Weekly Wrap - May 6

Linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap. Be sure to stop by their blogs to see what everyone else was up to last week.

Whew! I just spent about 4 hours meal prepping for the week. I sure hope it pays off because that's a LOT of time on my feet in the kitchen. I'm very excited to get started on the TIU Bikini Series tomorrow and am very hopeful that I'll see some really positive results over the next 8 weeks.

Workouts

I took it a little easy this week since the Bikini Series is starting next week. I focused mostly on getting in my 3 runs and doing yoga to prepare my body and mind for the upcoming challenge.

Let's Catch Up at the Ultimate Coffee Date!

Hope you're enjoying a lovely weekend. I don't really have too much to say today, so this should be a quick coffee date!

If we were having coffee today, I would tell you how excited I am for April. I've got some solid goals that I really feel will go well this month. At least they've gone pretty good this first week. 😎

Weekly Wrap - Feb 11

Linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap. Be sure to stop by their blogs to see what everyone else was up to last week.

In case you missed my Instagram post yesterday, I took my run outside! My slow transition to forefoot running is coming along. I wanted to run 5 minutes but ended up with 6. Doesn't seem like much, I know, but I could definitely feel it in my feet and legs. I'm excited about this step and hope to continue these short runs throughout the next week.

Here's what else I was up to last week.

Workouts

I'm pleased with my workouts this past week! 2 yoga workouts. Kept up with the Supermans, Squats, and Twists challenge. 3 days of Tone It Up workouts. A Random Kettlebell HIIT workout. Jeff and I even took Sallie for a 2-mile walk yesterday.

Week in Review 11/27

Hope you all survived Thanksgiving and are getting in the holiday spirit!

I started the #RWRunStreak on Thanksgiving as well as a new Nike+ training program. To help hold myself accountable, I thought it would be a good idea to do a Week in Review post each Sunday.

I'm mostly focused on running right now, but this frog doing yoga was just too cute!

9 Yoga Poses to Start Your Day

Good morning! Well, afternoon now. Grrr.

I was recently contacted by the folks at Casper to write a post about yoga poses you can do right from your bed. For more information about their amazing mattress, click here. I did not receive any compensation or product in exchange for this post. I just really loved the idea of yoga in my bed. :)

Lately, I've been waking up with tight muscles and a sore back. Must be all that running and training I've been doing. :-)

I want to start doing more yoga in the morning, but I always seem to run out of time.

So, I'm going to try out this yoga sequence. In. My. Bed. Before even crawling out of it in the morning. :)

Wednesday's Workout: Yoga Flow for Runners

Are you doing the #ETCYogaStreak with me for my birthday? You can get all the details and sign up here.

A couple days into my streak, I created this little yoga flow after one of my runs. I loved it so much that I wanted to share it with you! Hope you try it and like it to.

Now, keep in mind that I am not a yoga teacher and would definitely consider myself a beginner yogi. I know I don't use all of the correct terminology, and I struggle with getting all the poses right. I know it should be more about progress than perfection, so keep that in mind when you're looking at these pictures. lol.

Also, I had to make up some names of the poses. Let me know if I got any wrong. And if you know the actual name of the poses, please leave me a comment.

I like to hold each of the following poses for 5-10 breaths, sinking a little deeper with each breath.

1. Downward-facing Dog

Start in Downward-facing dog. Try to keep your shoulders in line with your back. Remember that this is a full body stretch, so you should definitely feel this in your shoulders and upper back - not just your legs. Totally OK if you have to bend your legs in order to keep your back straight.

2. Warrior 1

Step your right leg forward into Warrior 1. Bend your front leg, so the knee is in line with your ankle. Turn your back foot slightly. Raise your arms above your head. With each breath, sink a bit deeper into the stretch. Eventually, you should be able to bend your back a bit to form a crescent shape with your arms.

3. Warrior 2

Keeping your lower body in the same position, straighten your arms until they are parallel with the ground.

4. Triangle

Straighten your front knee, shift your upper body forward slightly, and rotate your arms until your front arm is on the ground inside of your front foot. If you can't reach the floor, try using a yoga block for added stability.

