Posted on

The Best Friends In Life Are Free!

Thanks for all the comments on my last post re: weight. Sounds like a lot of us wouldn’t mind losing a few pounds, and it can definitely be a struggle. It’s nice to have company.

Having a community and a base of friends to support you is really important. I was reading Coco’s post a few minutes ago and she talked about how her best friends are the ones from her childhood. I think this is true for me too. As I get older it seems like friendships get more and more superficial. I was in California for almost 2 years and I didn’t make a single lasting friendship. In college I did make friends, but we’ve all drifted.

Healthy Living Update

Thursday (yesterday).

Walks… I got in my 2-mile walk to work, and actually got in an extra ~1 mile at lunch. We met up with Bobby’s parents for lunch at Whole Foods in Union Square. Last night we got together with his family again (cousins too) up by Columbia. Greek food is good.

Friday (today).

No walk this morning, but I got ~1 mile at lunch and then maybe 2 after work (Chinatown).

I met up with Bobby and his family for lunch again – this time at Mesa Grill, Bobby Flay’s restaurant. This was the best meal I’ve had in a really long time. I opted for the “Smoked Lamb Cobb Salad” (with Avocado, Tomato, Maytag Blue Cheese, Eggs, Bacon + Buttermilk Dressing)…

I make my own rules.

Source.

I substituted shrimp instead of lamb and nixed the blue cheese. It was awesome. The egg and avocado really made this dish. The shrimp seasonings were to die for. Bobby got a “Pressed Roasted Pork Sandwich”, Tina got the “Shrimp + Roasted Garlic Corn Tamale” (I think this was the best order), mom got “Smoked Shrimp Tacos” (a Bobby Flay classic), and dad got another classic, the “Mesa Burger”. We all shared the deliciously spiced fries.

Before the meal they brought out the bread basket – I tried the cornbread, which was half blue and half yellow.

Nom nom nom.

Source.

Do you like cornbread?

Posted on

Quick Healthy Updates

Yesterday I ended up walking 3 miles – 2 to work, and then one at lunch. But today I didn’t get any exercise in. I will try to do a little extra tomorrow.

Today’s food had lots of veggies and fats, but no overkill of protein. I’m trying oatmeal for breakfast again. It’s good. I missed it. I’m going to be a little bit honest. I’m getting really frustrated with these few pounds that I’ve put on. I feel like I’m trying hard to lose it, but I forgot how annoying it is to lose weight!

I’m reading this really good book: The Stuff of Thought by Steven Pinker. He’s a very smart linguist. It makes me feel very intelligent as I sit on the subway on my way to or from work. I’m starting to carry it everywhere which is always a good sign.

What’s your favorite book?

Posted on

intenSati Closing Thoughts

As you guys know, I participated in the intenSati Warrior Challenge this month. Sunday was the closing ceremony. It was a really inspiring last class, and I am so glad that I went. When I got there I hung out with Missy (we did the challenge together).

I am going to lay this out the same way Missy did.

Summary of the closing event:

It was scheduled for 2 hours (1 – 3pm on Sunday). The first 20 minutes or so we mingled around and then we sat down and people shared some of their experiences. I did not have any major life changes during the challenge, but I was still happy with it. Some people did though! I loved hearing about all the courageous acts that people attempted. IntenSati has a way of really helping to clean up your life.

Then we did the class. I think it lasted a little bit more than an hour. First Natalia taught her segment, then Lindsay jumped in, and then Patricia did the last part (slow lower body stuff). Patricia actually did the first 2 parts that Natalia and Lindsay taught and I think she realized how hard intenSati is! After the class was over she made a comment about how difficult the workout was. I was impressed.

Some of the closing affirmations were: “I love you I love you I love you I love you” (said to yourself in the mirror); “I bow to the beauty within you”. I do not remember the rest. I really liked the lower body section though – it was all about loving yourself.

