New Years Resolution Time!

Dear friends,

It's that magical time of year again where we make promises to ourselves (and to Facebook) that we'll make ourselves better people and perhaps cherish the wonderful lives that we have.
Now let's be honest though, how often do we actually succeed in fulfilling these resolutions? How many of us actually remember last year's resolution at all? I had to look mine up.  I do think to a certain extent I was more conscious of my goal to stop saying "I'm tired/stressed/busy" when people asked how I was doing... but honestly, I caught myself saying those phrases enough times to piss myself off.

This year, I've decided to join forces with friends to achieve goals.
As always, us American girls will be aiming to get into better shape this year. But instead of making some arbitrary statement of better health/lost weight for the new year, my friends and I have decided to take action and make a road map for success!
Many 30 Day Challenges are in store.
For the month of January, Meghan and I will be doing 30 days of unlimited hot yoga at Bikram Yoga Herald Square.  I enjoy picking up a well priced Living Social deal on exercise classes because it really pushes you mentally to "get your moneys worth" for that time period. I'm aiming for six classes. I usually find that I'm bored of the exercise by month's end so it's perfect timing to exit.
In addition, Kathleen and I will be doing a 30 Day Cardio Challenge. It's just meant to step up our game and supplement our other work outs. So on days where I'm doing yoga or she goes to dodgeball, we get a "pass" from the cardio challenge.
 


Once February hits, we'll be doing a 30 Day Core Challenge ! If we see results, we may repeat in April just in time for swimsuit season :)

The way to success, so we hope, is that we keep each other accountable in our workouts. We log challenge days on a shared google doc and consistently check in via texts and IMs to ensure that a proper level of guilt is bestowed on the flaker.
And Don't quit if you slip up. We are human though after all. In the past, it's taken us more than 30 days to finish a challenge. In the full heat of my masters program, it actually took me 60 days to finish the Guns, Buns and Abs challenge. I stuck with it though and didn't feel down trodden because I "failed." Each day was still a challenge and in the end I had some results to show for it.

So just remember, making a resolution is just one step to reaching a goal. Now you have to put down in stone HOW you'll get there. and Who's going to keep you accountable?

Have a happy snowy new year everyone! 

xx,

Y

My First Citibike Incident

Although they resemble a leisurely beach cruiser, Citibikes must be peddled at a more robust pace to keep up with speeding delivery men and of course the cars.
I can only use them on return trips home because I'm often found profusely sweating after a quick ride due in part to my traffic anxiety and also in part to the physical exertion.
Today, I decided to test my endurance with a 2.5 mile run and a one mile cool down bike ride. I set to planning with my handy Citibike app and charted out my 40 blocks of running to end next to a dock site. The thought hadn't crossed my mind that I'd ever get to a station and no bikes would exist. This occasionally happens at the stations by work and it makes little difference to me as I have not grown to depend on them. .. just yet.
So as I peddle my way to the next dock, two women approach me asking if they can take my bike... I stare at them both not really sure what to say except "sure" non-commitally in either of their directions. I dock and wait for them to hash it out on their own but instead of talking amongst themselves they're arguing their sides to me! My worst fear of the moment.
"I've been waiting for the next bike."
"These are like cabs. It's the first person to the curb!" Says the second lady with helmet in hand.

The "waiting lady" eventually won out with stronger body language to take the bike as I stood between them hoping they wouldn't notice me wipe the sweaty seat off.

She thanked me as I scuddled off toward home. Helmet lady ambled away half-heartedly, perhaps thinking about the nearest station... or perhaps what she used to do to get home just a few short months ago.

San Antonio and Austin, Texas: the fun parts!

Last month, Ryan and I decided on a quick trip to Austin, Texas. We needed some warmth and a long weekend away from the hustle and bustle of NYC post-holiday season. We knew we'd enjoy it, but we had no idea why.
First stop: San Antonio was a beautiful little town with a quaint little river walk that winds around the commercial area. Very beautifully done but definitely very commercialized. Get off the Walk for food because it's not worth it financially or otherwise. Check out Schilo's German deli and get the wienerschnitzel sandwich!

