This flaw prevented me from really being willing to share it. I know that is weird.

So I have solved the problem by wasting 30 minutes of my Saturday creating my own more correct version. Here it is, thanks to Paint and Photoshop. (I started in Paint, but I wasn't enjoying the difficulty of text editing, so I switched to Photoshop.)

 It really is the most charming idea ever. Who ever came up with it is a good person. :)

Cooking at New Place: Dinner #1

Okay, so I've lived here for 3 weeks. Obviously, I have cooked in my kitchen before. Tonight is my first fancy cooking night, except when Chris was visiting.

So here's what I'm making.

I got 2 adorable little beef round steaks on sale. I am currently marinating them in 3 T honey, 1 T fresh lemon juice, 1 T fresh ground ginger, 1 T low sodium soy sauce. The little tupperware they're in also has 2 cloves of garlic and some thai chilis to add a little zip.

I'll probably throw it in a skillet on medium high with a blend of vegetable oil and sesame oil. Sesame oil has a great flavor, but it's a bit pricy. I usually dilute it with vegetable oil to get the flavor and make it go further.

Then I sliced a giant sweet potato into fry-like sticks and tossed them in olive oil with paprika, salt, and pepper. I spread the little sticks out on a cookie sheet, sprinkled some rosemary and parsley over them, and they're baking in the oven at 375'. I think they will take about 20 minutes.

To conclude my fancy meal, I'm making asparagus. This I will also toss in olive oil with salt and pepper. I'll put it in a glassware baking dish, sprinkle some mozzarella over it, and then bake it at 375' for 20 minutes.

Pure genius.

When it's done, I'll provide a review, but I think it will be a win. :)


...Several hours later, I have eaten! Sweet potato fries and asparagus were pure win.

The steak left something to be desired. I think I will stick with my usual soy sauce, ginger, crushed red pepper, minced garlic, and lots of brown sugar for the purposes of steak. Lesson learned.

Social Fitness

So I've decided to go for the YMCA membership for social reasons as well as fitness reasons, but I'm not cutting the internet just yet.

I don't want to pay for both, but the installation fee for internet was hefty. I don't want to join the YMCA, not like it, and then have to pay said installation fee again to get my internet back.

Instead, I'm joining the Y on a trial basis. I get to have both a Y membership and internet service for one month. If I decide in a month that I don't like the Y, I will keep my internet. If I decide that I like the Y, the internet goes.

Tada! Pure genius.