5. Low Lunge

Lower both hands down to the ground on the inside of your front foot. Lower your back knee, so your shin is resting on the ground. As you progress, you can lower yourself down to your elbows. Try to keep your back straight and your shoulders away from your ears.

6. Low Lunge with Foot Roll

In this same position, simply roll your front foot to the outside.

7. Seated Hamstrings Stretch

Gently shift backwards until you're sitting on your back leg. Try adding in some toe taps while in this position. Step back into Downward-facing Dog. Repeat above poses on your opposite side, ending in Downward-facing Dog.

8. Yogi Squat.

Step both feet forward and bend your knees into a deep squat. Position your elbows on the inside of your thighs and bring your hands into prayer position.

9. Seated Twist.

Move into a seated position with your front leg extended straight in front of you. Bring your left foot over your right knee and your right arm to the outside of your left knee. Your left arm should be behind you on the mat for extra stability. Gently release from the twist.

10. Seated Foot Grab.

Pick up your left foot into your right hand (or elbow) and cradle your left knee into your right arm. Keep your back as straight as possible and your shoulders down away from your ears.

Repeat previous two stretches on your opposite side.

11. Happy Baby.

Finish the sequence on your back. Grab the outside of your feet and bend your knees. Sink your knees deeper toward the mat with each breath.

Namaste.

I hope you enjoyed this post-run yoga sequence! Don't forget to join my birthday party!

What are your favorite post-run yoga poses?
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Happy Friday!!

Who is ready for the weekend?! I know I am. :) The secret surprise that I mentioned during the Ultimate Coffee Date is happening this weekend, and I am STOKED! It's likely not going to be nearly as exciting for all of you, but be sure to stay tuned to Instagram and Twitter for all the excitement. :)

In other news, I ran fast yesterday morning, and it felt amazing! 

Jeff and I headed out for a 3 mile run, and about .8 miles in Jeff was hurting pretty bad, so we altered our route to shorten our run. We ended up doing about 1.6 miles, and then I continued for another .9 miles. And I kicked it into high gear. I haven't run like that in quite some time. I'd love to say it was a breeze. It wasn't, but it was exhilarating. Or breath taking. LOL. Cuz I was definitely out of breath by the time I was back home. :D

One last thing before I leave you to enjoy the weekend. My birthday is fast approaching. 7 more weeks. Or something like that. ;) Perhaps you remember my virtual race to celebrate my 36th birthday? The Factors of 36 virtual race?? It was so much fun!

That I wanted to do another little something to celebrate this year. Make it a tradition, you know.

BUT doing a Factors of 37 wouldn't be nearly as much fun since your only options would be run 1 mile or run 37. Ugh.

So, let's go streaking instead!!

Your choices are 37 days of running (at least one mile) or 37 days of yoga. Or some combination of the two.

Either way the streaks will begin on July 5th and continue until my birthday on Aug 10th.

ARE YOU IN??

Joining the fun is super easy! Just run or do yoga every day from 7/5 to 8/10 and tweet or instagram a photo using #ETCRunStreak or #ETCYogaStreak or #ETCStreaks.

Easy-peasy.

I'm still working on lining up some sponsors and fun prizes, so stay tuned for that, but I just wanted get it out there for those who might want some advance notice. :)

Now, go out there and enjoy the beautiful weekend. Unless you're still at work. Then, you know, it's *almost* the weekend, so SMILE!!

What are your weekend plans?
Will you celebrate my birthday with me?
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Fitness Friday 1/24

Not too much to say this morning, so here's a little update on my #sunmoonchallenge.

With just a couple hiccups, I've been pretty good with the sun salutations, but the moons have been a lot more difficult to maintain. This past week has been the most difficult. My cold was a bit worse. Not terrible. Not enough to keep me home from work. Just enough to have that icky, mucus dripping down my throat, nastiness that makes you crazy!!

