Work-out Sanctuary

Last night I set-up my new (well new hard drive) computer in my bedroom and for the 1st time it worked! I connected to the internet and started getting excited on the simple fact that I can do yoga and the shred in my bedroom. It was storming out as well, so no bike ride today. My room has a clear space and this morning I took full advantage of this.

I started off with Jillian Michael's Shred Level 2 (Youtubed) which had me sweating a ton, BUT I worked out in my sport bra and shorts, got to yell, take up as much room as I want (no cranky old ladies) and pause if I needed to pee/answer the phone; all things that would not fly at the gym. I liked the Level 2, (in a love/hate abusive relationship kinda way) I have only done Level 3 and they both seemed hard in different ways but I definitely find the transition of cardio to strength to abs a great combo, and makes it go by faster. Then I did a 15 minute abs class on YouTube by some girl from SparkPeople? It was basic but good abs work. I started writing shred on the calendar each day I do it. I'm hoping by Canada (April 25th) I'll have mastered this shred business.

After the shred & abs, I turned the lights off, lit my Jimi Hendrix incense (circa 2001), and I did YogaDownload's Yoga for Runners #1 because I felt tighter today than yesterday from the race. The class was great, except I got a little lost in the middle so I did some teasers, lol. That's another plus to my new yoga sanctuary at home, you can alter moves and not feel like an a hole.

Don't get me wrong, I would've worked out in my room eons ago, but having the instruction is always what keeps my interest and motivates me.

Tonight my sister and I are heading to yoga at the gym and to do some running. I have another job interview Wednesday, and tomorrow who knows? One day I'll revel in these jobless random days I call my life.....Off to make some lunch...

P.S. If you have XM Radio through DirecTV or whatever, I discovered my new favorite station called "Coffee House" on channel 848, acoustic, chill, calm, awesome.

Today in the blog world there's a lot going on --- Angela from Oh She Glows is giving away some chocolate (that's all I need to say), The Hungry Yogini is giving away a month's supply of Fage, Find Your Balance is giving away a Kripalu Vegetarian Cookbook, and Meghann from Inner Workings of A College Graduate is having a blogger bake sale to raise money for her Team in Training efforts. If you have some cravings for deliciousness and also want to help a good cause, head over!

Meditation of the Day
(Happy Birthday Ram Dass)

Be patient. You'll know when it's time for you to wake up and move ahead.- Ram Dass

Crack & Craptastic

excuse the vulgar title, but.....

I just went on a run to the bay a little over a mile, and along away the following 2 things happened to me:

• I realized my pants were wayyyy to big, and for about a quarter of the run my upper region of my buttox (crack) was in full sight
• I almost stepped in snow geese crap the whole way, which was disgusting

I swear everything was against me running today.....But I did finish and that's all that mattered.

Has anyone else had a similar semi-hilarious semi-ridiculous running experience??

Full Circle

Happy Sunday...it's definitely gray outside, but at times I like the rainy weather....It's calming

Yesterday was a successful running day. I was totally not feeling working out, but then the little voice in my head said, "5k on SATURDAY" over and over so I packed up and went. I ended up doing the whole 5k which I have run before but it is my maximum distance. Has anyone else who has run a 5k only made to to 3.1 before the race? I did stop around 29 minutes for a minute but then sprinted the last bit. I started my pace lower, even though I was hesitant, but I wanted to finish. I ran the 3.1 miles in about 33:30, averaging a 10:50 mile. I know it's not an earth shattering time, but I felt so good completing it.

I have ran 2 miles in 20:20, and a mile by itself at 9:23. I just need to work on distance and not running at a faster pace, and then crashing after 2 miles. I needed to prove to myself I could complete the 5k after a week hiatus. My goal next time is to shed it down to 32 or 31 and try to run the whole time.... It's refreshing to make it around the whole circle course on the treadmill and see it say 3.1. I ended with some ab work and legs & stretching which definitely helped with my shin splints. My 5k goal is still to be under 30.

As for healthy eating, all in all I have been doing pretty well. Friday night my 2 girlfriends talked me into going to our favorite Italian place, but instead of opting for a heavier meal I got simple linguini with red sauce. I also had a couple pieces of calamari, 2 bites of peanut butter pie... (and some wine, clearly). Yesterday before my run I had a mixed bowl of Kashi cereals. At least I ran some of the Italian off in the morning!