[Mission hallway]

Definitely check out the San Antonio bike share, the B-Cycle!! You can rent a bike, check them into various stations as you ride and get to explore the city in a sustainable way! Can't wait for NY to have this! You can ride along almost all of the River Walk where the Blue Star Brewery resides (just opened!)! We also went to check out the Missions! It's a quick pit stop. A bit of a snore but definitely a good stop if you're interested in architecture or historical sites (which I clearly am not cultured enough to respect).
We managed to snag a decent B&B, The Noble Inns, that was on the River Walk just a five minute walk from the "center of town." It's really old so don't expect anything fancy (also call ahead if you actually want the hot tub to work: dissappointed face). Everything outside of the commercial zone is pretty dead. We did manage to make it to the San Antonio Museum of Art for the Aphrodite exhibit but can't vouch for the rest of the museum. I asked Ryan to take a new portrait photo of me (You know, for all those stupid profile pics you need these days for LinkedIn etc) and the security guard caught us and told us we couldn't take "these kinds of photos" there without the permission of the museum. Ryan felt proud that this man mistook him for a "real" photographer. We bashfully ran away giggling.

[Glass ceiling at the SA Museum of Art]

Also got to see my parents and my brother. Haven't seen him in TWO years!! We took a two minute stroll through the Alamo. Kind of a snore too but I guess it's the go-to for tourist spots in town.

[Trolleys in San Antonio!]

A great food spot was the Alamo Street Eat Bar. It's a food truck parking lot with a small cabin in the middle where they have bathrooms and have quite a few beers on tap! We tried goodies at Outlaw BBQ (get the marbled brisket!) and Wheelie Gourmet (Lamb sandwich for sure!) though I don't know how permanent these truck stops are! Both great options though!

For night life, we chose a quaint bar that featured live jazz music one evening. Carmens de la Calle makes a pretty decent sangria but the $5 cover was kind of lame. There were literally only about a dozen people in the bar total. Coming from New York, that annoyed me for some reason. #Imbeingcheap
Another great hit was the Hi-tones bar. It's a teensy bit divey but it had such a great vibe and even outdoor space where people were grilling and just hanging out. Very low key and exactly what we were looking for when we escaped New York.
-------

The real shebang: Austin was a ton of fun. We did a lot biking around and 'partying hard' on 6th Street.

Honestly, most of my highlights have to do with food. I'm not ashamed.

[Uchiko roll with their own dipping sauce and aioli!]

Uchiko was a wonderful little surprise for me. I wasn't expecting to splurge, but the place has changed my taste buds for sushi forever. Diver scallops. That is all.

Turf and Surf food truck was also amazing. They had a sign up about moving so I'm not sure what their deal is. I just know their Ahi Tuna Taco was the best fish taco I've ever had in my entire life. Hands down.

[Salt Lick BBQ]

Since we were in Texas, we decided to go to at least one BBQ spot even though neither of us were particularly huge fans. We decided on Salt Lick since we got several recommendations from various parties. It was decent but nothing to write home about. And it was about 40 minutes away from Austin (driving). Not really worth it in my books considering all of the amazing food we had in the city. If you're a huge fan of BBQ, definitely try it out. They give great servings and have an all-you-can eat sampler option!

As for activities:
We rented bikes from a company that featured a Groupon deal for two all-day bike rentals for $25 (Barton Springs Bike Rental). I would suggest another location and probably spending a little more money. We had some questionable bikes. Ryan's first bike actually LOST a pedal about 5-6 miles away and he had to precariously ride back to get a new bike! So scary.

[Fountain at the University in Austin]

After the scare though, the city was a beautiful bike city! Most of the major streets have a bike lane and Town Lake was a wonderful little bike/run area! We then did a quick trip up to the Capital and also the University!

[A golden paddle boarding on Town Lake!]

On our way back to the bike center we decided to take a canoe out for a quick paddle around Town Lake at the Texas Rowing Center. Very family friendly and serene. There were hundreds of turtles, birds, and even a golden retriever on a paddle board out on the water!





On another lazy day, we drove out to Hamilton Pool Reserve. It was a very easy 10-15 minute hike/walk that ended in this beautiful natural pool with this carved out overhang. I envision it's more fun in the late spring/summer when it's warmer and you can actually swim in its pristine waters.

[Hamilton Pool Reserve]

[Indigenous species of Texas!]

Another great stop was our trip to Hops and Grain Brewery. It's in a rather new complex with fun small businesses and offers free tastings on Saturday afternoon, complete with live music and a cool crowd!