As for my weekly recap, I didn't do the best this week. :(

Friday, 1/17

• #sunmoonchallenge - 7 suns, 0 moons
• walked 4-5 miles to the Stratosphere and home again

Saturday, 1/18

• NOT A DAMN THING :(

Sunday, 1/19

• #sunmoonchallenge - 19 suns, 0 moons
• 6.2 mile run

Monday, 1/20

• #sunmoonchallenge - 20 suns, 0 moons

Tuesday, 1/21

Wednesday, 1/22

• #sunmoonchallenge - 22 suns, 0 moons

Thursday, 1/23

• #sunmoonchallenge - 7 suns, 1 moon

I was a lot less mucusy when I woke up this morning, so I'm hoping that I'm on the mend.

So, the challenge hasn't been perfect, but I'm hoping to finish the month out strong. I've still got one week to go.

Random thoughts about the doing the salutations.

I'm loving the suns in the morning. I always start out real slow with them. Letting myself really sink into the poses. The first few are always so tight, and it feels amazing to stretch it out.

I can have ZERO distractions when doing the suns. Even if the thoughts in my head stray from my practice, I lose count (even with my clicker app) and forget which foot to move back or forward.

Moon salutations are easy to forget. I usually push my bedtime to the last minute, and then I crawl right into bed. Some nights I remember, and simply don't want to crawl back out of bed.

Moon salutations both get my heart pumping and relax me for sleep. The first couple of nights, I was really amazed at how I felt after doing a moon salutation or two. My heart would be really pumping, but I was surprised at how I simultaneously felt jazzed and ready for sleep.

Breathing. Sometimes I have a difficult time breathing. I've had doctors check it out in the past, and they ruled out asthma, but couldn't really offer a diagnosis. It comes and goes. Could be stress-related. Anyway, I was really hoping that a month of yoga would help with the breathing issues. Unfortunately, that hasn't happened. The past few days have been the worst. What are you gonna do? Just keep going, I guess.

Are you doing the January Challenge with me? What are your experiences with the challenge? Don't forget to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for a chance to win a Barefoot Eco Yoga Mat. If you haven't joined the challenge, why not start today?

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

Any exciting weekend plans? Jeff has really caught the yoga bug, so we're planning on having a yoga weekend. We recently got a few new yoga toys that we're excited to try. Like this yoga trapeze.

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Fitness Friday 1/10

It's finally FRIDAY!! It's been one LOOOONG week, and I am definitely ready for the weekend.

We're now 10 days into the New Year! I hope your year is off to a fabulous start. :)

I've got some pretty exciting news to share with you!!

You know that #SunMoonChallenge I started on Jan 1st? Well, I've got a giveaway lined up now!

Barefoot Yoga offers all kinds of great yoga supplies, clothing, and mats, and they've generously offered to give one of YOU a Hybrid Eco Mat.

I love anything that's eco-friendly, so I'm really excited about this mat. It doesn't contain phthalates or heavy metals, plus the method of production is completely non-toxic and latex free.

How awesome is that? I never really thought about a yoga mat containing toxins before, but I love that there's a mat out there that's non-toxic. Healthier for me AND better for the environment. Win-Win!

The Hybrid Eco Mat that's up for grabs

Even if you haven't been able to join the challenge yet, you can start today for your chance to win this mat. :)

Originally, the challenge was to start with one sun salutation in the morning and one moon salutation before bed and then add one of each every day.

If you're unfamiliar with the Sun Salutation A or the Moon Salutation, you can read this post for more info and helpful tips on doing these salutations.

Since I created the challenge without ever having done a moon salutation, by day 7, I decided that adding a salutation every day was too much for me for the moons.

Post by Enjoying the Course.

The intent behind the challenge was really to get us to the mat everyday, so I'm re-inviting all of you to join me! You can do just one sun and one moon every day OR you can do however many you want. Just be sure an do at least one sun and one moon each day from 1/10 through 1/31.

To enter the giveaway, use the Rafflecopter below to let me know when you've done your salutations.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
You may want to bookmark this Rafflecopter to easily enter every day. I'm also adding a tab to my Facebook page for your convenience. :)

NOTE: To be eligible to win, you need to be a US resident and enter at least 10x from 1/10-1/31. I've made the "Tweet about the Giveaway" a mandatory daily option, but if you're not on Twitter, just enter the number of salutations you did that day in the URL field. Ex. "Not on Twitter, but did 10 salutations."

Update: I've removed the at least 10x stipulation as a requirement to win.

And now for my weekly recap.