Last night I headed over to my friend Daryl's house for a small dinner of buffalo chicken manicotti, a recipe she created. I had two shells, and boy was it delish. For you Twilighters, we watched the bonus Twilight features & the commentary and Robert Pattinson cracked us up the whole time commenting on the movie & making fun of himself. For breakfast today I had my new love, bakery bread with sun-dried tomato Sabra hummus with 2 hb eggs.

I also decided to be pro-active and join Angela's Bikini Body Bootcamp Challenge. They readers at her site are very positive, and Angela is too, so it should be a fun way to work towards a bigger goal. We had to take before pictures of ourselves and boy were mine a wake up call. Seriously!!!! My ultimate goal is to shed the weight while adding some tightness to my body. We'll see how it goes....

This entry was pretty boring... Hopefully tomorrow I get the either good or bad news about my job interview..... Here's hoping for a steady income.......hahaha...

What am I to watch tonight now that Big Love is over???

Meditation(s) of the Day
When we love a woman we don’t start measuring her limbs ~ Pablo Picasso

Emotion always has its roots in the unconscious and manifests itself in the body. ~Irene Claremont de Castillejo
Some rain on a day of hiking in Estes Park, Colorado.......upon us all a little rain must fall....

Running on empty

You know the feeling you get when your car is on E and you literally can feel it slowly dying but you keep driving because you want to see how far it really can go??? Well....... that's how I felt running today.

I have come down with some sinus/congestion/sore throat/stuffy head sickness and felt like death this morning. I knew I should have taken it easy, but the race is 11 days away and I need to get my butt in gear. My sister and I went to the gym and did an hour long strength class. We did this one move called "The Scarecrow" that was one of the harder arm exercises I have ever done. I actually found pictures of it online so here's the gist of it:



It may look deceivingly simple but it hurts like hell. I had 8 pounds in each hand and you can feel the rotation and the muscles moving around it when working this. A VERY good exercise, worth the pain.

Then I decided to push through my stuffy head and run until I couldn't run any farther. I have this problem with pacing myself, because I get impatient running at a comfortable pace, but then I burn out by mile 2. That is exactly what happened today. I did 2 miles in 21:20, which wasn't too good but whatever. I felt like death. I think next time I run I am going to focus solely on pace and not outdoing myself before it's over.

I went to the library, and although it had a lot of good healthy eating/fitness books, I opted for indulgent books right up my alley:
Reclaiming Paris by Fabiola Santiago
Reclaiming Paris starts off like this:

“Men are like perfumes. In an instant, with nothing but a whiff of a judgment, I either love them or discard them,”

.... Basically I KNOW I am going to like this book.



Bob Dylan: Chronicles by Bob Dylan

I usually steer clear of autobiography's because what better person to tell your story then yourself? This book is far from a tell-all, just a book Dylan wrote about events and times in his life that stood out. I love love love Bob Dylan and it'll be cool to have a 1st person perspective on his life.


Is anyone reading a good book out there? I'll let you know how these are. I am also reading The Host, but I need a break from tumultuous aliens and futuristic settings for a bit.

I made another Pacific Natural soup for lunch and had a piece of bread with Sabra Hummus on it. Also a juicing mixture for a drink my sister made.

It's gorgeous here today, a little cold. I have a job interview tomorrow and hopefully it will go well. Let's hope I'm running on a full tank by tomorrow.

Have a great Tuesday,
Erin

Mediation of the Day

Reading is a means of thinking with another person's mind; it forces you to stretch your own.” Charles Scribner, Jr.

15 days away....WHAT?!

This morning I woke up to my alarm set for pilates at 7am. I've become lazy with waking up to work out, and I like going with my sister because it is more fun. This morning I refused to give into my comfy bed and went to pilates.

A funny thing happened this morning though, well more like a WTF moment. I set my mat down and walked to get a cushion mat from the storage room and this older lady was complaining about everything and when I was walking out I saw her kick the edge of my mat and then she turned to me and said "Sorry" snottily, and then was gossiping with her friend that I was "in her spot" and the light was in her eyes. Is it just me or are a lot of these older gym ladies really catty, moreso then 20-somethings like me. They also boast the whole time about their millions of classes etc.. etc.. and how hard it all is. I thought she was so rude. Who gives a sh*** where you sit. My sister and I always joke about the certain ones who act like their sh** doesn't stink or like gym nazis (that would be a good Seinfeld episode). Oh well, I didn't move. Have any of you ever had a rude encounter at the gym?

