Tag: SWEAT-Kick

Weekending {Extended Version}: Birthday Celebrations & Marathon Monday

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Good morning! I opted to not blog yesterday as I had the day off and figured a lot of you may also have it off or may even be running the marathon! Between taking my birthday off last week, working from home on Friday and then having yesterday off, I feel like I’ve been on a little vacation, which is pretty awesome. With everything going on these days between wedding planning, the BoxFIIT certification, teaching, blogging, working, etc. I feel like I was running on empty and really needed some time to re-charge the batteries. Granted, the past week has been filled with lots of things, but most didn’t involve work which helped give me that “recharge” I needed.

I’m going to keep my captions short, so enjoy the pictures!

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Birthday yoga!

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Birthday manis/pedis/lunch with my birthday buddy!

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Strong ladies supporting me in class. Not pictured: after class drinks at Gaslight 🙂

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Julian pizza from Max & Leo’s- the birthday girl doesn’t cook on her bday 😉

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Beautiful flowers and prosecco from coworkers who came to my class

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Extra bday flowers from RM

 

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All dolled up! Love the new bag RM got me

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My sister surprised me with a bottle of bubbly at dinner. We went to Committee in the Seaport and everything was unbelievably good- we couldn’t stop raving about how flavorful everything was AND they sent out a birthday treat- I highly suggest checking it out!

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Post kickboxing sweaty selfie.

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Entertaining my parents- I’m so sad that I didn’t get a single photo with them while they were here 😦

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Food shopping

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Pancake breakfast

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Birthday presents from my dad- picnic table, fire pit and a heck of a lot of wood. It was SO nice of them to come down not only to celebrate, but also to bring all of these things to help us have an awesome back yard/patio!

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4miler in gorgeous weather. I wish I could say it was a great run, but my legs felt like lead the entire time and my miles averaged 15-20 seconds slower than usual… BUT… I finished it and it felt great to be outside. Who cares about the mile times!

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Taking advantage of the sun and doing my thank you cards for the bridal shower gifts we’ve received outside. And then I started reading Defending Jacob, which is our new book club book. So far, I’m enjoying it, although it’s crazy that it takes place in Newton!

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Beer at home by myself: a rarity, but the weather encouraged it 😉

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Meal prep for the week: a cauliflower rice & other veggie “stirfry” with a peanut sauce and then a veggie-filled quiche- both have so much flavor!!

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Loving our outdoor patio space! Took my workout outside yesterday morning and it was amazing.

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We walked from the Intercontinental Hotel (where RM parks his car) to the Back Bay and it was so nice strolling through Boston Common’s in the gorgeous weather.

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We were fortunate enough to hang out at the Solas Pub (part of the Lennox Hotel) pretty much right at the Marathon finish line thanks to New Balance- drinks, food, prime spectator location?! Yes, please. So thankful for this opportunity!

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Watching the marathon is always a super emotional and inspiring thing. I love watching everyone who is finishing strong, but I also love how everyone is looking out for each other. The crowds roared even louder when struggling runners were trying to get to the end. Fellow marathoners helped those who were physically too beat to run on their own. Paramedics and EMT’s and all of the other helpers were there to help get people safely over the finish line. It gave me chills soaking all of that in. Such a wonderful experience.

If you made it this far, THANK YOU! I’ll be back tomorrow with a workout… and maybe even a recipe for you this week!

Questions for you: How was your weekend? Did you get outside to enjoy the weather? Did you go to the marathon or did you run the marathon? What do you have planned this week?

Wednesday Workout: 12 Minute Count Down AMRAP Workout

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Good morning! As much as I think 70* weather in early March is totally wack, I am pretty excited to hopefully run outside today!

If you’re planning on working out inside today, though, maybe you’ll want to give this a try. I had my fitties do this for the second half of my sweat-KICK class last week and everyone had positive things to say about it afterwards (even though I did get some serious glares while they were doing it 😉 ) so I figured it was worth sharing. Plus, I am ALL about short, but effective butt kicking workouts these days and this workout fits the bill for both!

All you need is a set of dumbbells- easy enough, right? And, if you’re looking for a longer workout, by all means set your timer for 15 or 20 minutes.

12 Minute Count Down AMRAP Workout

I think everything should be pretty straight forward, but please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions.

I hope you have a great day- get sweaty!

Questions for you: Do you take advantage of the nice weather by taking your workouts outside? What’s on your workout agenda today?

Five on Friday {2.5.16}

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Good morning! TGIF! What a week it’s been- phew! I am so ready for a relaxing weekend… I feel like I’ve been on the go since last Friday. I ended up teaching 4 classes in 3 days, which is something I haven’t done in MONTHS, so it definitely was a shock to my system! They were all great classes, though, so I can’t really complain 🙂 Last night was my first sweat-KICK class at Foster Fitness and it was a total blast. I think there were about 22 fitties who showed up, which was more than I thought there would be! Everyone was pretty new to my style of cardio kickboxing, but they gave it their all and totally killed it. I was one happy/proud instructor 🙂

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Even though that was my highlight of the week, let’s talk about some other high points!

1 & 2: New Coats & Engagement Photos– I know I talked about both of these things in my weekend recap, but I felt as though they were worthy of a spot in my Five on Friday posts, too. I just can’t get over the fact that the blue jacket is a $450 Calvin Klein jacket that I got for $44!! I’m always slacking in the jacket department, so getting these was a step in the right direction for me. I’m in search of a new long down jacket- anyone have any good recommendations for where I could find one? Also, isn’t Janelle fantastic? We are totally loving the photos she look during our engagement photo session- I’ll have a full recap of that including outfit details next week!