Saturday, 1/4

• #sunmoonchallenge (4 each)
• Weight-Free Arms and 8-min Abs

Sunday, 1/5

• #sunmoonchallenge (5 each)
• 3 mile run

Monday, 1/6

• #sunmoonchallenge (6 each)
• Arms and Abs

Tuesday, 1/7

• #sunmoonchallenge (7 sun; 3 moon)

Wednesday, 1/8

• #sunmoonchallenge (8 sun; 1 moon)
• Arms and Abs

Thursday, 1/9

• #sunmoonchallenge (9 sun; 3 moon)
• 2.65 mile run

Highlights
I'm really enjoying this yoga challenge. Even though I've changed my expectations for the moon salutations, I love the stretching I'm doing every day with these sequences. I'm trying to really focus on deepening my poses. A couple of days ago, I even made the switch from Cobra to Updog! :-D

My energy has been completely zapped in the evenings after work. I missed my run on Tuesday because I was so busy before work and then so tired after work. :( I more than made up for it with yesterday's treadmill run, though. It was a short distance, but I really pushed it - doing intervals in the 8.0+ and resting at 6.0. I'm not used to that kind of speed, but I figure that's one step to getting used to it again.

That's about it for this week's Fitness Friday. After you've finished your morning sun salutations, hop on over to Jill's to see what everyone else is talking about fitness today.
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How to: Sun & Moon Salutations

Prepare for the day with Sun Salutations.
Prepare for bed with Moon Salutations.
In case you're unfamiliar with these yoga sequences, I thought I'd break them down for you a little.

Sun Salutations
This sequence is meant to create heat and warm you up for the day. Each pose syncs with your breathing - inhale to extend and exhale to bend. This flow focuses more on forward and backward bends, and can be a great warm-up for your regular workout or probably towards the end of the month a workout on its own.

Here's what it looks like.

Yoga Outlet does a good job of breaking down each pose - How to Do Sun Salutation A in Yoga.

If you prefer video, I know I do! here is a link to my favorite. Esther from Ekhart Yoga really walks you through the sequence and goes slow enough in the beginning, so you can get a real feel for the flow. She repeats the salutation 10x, which is helpful for me because I tend to lose count.

Moon Salutations
Unlike the sun salutation, the moon salutation is a cooling and quieting flow. It's used to calm your mind and draw your awareness inward. Instead of forward and backward bends, it focuses more on side-to-side motions.

Here's what it looks like.

Though for the full sequence, this should be repeated by starting with a left side bend.

Again, Yoga Outlet breaks it down well - How to Do a Moon Salutation in Yoga.

Ekhart Yoga has a video for the moon salutation as well. This time she only goes through it once, and it's a bit slower than her video for the sun salutation, but it's great for a beginner.

And here's another video I found that flows a bit faster.

The faster flowing video takes about 3 min for the full sequence.
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January Challenge - Sun & Moon Salutations

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas yesterday! I had the day off work, but otherwise didn't do anything special. In fact, I battled a nasty headache most of the day. Booo.

We had the most delicious pumpkin pancakes for breakfast! But since I had a headache the rest of the day, I didn't feel like being in the kitchen at all, so we ordered Papa John's for dinner.

And watched 2 Batman movies. Kind of nontraditional, but it was a good day (despite the headache, which is still lingering by the way).

I've got a few end-of-the-year type posts coming at you, but I wanted to invite you to join me in January for a little New Years Challenge.

Starting Jan 1st, I'm going to challenge myself to begin and end each day with a little yoga - prepare for the day with sun salutations; prepare for bed with moon salutations.

Each day, I'd like to increase the number I do. I'm starting with 1 because I want to realistically be able to get to the end of the challenge.

So, Jan 1, I'll do 1 sun salutation in the morning and 1 moon salutation before bed.
Jan 2, I'll do 2 suns and 2 moons.

You get the idea.

If you're a more experienced yogi, and you still want to join the fun, just choose your starting number and then increase by 1 every day.

Right now, this is purely for fun, and because I want a little more yoga in my life. I might try to wrangle up a prize. I'll keep you posted, but I wanted to extend the invite now while you're thinking about the New Year.