The teacher I goto has a lot of training in pilates and today's class was intense. We did boomerangs, grasshoppers, teasers upon teasers and other animal names I am forgeting. I love how my abs are activated the whole time and I feel the work afterwards. After the gym I stopped at Dunkin' Donuts (my mom bought me a gift card) and got a small coffee w/ skim and one of those new egg white turkey sausage flatbreads. It was kinda dry and I wish I had ketchup for it. At 280 calories I would've rather had a bowl of cheerios with a banana or something.
Another WHAT?! moment today is that it is snowing on the first day of spring and my friends and I were planning on going camping tonight. What gives? I also just realized the 5k is 15 days away.... Yes, that mayyyy seem like a lot but I am kinda freaking out. I know I can run 3 miles but now I need to find a steady pace so I don't wear myself out the first mile.

I also am now an official substitute so I am going to begin getting calls during the day, so I'll have to squeeze in runs afterward. I ran a solid 10:08 mile yesterday and pilates for an hour and zumba. Good cardio day. Well, I didn't get called to sub today (I am a little nervous!) so I will soak up this weekend and hope I start working and making $ next week.

P.S. - I went to see Watchmen (I love Robert Downey Jr.) and well, my friends and I left halfway through it. Was I missing something because it was so confusing and supposed to be an action movie not a super-hero soap opera. Oh well. Now I just wanna see I Love You, Man.

P.P.S- Do you like POM? Angela is giving away free coupons in a contest soooo head over there. Katie is also giving away a copy of "The World is Fat"!

Happy Friday and hope you're at least getting springlike weather, NJ is NOT!

Meditation of the Day
"Joyfulness keeps the heart and face young. A good laugh makes us better friends with ourselves and everybody around us." My best friend Kim and I (she's laughing...lol)

To Tanqueray or not to Tanqueray....

That was the question.....and apparently I opted for tanqueray gin martinis at Tanya's wedding...
<----A shot of my friend Tanya and some of my friends and I at her wedding. (Her dress was soooo pretty.......I'm far right)

<---Another group shot of all of us at the wedding...

The ceremony was pretty, the groom was actually crazy though, but I love Tanya...On to the indulgences.

The appetizers were delish and included this bacon shrimp thing, pigs in a blanket and a chicken stir fry. The dinner was a buffet and I got flounder, veggies and penne.

<---Me with my bf Sonia As you can see I was pretty hungry. We danced, drank, and were very very merry. The wedding was over at around 7pm and I was so uhh... "tired" (dirty tanqueray martini #4) that I fell asleep in my friend's car on the way home and was in bed by 9pm. That's what you get for going to a wedding during the day. It is always a good (slightly mischevious) time with my friends:)

So Sunday I met my friends at breakfast, and heard the gossip that surrounded them all going out after the wedding (bad newwwws if you have been drinking for 5 hours). Yeah I am glad I passed out at home prior to that. I got 2 eggs and some hash browns & coffee. Made some tortellinis for dinner and skipped the gym.

Today I had a doctor's apt. I needed to get to start subbing, and got a TB test. Then, my sister and I went thrift store shopping and to the gym. I wasn't expecting to run AT ALL, but something came over me and I wanted to see how fast I truly could run a mile. I did the first one in 9:56 and then took a 20 minute break for weights. I decided to jump back on and beat that time and ended up with a mile time of 9:23! Mind you, I was exhausted but I was proud that I completed it so fast. I did another half mile and walked a half and did the elliptical for 10 mins. I feel like my breathing has gotten so much better and I am gaining more confidence.

On a deeper note, I was telling my sister that running is so great because you always can push the envelope with a new goal or personal best. Physically it is SO MUCH DIFFERENT than the elliptical I loyally used since I was 14. I feel like I am gaining strength in places that I never could before and I feel better all around. So thanks sister for convincing me to do the 5k. It's a venture I am so grateful to have taken on....