While in Austin, we attended a Tattoo Festival. There were hundreds of tattoo artists and people getting inked! It was a lot of fun just to walk around and see what was happening, despite not having any tattoos of my own. Austin is home to many convention centers to there are always things happening. Check them out!

[Austin's Star of Texas Art Revival show 2013]

[Corazon Mexican Restaurant]

In the evenings, Ryan and I decided to hit the town. We visited a few cool bars on 6th Street, apparently the ONLY cool place to go if you're in the know...
Buffalo Billiards was my favorite. It was filled with arcade games like shuffleboard, skeeball and air hockey and had a decent beer selection. Win.
Volstead Lounge was also a sweet little spot with more 'atmosphere'. It has a backyard patio where you can order Filipino food from the Be More Pacific food truck!

And lastly, Ryan and I had to get one Mexican restaurant in before we left. We decided on a highly rated (on Yelp) spot called Corazon at Castle Hill. The food was savory and fresh without being too oily as some Mexican food can be.  It had a great tequila menu as well!


Overall, I had a blissful and relaxing trip down south and encountered little of the intense cultural collisions I experienced in southern Texas. I was thankful to have enjoyed such a pleasant experience in the Lonestar State.

60 Days Complete! Gym-sanity is OVER :)

The day is here at last! I can say that I worked out SIXTY days this summer and totally kicked butt. I haven't lost any real weight but I've had a few people tell me I look toned. I can't help but beam at them and try to less-than-spastically tell them about my last 60 days. Admittedly, I'm going to miss the pressure and the exhilaration of getting my workouts in. But I am so glad I've completed this summer challenge just in the nick of time. It's FREEZING out at night! And school has started again after work so my energy level is on 'E' by the time I get home at 9pm.
However, after spending so many days in a row getting my workouts in, it'll be that much harder to make excuses even during my busier semester to slack off. Let the fall season begin. Who knows what I'll have planned next. Perhaps another challenge? Who's with me??

What I did the last 10 days:

Day 51: Still as hard as the first time, I did the Melissa Bender HIIT video.
Day 52: I keep returning to these 8 Minute videos because I think the Abs one is actually working and the leg one is hard but not strenuous. It's an off day video set for me.

[Pic note: Good morning, Day 60!]

Day 53: Zapp B et al hosted another BBQ/pool party in Westchester. We set up a volleyball net IN the POOL! It was the hardest game I've ever played, but it was so fun! Definitely a hard workout.

[Pic courtesy of C-moc Sandoval, Pool volleyball!]

Day 54: My Urban team played some real court volleyball and actually WON a game! Horray, losing streak over :) I really wish I was playing again this fall. Taking classes after work is just such a drag sometimes.
Day 55: I went to Boom Fitness for a quick run (I finally timed myself: 10 minutes exactly for my mile! Faster than I thought I'd get that done to be honest) and abs/legs workout with a body bar.
Day 56: I did day 52 again. I've been laying off the arm/HIIT workouts, because I got two vaccine shots two days ago and I can barely move my one arm. #lame, I know.

::rest day::

Day 57: Today, I participated in the Susan G. Komen 5k race. It was exciting for several reasons. I got to meet up with my Columbia friends for this one; One of whom actually works with an old co-worker of mine that also came to the race. It was also a beautiful day for me to finally time myself and attempt the 35 minute goal. Remember Day 42, the last 5k that was an epic fail?
I finished in 34:15!!!!!!!!!

 [Pic note: I'm the hairy one, pre-race with Ryan]

Day 58: Today, I did Melissa Benders holiday Hotel room workout video. I commented on her Fb wall about not being able to do those ridiculous side planks and she wrote back: "Do 6-7, and then try holding a side plank without moving to build up the core strength and balance. Before you know it you will be able to do a full set." So if you're having difficulty with those too, try that out! This video really inspires me to get it together. If she can work out in the middle of a vacation in Mexico, then we should be able to spare fifteen minutes of our day to pound out some moves at home. 

::School/Rest Day:: 

Day 59:I did another Melissa Bender HIIT video today. It's a sweat drenching one!
Day 60: AH!!!! I'm DONE! Meg and I went to our 10am Vinyasa flow class at the St. Marks Yoga to the People studio. It was SO packed today and a little bit gross to be so close to strangers while sweating, but the class was really fast paced. GREAT workout to finish off the challenge.

Let's go Zapp!! Just a few more days and you're done too!!!