UPDATED: I was able to secure a prize this challenge you're welcome, and I've amended it to only doing at least 1 sun and 1 moon every day. Check it out here.

Not sure what a sun or moon salutation is? I'll post some examples for you on Monday!

How was your Christmas?
What other January challenges are planning on to ring in the New Year?
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Shine Fitness

A few weeks ago, Wicked Creative PR contacted one my local blogging friends with an opportunity to try out Shine Alternative Fitness. I was beyond excited to check it out!

With classes from Aerial Arts and Antigravity Yoga to Pole Fitness and Xtreme Boxing (plus lots more), it was hard to choose just one class.

I finally decided on Antigravity Yoga.

Description from their website:
Combines traditional yoga poses, aerial arts, calisthenics, pilates and dance while promoting agility, flexibility and muscular strength. Using a silk hammock as a soft trapeze for resistance and support, participants are suspended in the air for a full-body workout without the stress of holding and balancing challenging yoga poses.

Both nervous and excited, I entered the studio ready to fly.

Turns out a lot of other people had the same idea as me. :) With 10-12 students, the class was near to capacity - and nearly all of us were trying Antigravity Yoga for the very first time.

Suwasit, our instructor, was awesome! He started the class with a brief introduction to Antigravity Yoga - who invented it, where it was used, etc. Of course, I don't remember any of that. Only that the hammocks can sustain 1,000 lbs of weight. Phew!

Due to the large number of newbies, the class moved really slowly because Suwasit had to stop by most everyone to offer assistance and spotting. I, for one, had to hold inversions a bit longer than comfortable at times because I was too scared I would hurt myself getting out of the pose. O.o

Since there was so much spotting and the class was real slow, I feel like it was kind of a teaser class. It would have been nice to have fewer students an additional instructor to help with the spotting. Of course, that would be difficult to plan for.

I'd love to go back again and experience a real class. It ended up not being nearly as intense as I'd imagined - which I'm not complaining about at all today. :-)

This workout definitely works your core and ass - two things I'm always working on, of course. Plus, it's super fun to push yourself in ways that are unlike any other fitness class.

Vampire pose

I stayed a few minutes after class to get the pictures you see in this post. Suwasit was very kind to help me get into the poses again, take some pictures, and then help me get back out. He really was great and helped all us newbies feel comfortable.

Everyone I met at Shine was super friendly. I talked with Sunni for a few minutes after class. She was working the front desk, but she's also one of the dance instructors there and has been at Shine from the beginning. She seems to love working there. She apologized for it being so busy when I came in that I had to wait a few minutes. No apologies necessary! I think it's a great sign for Shine, which has only been open for about a year and a half.

With such variety of class offerings, there is certainly something for anyone looking to spicy up their workouts. You can register online for classes or just drop-in. They also have packages you can buy, but the most fun is that they offer private events. I told my boss we should have a team building event there! She just laughed, of course.

If you live in Vegas or are just here for the weekend, I'd definitely recommend Shine if you want to workout in a completely unique way.

Thanks again to Wicked Creative and Shine Fitness for the opportunity to try Antigravity Yoga for free.

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Labor Day Virtual Run(s)

I'm sure you've all been sitting on the edge of your seats awaiting my official recaps of the Labor Day Virtual Run(s).

After my run on Friday, I decided that I'd definitely be able to tackle the 10-mile option for this virtual run. I planned to run this Sunday morning. I was so excited, I could barely sleep the night before! With every toss and turn, I'd wake and wonder, Is it time to wake up and run yet? I can't remember the last time I was so excited to run!

I finally got up and out the door by 7:30am. I had planned out the route the night before. This would be the longest distance I'd run in Vegas, and I couldn't wait to try out a nearby trail. It took about 3 miles to run to the trail, and then I was on the trail for 4 miles two out, two back, and then the 3 miles back home. simple out and back route.

The first half of this run went quite fast! I think the traffic lights on the way to the trail helped - forcing me to pause and stretch and catch my breath. I ran part of the Arroyo Flamingo Trail. It was a nice trail along the Flamingo Wash.