And with that... my friends, margaritas (wait tomorrow is St. Patty's Day not Cinco De Mayo, oh well) and Scene It are calling my name.

goodnite everyone!

Mind games

Heyyy after a 5 day long hiatus. This week I've been kind of all over the place with job apps, errands for my current job prospects, gyming, running, wedding present shopping etc.. etc.. Craziness.... All in all I would've been healthier this week but, I did run 3.4 miles Wednesday so yay for that. I also ran a mile Monday to my friend's house and then did Zumba twice and weights twice, so pretty good.

Honestly nothing crazy to report, same old same old. There is a problem though at my house and it involves these little circles of deliciousness. (I went on a rampage and ate 8 last night...yes 8...and I am not one to binge but THEY ARE SO GOOD)

Also, I have been feeling pretty good about myself these past couple of days with working out eating better, and then of course a couple pics are tagged on facebook and I feel like I look huge. I don't know if it's the bad angles, or the outfit or whatever but it makes me frustrated. Then in other pics I look okay...Ugh, maybe I am just being hard on myself but does anyone else ever get those few "WTF" pictures and wanna crawl in a hole?

Running is definitely getting easier, but I am still nervous for the 5k. I ran to the bay with my sister and dad which is about 3.4 miles. We stopped at the end for 5 minutes. It's a little harder I feel running outside, but I love it so much more. My mind just needs to quiet down when I am running. My goal is the 5k in under 30 minutes....that's shedding about a minute and 10 seconds off my current time on the treadmill. I have 22 days to do this and I figure if I run at least 10 miles a week I can pick up the pace. This week so far I've done 7.5.

I also wanted to give a shout-out to my old college roommate Danielle who randomly found me in the blog world. How crazy is that? She saw my sister's pic and thought it looked like me so she went to Dana's page and found mine. I haven't talked to her since my Sophomore year of college and it was great finding her again. Also a big coincidence we both have blogs about living healthy, such a small world. So hi Danielle!!!!

Well, tomorrow is my friend Tanya's wedding and if you know weddings as well as I do (with about 10 of my good friends) then you know I am going to be indulging in a lot of food and alcohol (and dancing)...

Katie @ Because Katie Says So! had a sweet posting idea I thought I'd take part in!

The rules are as follows:
1. Go to your picture files or wherever you store your pictures on your computer.

2. Go to the sixth folder and select the sixth picture.

3. Post it on your blog and tell the story behind the picture.

4. Go tell it on the mountain. Or to other bloggers.



What a good one! This is my sister and I at my place of work last summer, Shambhala Mountain Center. She was helping me pack up. I lived in a tent all summer and worked at the center, meditating, watching no tv, using no cellphone and being in the mountains of Colorado (8,000 ft.) I decided after a summer in the mountains that I was homesick and would live in Colorado someday down the road when I had money or a family......it sucked.

Luckily, I had my sister who dropped everything flew out and helped me pack up my life and traveled almost 2,000 miles with me across America...She is my best friend and I love her for it and will never forget that crazy ass car ride. She didn't know how to drive stick so we had some rough parts of the drive!!!


P.S. Check out this amazing new band I discovered. There name is Blitzen Trapper. Chill music with a little country soul.....ahhh....Here's their song Furr-

The first step is the hardest

I've been converted.

Today I began my 1st step to running my 1st 5k. I always swore by ellipticals and have been using them for like 8 years, BUT my sister is running in a 5k in April and has convinced me to join her. Now let me remind you I am not the fastest runner and need a lot of work but the beginning is always hard.

I ran cross-country back in the day and did hurdles for track, so when I began running today I got flashbacks of the races. I also for some odd reason pictured my ex-boyfriend on the sideline and me leaving him in the dust. Talk about motivation and feeling powerful. I also was in one of those, "my time of the month is any day now and I will bite off your head" moods so the run actually refreshed my mind in a way yoga does surprisingly.

I ran for 23 minutes which is good for me and I hope to be running the full 5k in April. My plan is to pace myself and add minutes of running each time, and doing intervals. It's hard but I'm committed now.

Wow. This is the start of something scary, but good scary like riding a rollercoaster or the feeling you get before performing on stage. Yup. Erin is running. I never thought I would say it.


P.S - AC was ridiculous but ridiculous in a good way (lol). Remind me never to consume vodka again.