Happy Spring!

Hi there- Happy Friday! And Happy Spring, even though in New England it doesn’t quite feel like spring. How has your week been? I’ve had a really good week; lots of great and exciting happenings at work- both my real job and my fitness job. So, let’s catch up, shall we?

After work on Tuesday, my friend Jess came to my office and we used the gym to create some videos that we are going to launch soon.  More on that later!

003I mean, is this not a super professional setup?!

Lunches this week were pretty standard: my “go to” healthy lunch for the first part of the week

002And then for our Thursday lunch out meal, we went to Sportello for their amazing Lunch Box special. Yesterday I chose to do the 1/2 and 1/2 soup and sando combo.

002Unfortunately, their Spicy Tomato Soup was not very good this time, so I didn’t much of that, but the sandwich was delicious! I saved the cookie for later because we got this to share for dessert:

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I die. I mean, look at that thing! It’s a whoopie pie with an oreo filling… I am usually pretty good with stopping at a few bites, but I’ll tell ya, it took some serious self-restraint to stop there and not just eat the entire half! Good thing we worked REALLY hard in kickboxing last night! The floor was slippery from all the sweat. Love it.

Speaking of workouts, how did everyone do this week?  My workouts were very good! As I said on Tuesday, Monday was a great run, Tuesday was filming some workout videos and clips and on Wednesday I did an easy 20 minutes on the elliptical before teaching this:

beat boredomSince we had a fairly large group of people, and the studio at Central Square is much smaller than the studio at Allston, we did the workout just as it’s laid out here. Let me tell you, “Part 2” is really intense! I had us do 2 push ups after the 2nd 30 second cardio burst and then move right to the next cardio exercise with no rest. Working hard and sweating is a beautiful thing:)

Fitness news: As of next week, I will be teaching the 5:30 TBC class at Central Square right before my 6:30 Kickboxing class.  As of April 12th, I will no longer be teaching my UXF Burn at Allston.  I feel awful about dropping that class, but it just makes more sense for me to bang out 2 classes on the same day in the same location and, in turn, free up my Friday nights! Hope my Allston group understands:)

Switching gears…

So these two things really have nothing to do with health or fitness or wine, BUT, they so funny I can’t not share.  Lately, our dad has been sending frequent emails.  The best part of the emails, is that he uses really big font so it looks like he writes more than he actually does. Typing with just one finger, apparently it cramps up very easily. #dadproblems.

email from dadWe got this first… anyone who knows the Gagnon’s knows that if the Seal-A-Meal dies, it’s a BIG crisis. Thankfully, not long after, we got an email that made us sigh a breath of relief.

001What cracks me up about this the most, is that my dad is totally tooling on my blogging! Good thing I know he actually loves it (the gig is up, dad, mom told me!).

The other funny thing is a site that all of you need to go to right now. The other night, my sister was DYING laughing as she read through the texts on this site. I opened it up yesterday at work and had to close it immediately because I could not suppress the laughs (and, trust me, unclaimed property is really not that funny!). If you need a good laugh today, PLEASE do yourself a favor and check out that site.

Phew! And here we are, Friday morning. I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Questions for you: Do you get funny emails or texts from your parents? Big plans for the weekend?

ps. I want to send a BIG congratulations to my friend Kim for her recent engagement!! I couldn’t be happier for you and Jim:)

What a weekend!

Hi everyone! Happy Sunday!

Today has been a wonderful day, but before I get to that, let’s catch up on yesterday.  Last night, I was finally able to babysit my favorite kiddos! I met their mom when we used to take yoga together every week (miss that!!) and for the past 3 or so years (might even be more), I have been able to babysit her kids every couple of months. Well, between work and teaching classes, my schedule hasn’t really allowed for much free “babysitting” time, so I am happy that we were able to coordinate last night. I got this from Lila and it totally melted my heart

004So sweet.

Long overdue…

I have been in dire need of a massage for SO long. Between teaching 5+ classes a week, commuting to work (carrying too many heavy bags), and an overall busy lifestyle, my body was screaming for some relaxation. I put a poll out on Facebook to get recommendations for good spas in the Boston area and my cousin and his wife both suggested the Intercontinental Hotel. I couldn’t be more thankful for that request!

Since I knew I had access to the hotel’s facilities all day, I headed over around 9:30 this morning so I could get in a workout prior to my 11am appointment.

008I started off with 32 minutes on the elliptical (my legs were TIGHT from my run yesterday) and then set up a circuit to run through. I swear, new gyms with fun “toys” make me way too happy.

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015If you have access to a box (or step with lots of risers), BOSU & Kettle’s (or a weight), you can totally do this!