Side note: If you don't know what a wash is, don't feel bad. I didn't until I moved out here. My first group run was at Pitman Wash; I thought it was just a name, but after then seeing lots of signs for other washes, I finally asked my husband, "What the heck is a wash, anyway?" "Oh, it's to help prevent flooding by providing a channel for the water." Huh. Interesting.

It was a nice, well maintained though not nearly as pretty as running along the Mississippi in MN trail, and I look forward to running it again. I was kind of surprised that there weren't any other runners out. It was a gorgeous morning.

The second half of the run was much more difficult! I had some equip failure why, always during a timed run/race?, and I ended up needing to walk quite a bit. By 58:00, my walking was getting out of control. I decided to reign it in by structuring it with 3:1 run/walk intervals. That really helped at lot!

After getting back home, doing some yoga and stretching, I logged my run into DailyMile. Despite my route planning the night before, I'd forgotten that this was a little short of 10 miles. I had planned on extending it a bit at the end as necessary, so after discovering that I hadn't, I went back out to finish the last .75 miles. Sallie got to join me for this last segment.

For those who like stats:

Even though it was tough there at the end, I really enjoyed this run!

I took a rest day on Monday. Well, a break of running. I did walk 5+ miles to get to/from a job interview.

Tuesday, I decided to re-do the 5-mile option. I was not nearly as excited about this run. In fact, I was not looking forward to it at all. The #runnerdphotoaday challenge was #inspiring, so I tried to keep that in mind as I ran. I ran basically the same route as the previous Friday, which meant I had to endure many of the same pedestrian bridges. I thought I'd changed it enough to avoid most of them, but well, I didn't.

The problem with this run was:

• My legs felt super heavy. 
• I had trouble breathing. 
• My right upper arm was chafing. 
• I developed a blister on my right heel. 

I tried to push through. If it hurts, run faster. It won't stop hurting, but you'll be done faster. I really did. I ended up walked quite a bit during the middle. It was tough to keep going. I just wanted to quit, but I was too far from home to stop early.

Finally, 5-miles arrived and I was right in front of my new favorite park!

One day I'd like to end my run here and do some yoga right there in the center of all the benches.
Not today, though. I've got to get back to stop at the office and request that the exterminator stop by our apt today.
But it's so beautiful!
But my blister HURTS!
But it's beautiful and peaceful and why not make ONE day be TODAY?

How could I argue with that? I thought about taking my shoes off, so I could feel the cool grass on my feet. I didn't. I knew that putting my shoes back on with the blister on my heel wouldn't go over so well. I didn't do much - only about 15 minutes, but it felt great.

If it weren't for the yoga in the park to finish this run, I'd definitely categorize this run as pretty awful. At least my pace was better.

During this run, I saw more runners out than I'd ever seen on this route. 6-8. Still not a lot, but it was still inspiring to see some other crazy folk out there!

Did you run the Labor Day Virtual Day with Mommy Run Fast?
Have you ever done yoga outside? Barefoot?
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Hot Yoga. Oh yeah!

I got a great deal on a yoga package at CorePowerYoga. Unlimited yoga for one month. I started last night.

Source

I gotta say, I wasn't very impressed with the class last night. It was so crowded. The music was too loud. I was at one end of the studio, and when the instructor was at the other end, I couldn't hear her. At all. It was very annoying! Especially for a novice yogi like me.

Today I went back during lunch (Gotta get my money's work, y'know.) for Hot Yoga Express. What an entirely different experience! I'd done hot yoga before, back in August, and really loved it. This was actually the same instructor. I'm sure he didn't remember me from 6+ months ago.

I checked in, changed, and waited in the studio. It was warm and comforting.

Partly into the practice, Patrick (the instructor) was walking us through a pose when he called one of the women by name. I thought, Wow, I wonder how long you have to come here before the instructor knows your name.

Then I heard him say something about it being her first time, so it was okay to say at stage 1.

A few minutes later, I heard him say MY name as he corrected my posture. Wow! I totally blown away. Very impressive to know my name after just checking me in minutes before class started.

In general hot yoga is more concentrated on strength and posture than on flow, which I really like. I think it's a great way to start yoga.

And Patrick makes you feel so comfortable with his slight corrections and helping you to focus.

If anyone wants to join me sometime, let me know!