Then came the slightly awkward part. We had to find a partner (I picked Missy, which is kind of a cop out). Then we had to do the lower body workout while facing the partner. This was fine. THEN we had to stare into each other’s eyes for a few minutes. It was hard! I never realized how difficult it can be to hold someone’s gaze. I started worrying about whether I looked goofy or Missy thought it was silly; it was actually a really eye-opening experience. I tend to doubt myself and be self-conscious, but I really shouldn’t do that. Afterwards we gave each other a hug and said how much we believed in each other. It was really nice.

Then we had another sharing session and they gave away prizes (I didn’t win anything). The girl who did the most classes did 29 classes in the 30 days. Crazy! She did multiple classes a day sometimes. After the sharing we heard from Laurie of the Handel Group, which was very cool. They seem like a great organization.

So here are my pros and cons (not comprehensive at all – just what’s on my mind right now)…

The Good:

  • It is AWESOME to yell positive affirmations 3x a week for an hour. It is a major energy booster.
  • Bobby came with me to a writing workshop and he got a lot out of it!
  • I got to meet a lot of amazing instructors and fellow Warriors.
  • I learned a lot about myself.
  • I started to set goals for myself, and actually started to make plans to get those goals accomplished.

The Bad:

  • I gained 5 pounds. I’m hoping they will come off soon!
  • I was hungry all the time and I ate more than I needed to.
  • My knees hurt (this happened to Missy too). I think all the jumping is a little bit too much for my joints – so I will tone it down when I do intenSati in the future.

Overall, I LOVED my intenSati experience. I can’t wait to take the occasional intenSati class (I’m hoping once a week!). There is another Warrior Challenge coming up, so if you are in the New York area and want a free month of Equinox, GO FOR IT! Check out the intenSati website.

I think I am going to get some sleep. I did another class tonight and I’m very tired! I’ve had a really awesome week so far though and I want to keep it up.

What made you happy today? What made me happy was realizing I can choose to be happy any time I want.

Posted on

Exercise Routines & Exercise Videos

Since moving to New York, my exercise has been cut down a lot. Take a look at this week‘s exercise routines:

Week of 06 Dec – 12 Dec:

Sunday – sadie nardini’s power half hour exercise video; walking
Monday – 5 minutes yoga in the morning; 20 minutes yoga @ night
Tuesday – 5 minutes yoga in the morning ( =( wish i had done more this day)
Wednesday – 2 mile walk home
Thursday – 25 minutes yoga in the morning
Friday – yogadownload’s “weight loss yoga #2″ (20 minutes; this was an exercise video, not just a podcast)
Saturday – meaghan townsend’s cardio yoga exercise video (20 minutes; exercise tv); walking around @ night (1-2 miles?)

That is an average of about 20 minutes of very relaxed exercise each day. But I feel great! I wish I was walking more, but I do think I’ve found a great balance. I should have known – sometimes less is more 🙂

I found this great exercise video yesterday (and I did it again today): Meaghan Townsend’s Cardio Yoga (exercisetv.tv).

cardio yoga

Bobby did it with me yesterday (Saturday) morning. It is great – it’s the flowy, dancey, motion-filled yoga that I love. This is the best video since…

Tom Morley’s Cardio Yoga. I discovered this way back in the fall of ’08. The first time I wrote about him was on September 9th, 2008 – back before I had any commenters and before I knew how to make real post titles. Since then I have done Tom’s yoga videos many many times. I still highly recommend him, but I can never find his “Cardio Yoga”. I can only ever find “Buns and Thighs Yoga”. Sigh.

You don’t have to kill yourself to be in shape. I disagree with many fitness professionals in this respect. I think that taking the stairs, parking far away, being mindful, and taking some deep breaths are way more important than getting in an hour of sweaty cardio. Work exercise into your life – don’t work your life around your exercise routines. Life is short, so chill out and enjoy it.

P.S. If you think that you’ll gain weight by chilling out, think again. Exercise can increase your appetite and make you ravenous – which makes it easy to overeat.

Stay tuned for…

  • Baking experiments starring some NY family members (this was so fun!)
  • More Macro Vegetarian Reviews
  • New York bagels
  • A Holiday Challenge (this won’t be for a week or two)
  • Restaurant review (The Long Room on44th between6th and 7th aves) & a night out with friends

Have a lovely lovely week! Don’t forget to relax.