For Time- Complete 4 rounds of the following circuit in as short amount of time as possible (while maintaining good form)

  • 10 Box Jumps
  • 10 Weighted Squats on the BOSU
  • 10 KB Swings (go heavy!)
  • 10 BOSU Burpees
  • 10 Russian Twists (use weight or a Dynamax ball)
  • 10 Plank Rotations

Let me know if you try it! I didn’t have time to finish 4 rounds, but if you push yourself and give this your all, you’ll definitely be huffing and puffing!

After my workout, I rinsed quickly and then slipped into the softest, most comfortable robe ever!

009My masseuse was wonderful. As soon as I walked in, she asked if I had any injuries or any areas of tension. My right shoulder has been bothering me lately; I think it’s overuse, which is so frustrating. I told her about this and she said she could see how my left shoulder was scrunched up and my right shoulder was looking more limp… I didn’t even notice this, but as soon as she brought it up, it totally made sense. Iris did a phenomenal job paying special attention to that shoulder and did lots of different things to increase the range of motion and rotation. She said that my left shoulder was actually more tight than my right because it was overcompensating for the right. I think it is SO interesting to learn about how muscles work and how one little thing can affect many other things.

Anyway! Iris gave me lots of tips and stretches to perform on my own with the hopes of nursing my shoulder back to normal in no time. When I go back (yes, WHEN… I definitely plan on going back in the next couple of months), I am going to ask for Iris again. She was wonderful!

IrisOh, there’s more! Not only was the workout & massage amazing, but the showers and products were to die for! I was a happy, happy girl… I smell so good now!

006My life is so hectic these days (brought on by myself, but still…), that I cannot tell you how nice it was to be in a serene “locker room” setting with nice products, soothing music… and no sweaty gym people:)

……..

To continue on with my “Mental & Physical Health Day,” I decided to splurge and grab lunch, too! Look at me… Really living on the edge now! My sister got me a gift certificate to Life Alive for Christmas and I have been dying to use it ever since.

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My friend Jess introduced me to this place after one of my classes in Central Square and I have been hooked ever since! I got the demi portion of The Adventurer and it was ahhh-mazing!!

018I mean, look at that thing! Corn, broccoli, beets, tofu, almonds, kale, quinoa & a dressing so good I think I could drink it (ok, maybe not DRINK it, but it was so good!). To finish it off, I grabbed a Paleo dessert.

016I have to say, I was pretty skeptical of these, but after one bite I was sold. These were delicious!

Phew! If you made it this far, THANK YOU! That was quite the wordy and picture heavy recap of the past 24 hours.

As for the rest of the day, I may take a walk while I think about what I want to use as my benchmark Dynamax workout since it’s beautiful out. Today has been such a great day… no rushing on my end, no stressing, good food & workout… and, best of all, total relaxation. Why don’t I do this more often?

Questions for you: When is the last time you had a “me” day where you pampered yourself? Favorite healthy food place? Let me know if you try the workout!

TGIF!

Boy am I happy for Friday!  This whole week I was a day ahead, always thinking I was a day closer to the weekend than I actually was. The worst, right?! Not that I was really trying to rush along the week…I have my kickboxing certification from 9am-6pm tomorrow (REALLY not my ideal Saturday) and I am feeling nervous about that! I was tossing and turning all night thinking of the combinations they want us to know and how to cue punches and kicks (I call this Fitness Instructor Problems… any other fitness instructors have issues like this?!). Needless to say, I am a little sleepy today!

Let’s see… what have I been up to since I last checked in?  Ohhh, yesterday my coworker and I treated ourselves to lunch at Sportello for their “Lunch Box” lunch.

001I swear, this is the best lunch deal in Boston! You get either a full sando or a 1/2 sando and small soup, homemade chips or popcorn, a drink and a cookie…. all for $11!!! Incredible, really.  Since I was asked to sub the Total Body Conditioning class before teaching my regular Kickboxing class, I decided to get the full sandwich. I went with the Turkey instead of the veggie for extra protein… best decision ever! It was roasted turkey, cheddar, red onions, greens and some amazingly delicious ranch sauce. Toasted. YUMMM.

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I grabbed a seltzer water from the vending machine and was pleasantly surprised with this new flavor

003Anyone try this yet? I highly suggest it for my fellow seltzer water lovers out there!

And, to top of lunch, I got us one of these bad boys to share:

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That, my friends, is a Maple Pancake Cupcake.  I don’t like bacon (I know, I am the crazy one), but the cupcake was just as delicious without it. WOW. (We may have done extra jumping jacks in class because of this treat!)

I wish every lunch could be as good as yesterday! Other than that, my day wasn’t too exciting. I did have a blast teaching TBC. We did 60 second stations (5 rows with a difference exercise in each row, 4 different rounds) and I think everyone liked it… I’ll be sure to post that workout soon:)

I’m teaching tonight and then will be at the South Station BSC tomorrow for far longer than I would like to be. Hoping the day goes well- these types of things stress me out so much!!

Questions for you: Have any good lunches this week? Bacon- love it or hate it? What’s on the agenda for the weekend?