No Resolutions but a Fun-Filled Weekend

While the rest of the blog world today (and the past week) has been going on and on about New Years Resolutions, I am taking a different stance.

I will not be doing a resolution-oriented post. This isn't to say that I don't have goals for the year. Actually, I have some very specific goals. However, as a Type-A perfectionist and grade-A over-achiever, I am hesitant to throw too many goals out there. When I give myself a specific target, I tend to go above and beyond to make it happen, which isn't always healthy. Therefore, my goals will be mine, and I will be throwing them out into the universe as I see fit.

Haha, I sound like a crazy person. Which I probably am, but that's ok!

In other news, I had a great weekend!

I got to puppy-sit for one of my favorite puppies this weekend.

Her name is Daisy and I am always so happy to get to hang out with her. I have to admit, dog-sitting is a pretty selfish activity for me, as I get my dog fix in! Daisy and I had a lot of fun hanging out together. She is a pretty goofy puppy! She will actually sleep under the covers like a human. It cracks me up! Growing up, our dogs weren't allowed on the bed, let alone under the covers!

Saturday, I gave myself my own workout after I got out of work.

I did 21-18-15-12-9 reps of kettlebell swings, pull-ups and rowing (for calories). It's odd. When I start a workout, especially when I'm on my own, I tend to just go through the motions. It usually takes me about 5 minutes to actually get some fire under my *ss and really start powering through. I think this is the endurance athlete in me, but maybe I'm just a little lazy?

I also went to see Les Miserables this weekend. So, I used to be the biggest theater person ever. It was my passion for many years. When I lived in New York, I worked in theater and went to lots of open calls for musicals. All of my friends worked in the theater industry as well, so I was always in the thick of it. Les Miserables is one of my all-time favorite musicals. I have been listening to the London cast album since before I can remember, and have had it memorized for almost my entire life. All this to say I was so excited for the Les Miserables movie, I could barely hold my *hit together!

'Miserables'. Sounds like a good one!

My thoughts?

LOVED IT!

The only thing I really hated was Russel Crow as Javert. I am not going to bash him for an entire paragraph, but jeepers! Ugh!

The film really was phenomenal, and the acting was amazing. Both Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman blew me away with their emotional range during song. It was everything I could have hoped for in the movie!

Some other workout happenings:

Obviously I ran. Not far, but enjoyable nonetheless.

CrossFit Sunday was maybe one of my least favorite we have ever done. Not because it was hard, but it was all skills that I detest.

After doing 5 sets of 8 deadlifts, we moved on to the partner WOD.

We started by breaking up 800 meters of rowing with your partner. 200 meters each, twice through.

Then we had to carry a barbell loaded with 80 kilograms across the gym.

Then we broke up 50 hanging leg raises between partners and finished by carrying the barbell back across the gym.

And we did that whole thing 4 times through.

Rowing? Hate.
Carrying heavy things? Hate.
Hanging leg raises? Hate in high numbers.

Basically, I was counting the minutes until we finished. And we didn't even get through 4 rounds before our coach cut us off!

At least I was working on things that are weaknesses, right? Silver lining.

In more relaxing news, I made a triumphant return to my yoga mat!

I headed over to Shakti Vinyasa Yoga for an hour and a half flow class. Man oh man did I need this! I'm not sure what made me suddenly crave yoga after months of neglect, but maybe my body was trying to tell me something.

Excited and awkward! Go yoga!

Admittedly, I have a hard time turning off the chatter in my head. For this reason, yoga can be a huge challenge for me. There are many times that I go to class and end up flowing through 90 minutes of yoga with my brain going a million miles a minute. Obviously this isn't ideal. Yesterday I really made the effort to shut off and just be present on my mat.

The class was everything I could have hoped for! I had a great sweat going and was able to find some solace and release in some drawn-out poses.

I was a pretty regular yoga attendee at Shakti this past summer, and am definitely planning a more regular practice.

I really can't say enough good things about Shakti. The teachers are great, the actual studio is well-maintained and nice without being pretentious and I always get a great class when I go. They have studios in Ballad and Redmond, I believe, so head over if you are in the Seattle area and in need of a good class!

I hope everyone has a safe New Years Eve today! On to 2013!

Weekend Workouts

Happy Monday! First things first. Check out this adorable pup I have been dog sitting for all weekend:

Her name is Daisy and she is a lab/visla mix, or so the owners think. She is just hilarious. Not only does she sleep on the bed with you, but she puts her head on the pillow and burrows under the covers like a real human! The first night I spent with her I was just cracking up. I've never owned a dog that was allowed on the bed, let alone under the covers!

I went to CrossFit Saturday morning for a workout. I've felt like a lot of our workouts at the box lately have been cardio-heavy. And as much as I love those (since I'm pretty good at them), I always enjoy a little break to work on something different. I had never done hang snatches before. And, of course, I wasn't using the weight in that video. We started off the workout practicing those and finding a difficult weight for 3 reps, then set up for the WOD.

The most difficult part of this WOD for me was actually the push press. I found the hang snatch to be mostly about balance and core, both of which I can turn on easily! Shoulder strength, not as easy!

The hi-light of my Saturday was certainly teaching two fitness classes in the afternoon! I was so nervous for some reason. Probably since it was my first class. I taught a tabata class (20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest) and a core class. 

Fitness class studio. Hope to teach many more classes in you!

I am very lucky to have several awesome group exercise mentors who are helping me through the process of teaching. I was able to get lots of feedback on my classes and have some things to work on for my next ones! However, as much as I have to improve upon, the group fitness director loved the classes and is setting up several permanent classes for me to teach in the fall! Woo!

To round out my excellent weekend, I had an awesome 15 miler on Sunday morning. It was the perfect day for a long run and I decided to head out to Seward Park and run along Lake Washington Blvd. Of course, 15 miles is not easy by any stretch of the imagination. By "awesome" I mean that my neuroma hardly hurt and I never felt like I was going to die if I didn't stop. I think the key here is not to attempt a long run right after a Crossfit workout (duh). 

My run wasn't insanely fast or spectacular in any way other than the fact that I enjoyed myself pretty much the entire time. It has been awhile since a long run felt so good for me.

After my run I took the usual ice bath and enjoyed some sushi and popchips. Hey, don't knock it til you've tried it! I spent pretty much the rest of the day in recovery mode. Although I did enjoy several miles walking with Daisy to the farmer's market. 

This morning, I got up for 5 recovery miles, which felt slow, but surprisingly good! As usual, I had to run 3 miles and then open the gym before finishing the last 2. Hooray for starting Monday off on a good foot!