In the last days before I finished, I was having anxiety that I'd let all of this good work go to waste. But I'm determined to keep up the good trend. I just bought a deal for five 1.5 hour ballet classes at Joffrey Ballet School in the West Village. It expires sometime in the spring so I'll have the next few months to take them! I've always wanted to take a ballet class and at 25, here's the perfect time to start, right? woohoo! I'm buying ballet slipper next week and I'm THRILLED!

What else should I consider taking?
I was thinking maybe Kickboxing or Hip Hop dance...?

Check out the entire 60 Day Gym-sanity journey if you haven't already:

The Start

10 Days

20 Days

30 Days

40 Days

50 Days

50 Days in: Gym-sanity!

Ryan keeps telling me he's shocked I made it past day three. Well here I am at Day FIFTY! I can't believe it either to be honest. My buddy, Zapp and I have slowed considerably in the last stretches, but with just ten days left, I am ready to turn it back up and get things done before classes start again in the fall!!

Here's what I did in the last ten days:

Day 41: I did a Melissa Bender Dripping with Sweat Full Body workout video. I CANNOT do those ninja jumps! I just can't. they make me mad.
Day 42: A couple of Ryan's friends were in town from Buffalo. We decided to do a fun 5k race this weekend. It turned into a minor disaster for me. The race was in support of ballroom dancing for kids, but it was so poorly organized. With 5 minutes to race time, one coordinator shows up at the intersection in Central Park and has a timer on her iPhone which kept official time. In addition to the fact that the race track wasn't posted or marked, it was over the 5k distance by almost a quarter mile! I run quite slowly so I had no one to follow by the time I needed to make a turn on a dirt path. I missed it and ended up running for 45 minutes before reaching the end! I was so upset because I've been training to get under 35 minutes. At least I got a good run in, right?
Day 43: Game day. Yet another week of no wins. It's getting frustrating but at least we're getting some great play in. Check out NY Urban if you're looking to join a volleyball or basketball team this fall!
Day 44: Despite the title of the challenge, I've been going to the gym rather infrequently in the last fifty days. I made it there today, doing a quick mile before focusing on abs, arms and shoulders. I used a body bar to do some exercises (like squats with bicep curl, or lunges with shoulder raises).
Day 45: Breakthrough day! Ryan came to hot yoga with me for the first time and actually enjoyed the workout!! We went to Yoga to the People at their 38th Street location and did the 60 minute Vinyasa Flow class after work. I know everyone is supposed to connect with their breath or whatever, but I cannot stand when I get stuck next to those people who sound like a dying whale all of class. This woman was driving me nuts before the class even started, with her breathing noises! Really need to pay attention to who I'm sitting next to in the future.

::Rest Day happened here::

Day 46: I went on a three mile run today. After running a few longer distances this summer, I enjoy being able to feel the differences in runs based on my energy level and the day's weather.

Day 46.5: I'm not going to count this as a real work out but I spent the day in Beacon with some friends and walked around the town for hours. We went to the DIA Museum, which had some great minimalist and installation pieces showcased. Then we walked through the quaint town's Main Street for the rest of the day. Beacon is 1.5 hours north of the city on a Metro North train so it was a great day trip if you're looking for something to do on the weekend.

 

[Pic cred: C-moc Sandoval, spider at DIA Museum]

Day 47: Meg and I went to the Vinyasa Flow class at the Saint Marks studio. I think we've converted someone! With Jackie's help, Meg and Russ go all of the time now :) Exercising with friends is fun!!

Day 48: UGH another losing day with the volleyball team! I think we're cursed! 

Day 49: Today I did another Melissa Bender HIIT video :) Those frog jumps are tougher than they look! Especially if you actually get your feet right up next to your hands!

I took a few days off here because of an out-of-town wedding in Buffalo, NY. I did get some nature trails in but there was no sweat dripping workout while I was gone. 

[Pic note: Groom, me and Ryan]

I did get to go on my first motorcycle ride though!! We cruised around for a few hours, checked out the Iroquois National Refuge, and the beautiful Becker Brewery farms.

[Pic note: badasses]

Day 50: Another sad volleyball game :(

I'm almost done with the challenge!! This has been such a wonderful summer :) Check out the previous posts if you haven't already!

60 Day Challenge: Where it all started

10 Days

20 Days

30 Days

40 Days

[Pic Cred: C-moc Sandoval, sunset at Beacon train station]