Month: August 2014

This Week: Workouts, New Gig & Things I’m Looking Forward To

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Good morning! How was your weekend? I was on the Cape with RM and some of his family (including two adorable little boys!) and although the weather was less than to be desired, we still had a great time. He and I grabbed a quick dinner at Jeveli’s in East Boston before making the trek to the Cape, which was smart because we avoided the 93 South daily traffic nightmare. The rest of the weekend was spent sleeping in (finally!), playing with the babes, drinking (lots of) wine, cooking and playing games- have you played Heads Up? SO FUN! I’ve mastered one of his mom’s ciambotta dishes, so I made that as well as some baked kale. Everything was so good and it was nice to be away from the grinds of the city for a little bit.

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Last Week’s Workouts

  • Monday- RM and I were still in Chicago, but we both got up for a little gym sesh first thing in the morning. I did 25 minutes on the elliptical before completing a little HIIT workout consisting of 15 exercises of 45 seconds on, 15 seconds rest. It was good!
  • Tuesday- I had all intentions of going to check out a class at a new-to-me gym, but since we got in really late on Monday night- errr Tuesday morning (1am style), I was exhausted and knew that if I wanted to food shop, cook dinner and get to bed at a reasonable hour, the workout had to go. I was very ok with that decision.
  • Wednesday- Since I wasn’t teaching my Thursday night double, I doubled up on Wednesday. The girl who teaches before me on Wednesdays teaches a killer class so it was fun to have my butt kicked. We did A LOT of burpees! I also taught my class after and did probably 75% of the workout.
  • Thursday- I went to a class at a new-to-me gym. It was actually a really good class- we did cardio (kickboxing!), weights and core work.

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  • Friday- I went for a 3.5 mile lunch time run and then did some core work (push-ups, planks, Russian Twists, Side Planks, etc.). I was happily surprised by how good the workout ended up being- all in a lunch break!

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  • Saturday- Mostly a rest day. RM’s sister-in-law wanted to workout with me so we ended up doing about 30 minutes of yoga/pilates/core work/squats in the living room. I was actually pretty sweaty by the time we finished!
  • Sunday- Initially it was going to be another rest day but by 12:30 I was getting antsy and starting to bug RM so he suggested that I go for a run, haha He’s always hell bent on making me rest so the fact that he was encouraging me to run was a nice change… I must have been really annoying 😉

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This Week’s Workouts

  • Monday- By the time this post goes up I will have taught my Monday morning Muscle Work class and done some cardio. I know I always say this, but it’s so true: it sucks getting up but my Monday is so much better when I know my workout is done before 7:30!
  • Tuesday- We have an “all hands” meeting at the Boston Harbor Hotel on Tuesday and Wednesday so I’ll get up before that to get my workout in.
  • Wednesday- I might double up again, but I may just run before I teach UXF Burn.
  • Thursday- Not sure! Might go to that class that I went to last week again. We’ll see.
  • Friday- Probably a rest day.
  • Saturday- I’m subbing a class at the new-to-me gym that I’ve mentioned earlier in this post. It’s called Chisel, which I think is mostly a muscle class. I hope they like me!
  • Sunday- Not sure- maybe another rest day. My parents will be here so my mom may want to walk with me which would be fun.

New Gig

As I’ve mentioned, I may have a new little teaching gig. I know, I know. I just gave up my Thursday double because it was too much and here I am adding more on again. Don’t worry, though– nothing has been added to my schedule as a permanent class- I’m just on the sub list for now. The best part about the gym is it is literally at the end of the entrance for my new office, so it’s super convenient. It’s an all women’s gym called PUMPS and I love what I know about it so far. I have been to a number of classes and the instructors are great and the member base seems really dedicated. I’m excited about having a new place to workout and meet new people!

Things I’m Looking Forward To

This is a busy week, but I’m excited about it. I get to spend Tuesday and Wednesday at the Boston Harbor Hotel for a work conference with my entire company, which is a great way for me to meet more people. Tuesday night we are going on an Oddessey cruise around Boston Harbor, which is always a good time- I just hope we have good weather. On Thursday night, I am going to my sister’s apartment to make pizza and have wine. We haven’t seen each other in a MONTH, which is unheard of for us so I’m really looking forward to it! And, lastly, and what I’m most looking forward to is the fact that my parents are coming down on Saturday to spend the night! Mom and I are going to get pedicures during the day and then RM will come over and we are going to cook a nice dinner for my parents. I’m going to learn how to make his mom’s sauce- can’t wait for that!