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3. Stripping While Sleeping– Ok, not really stripping per say, but I thought it was hilarious as I reached under the blankets at the foot of our bed and found 3 pairs of socks… my feet and hands are always cold so I go to bed with socks on most night. However, I tend to kick them off at some point throughout the night since I am a HOT BOX when I sleep. I wake up sweating more than I’d like to admit, which you’d think would make me go to bed in less clothes, but I’m always freezing when I go to bed so I bundle up and strip later. Weird, right?

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4. Running Outside in 60* February Weather-With today’s weather, it seems like this was years ago! I’m happy I was able to soak up some of the unseasonably warm weather earlier this week during a 4 miler lunch break run.

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5. Dressing Like Spring… in February- Ok, I guess there’s a theme for this post: outfits/fashion and unseasonably warm weather 😉 When I woke up yesterday and saw that it was 55* at 6:30am I took a double take. I’m totally loving this thin sweater from Loft that I picked up last week- paired with my new Lucky skinny jeans, favorite booties and light jacket made for a comfy outfit!

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I hope all of you have a fantastic weekend! Thankfully ours is much more lowkey than last weekend. I have to basically read a 400 page book for book club on Tuesday so that’s definitely what I’ll be doing 😉

Questions for you: What do you have going on this weekend? Were you able to take advantage of the warmer weather this week? Have you found any good shopping deals this week? Do you have any weird habits or things you do when you sleep?

Five on Friday {1.29.16}

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Good morning! I had some of these drafted to post last week, but I ended up getting home later than expected after the blogger event at Social so I didn’t have it in me to break open my computer and finish the post. I’m sure you didn’t lose sleep over it 😉

Are you guys having a good week? I am! As I mentioned on Wednesday, I’ve been focusing on yoga this week and it’s been really great! I’m a little nervous for next week, though, because I’m teaching 4 classes in 3 days- way more of an intense schedule than I had this week! It’s all good, though- I’m excited for all of the events and classes I have lined up 🙂 here’s some noteworthy Friday things for you today:

1. Chromecast- RM finally took the plunge and got us a Chromecast so that we can start streaming Netflix through out TV. Also worth noting, we finally upgraded his subscription to be from receiving DVD’s in the mail (Yes, he was still requesting DVD’s to be sent to him!) to be a streaming subscription. We had already started recording Breaking Bad episodes on our TV so we’ve been watching them there, but once that is done it will be nice to be able to just stream Netflix. Welcome to 2016, Monique & Roberto.

2. Wedding room block/Registry- We’ve received an update on who has booked their rooms for our wedding and it’s SO exciting!! I seriously can’t wait until the big day is finally here. I am also obsessed with our wedding registry. While it was a little stressful and overwhelming at first (what to register for, what do we want/like/need, where to do it, etc.), I’m kind of loving it now. I check it daily and add new things- the worst that can happen is people don’t buy them for us- big deal! I’ll also admit that at first I didn’t think we needed anything, but then I realized that this may be the only time (for a long time) that we are able to start fresh and having matching everything- the Type A in me LOVES this.

3. Trillfit Event on 1/31– Looking for a workout on Sunday? Consider checking out the Trillfit event at the Hotel Commonwealth from 10am-2pm. From their site: TRILLFIT presents BRUNCH + BURN, Boston’s first wellness day party. Join us at Hotel Commonwealth for two high-energy, sweat-inducing workouts, delectable + healthy brunch bites, on-site beauty treatments and more . Celebrate your 2016 resolutions, grab your squad, and get live to a set by TRILLFIT’s own DJ Nick Bishop. 10AM: TRILLyoga with @LadyDork (60 min – *bring your own yoga mat*), 11AM: TRILLfit* with Melisa Valdez (60 min), 12PM – 2PM: Brunch + Day Party. Sounds like a blast, right?

4. Easiest Buffalo Wings– RM’s brother sent him a recipe from Bon Appetite (I think) and we decided to whip them up for the game the other weekend. We usually do wings in the crockpot using RM’s signature honey-garlic recipe he created on his own, but this recipe is WAY easier and faster. Get this- you just bake the wings in the oven at 450* for 35-45 mins, take them out and toss them in a mixture of 2tbsp butter and 1/4 cup sriracha. Could you get any easier? NOPE!

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5. SWEAT-Kick Event 2/4– I’m saving the best for last! If you follow me on social media, I’m sure you’ve seen me advertise the launch event for my first class at Foster Fitness, which is next Thursday at 5:30pm. The gym is in Wakefield and the event is going to be a blast- we will run through some cardio kickboxing combinations, throw in some bootcamp exercises and core work at the end and then refuel with protein shakes and salads from sweetgreen. If you’re interested in coming to the FREE event, please let me know- I would love love love having the support from friendly faces in the crowd!

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And that’s that! I hope you all have a fantastic weekend. Tomorrow is a busy one for me/us, so I’m happy to have taken a half day today to hang out with my sister and have some time to amp up for the weekend.

Questions for you: Do you have a Smart TV or Chromecast where you stream Netflix or Hulu? Did you watch Breaking Bad? What was the best part of your week? What are you looking forward to this weekend?