Questions for you: What was the best workout you had last week? How many rest days did you take? Did your weekend plans get ruined because of the weather? What are you most looking forward to this week?

Catching up {Workouts and Life}

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As I read other healthy living blogs, I’m happy to see that I’m not the only one feeling like there just isn’t enough time in the day or week to accomplish everything on my to-do list. Sometimes blogging just has to take a back seat, and even though I sometimes feel guilty about it or stressed to get posts written, realizing it’s OK to take a break is so refreshing. Sarah wrote a post earlier this week that hit me hard. It was as if I was writing it myself! I’m finding myself in a recent job change, increasing love for fitness and teaching and no longer just being on my own. Being in a serious relationship and moving to that “we” thing is awesome, but it’s also a big change for someone who hasn’t had that in a longggg time. My normal blogging time and teaching time and “Monique” time is just not the same as it used to be and I wouldn’t change that for the world. As we grow up, our priorities change, right? It’s such an exciting time, but sometimes it can be a little stressful! Sarah’s post was a great reminder to not let myself get stressed out over these types of changes, but to embrace them and live life. Blogging will always be here, but random nights with the bf or friends of family won’t- it’s more important to DO those things, rather than sit at home, writing a post because it’ll “screw up my schedule” if I don’t.

And, with that, let’s catch up on some stuff!

Workouts- Last week

Last week was my last week teaching my Thursday night double, which was totally bittersweet! On top of that, RM and I headed to Chicago with some friends so my weekend workouts were a bit different than usual. Overall, though, it was a great week of workouts. We did SO MUCH WALKING when in Chicago. Our hotel was about a mile from all the action (just in the wrong part of the city), so getting to and from anywhere was at least a 2 mile walk.

    • Monday- After work, I ran 3.5 miles and then did the workout listed at the bottom of this workout post. I kinda died a little…

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    • Tuesday- I went to a BodyPump during work since I had a hair appointment after work. What is it about BodyPump that gets me every time?!
    • Wednesday- I ran 3.5 miles on the treadmill before teaching (and doing most of) UXF Burn. I’m not sure what we did to get so dirty?

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    • Thursday- Last double:( In SHRED, we did 3 rounds of stations and then we did some across the floor cardio and partner ab stuff. We had a big group and everyone seemed to enjoy it! Kickboxing had it’s biggest crowd to date and we worked super hard!

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    • Friday- Nothing. We had an early flight so there was definitely no morning workout for me! We did do some walking, though.
    • Saturday- I got up and ran 4 miles, although I think my mapmyrun GPS wasn’t working because it was saying I was running all sub 8 minute miles… highly doubt that! After, I did some core work at the gym and then RM wanted to go for a walk so we went on about a 45 minute loop- we were walking so fast!

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    • Sunday- We had all intentions of going to the gym at the spa before our massages, but a late lunch got in the way of that. I did walk for about an hour in the morning while getting breakfast and Architecture tour tickets.

Catching Up- Life

The past couple of weeks have been so busy!! I feel like I’m on auto-pilot going from one thing to the next. Anyone else feel this way? I have a full recap of Chicago coming soon, but besides that, here are some things going on:

  • My garden is growing so much! Over the past couple of weeks I have picked kale and green beans, and both taste so fresh!

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  • I recently started reading The One and Only by Emily Griffin for a book club that my college friends and I started. It’s really just an excuse to get together to drink wine, but we decided to throw a book in the mix, too!

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  • I had to buy new Tom’s when walking around in Chicago and I’m actually happy about it because I’ve been meaning to buy a new pair for a while now. Love this blue!

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  • I’m heading to the Cape this weekend with RM and his brother, sister-in-law and their 1 year old son. I think the weather is supposed to be crappy… why can’t it be nice when I have time to go to the beach?!
  • My parents are coming next weekend for my mom’s birthday- any good meal suggestions?

Questions for you: When’s the last time you skipped workout for sleep? Have you had any garden-fresh veggies this summer? Do you read Emily Griffin books? Are you in a book club?