Saturday Snippets – Google be Damned

Google be damned.  The Saturday Snippets have been a bit MIA the last few weeks, and I blame it all on Google.  The last time I blogged on a Saturday, I was all upbeat about how I was going to come back from this broken leg mishap stronger than ever.  That was the plan (and still is the plan), but when I googled “recovery from broken fibula,” “returning to running after broken fibula,” “exercises while recovering from a broken fibula,” and such, I didn’t find anything positive… at all. I searched out positive articles, but they were all negative.  Counter these articles with the daily struggles of adapting to life on one leg, and you get one huge pity party.  Seriously… it was my birthday month and all I could come up with was Eat. Drink. and Be Angry.  Sad, but true.  As a result, I was bad company and became the queen of good energy sabotage.  I felt that if I blogged anything, that it wouldn’t be a reflection of my true feelings so I decided to stay mum.

I finally turned a corner last week when I got to return to Body Pump.  Mind you, I am teaching with my knee on a chair and using very light weights, but I have a mic on, I have my members with their smiles and hard core attitudes, and I feel… just a little… my heart rate on the rise.  Last week, I also got a walking boot.  It isn’t made for walking just yet, but by the time I write my snippets next week, I should be able to walk a bit.  It was quite the site, but I even went to a couple of barre practices.  Getting to exercise makes me feel like the return to my former (but better) self is near.

Thanks @peglegmeg for the picture

When this broken leg ordeal is finally over, I plan to write a lengthy post on the real recovery from this type of injury.  It will include the good, the bad, and the ugly, but the good will be the main focus.  Have you ever had a major set back?  How did Google help or hinder you?

While I’ve been digging out of this funk, some really good things have happened.  To begin, I turned the Big 4-0.  While it wasn’t exactly how I had planned to spend my birthday, it turned out pretty gosh darn good.  My husband (who has the  Husband of the Year award won hands down) planned a sweet surprise party with some of my girlfriends.  He, and my friend Meg, should look into careers as secret agents.  They had me fooled completely.  I am really grateful for all of the friends that made my BIRTHDAY MONTH one to remember.

Most of September, my diet consisted of cake, wine and more cake.  There were also a couple (um… lot) of trips to the all you can eat sushi place too.  Besides all this sugar and sushi, I did explore a couple of new recipes.  Two that turned out to be super delicious came from Iowa Girl Eats.  If you haven’t checked out her blog, I urge you to take a peek.    Maybe it is because we don’t have typical seasons in California like back home, or maybe it’s just that her recipes and insights are just my style, but I feel like I can experience the comforts and seasons of home in my little sunshiny beach town.  IGE has changed to gluten free recipes, but don’t let that stop you… everything is delicious and my anti-GF husband asks me to repeat the meals time and time again.  Okay… so here are the two recipes that you have to put on your fall menu:

The first is the Smoked Sausage, Kale and Cider Quinoa Skillet.  As a recovering vegetarian, I only eat chicken so instead of the smoked sausage, I used Aidells Chicken and Apple Sausage (the casing is pork, so you can just take that off).  The rest of the recipe I stayed true too and it was delicious.  Adam thought is could be a little more flavorful, but he also ate before I had dinner made.

The second recipe (which was awarded more “Oh Wows!” than the first) would be the Kale and Wild Rice Bowls with Honey-Balsamic Vinaigrette.  I followed the ingredients exactly as they were written (with the exception of leaving the almonds off of Adam’s dish) and oh holy goodness!!!  I’m making it again this weekend.  The only thing that I changed, and believe made the whole process easier, was that I made the rice in my rice cooker.  This was perfect because I was able to mix everything into rice cooker during the final steps, which freed up a dish.  This dish was a whole pile of cheesy, flavorful awesomeness.  We’ve had really warm weather in Santa Cruz lately, but this transported me right back to a cool Midwest day.

While the warm weather has made transitioning to Fall a tad more difficult, it has really helped in the fashion department.  I’m limited to what I can wear because of my not-so-fashionable cast.  However, I am counting down the days until I can put on a pair of jeans and rock them with some killer boots or stilettos.  One denim trend that I’m thankful for being around this fall would be the updated boyfriend jean.  Let’s face it… with this lack of exercise I’m not feeling my best in skinny jeans.  One look in particular that I’m loving is this one from Madewell.  Hey teachers (and students)… did you know that Madewell offers a student/teacher discount?  They do!  Anyway… I am picturing these jeans with a white t-shirt, blazer & scarf.  Shoes are TBD…

Photo courtesy of WhoWhatWear

For more denim trends for Fall, check out the site WhoWhatWear.  I’m slowly becoming a fan of the patchwork denim, but I’ll have to look for those at Nordstrom Rack or Saks Off 5th.  I have a difficult time buying trendy jeans at full price.

Now that I’m getting back to the gym, it helps to have some cute shoes.  I stopped at the Nike store the other day to grab my husband a new pair of LunarGlides.  Lucky me… these babies jumped out in front of me and I had to buy myself a set of LunarGlides too!  I love all things animal print, so scoring a pair of gym shoes with PINK and ANIMAL PRINT was like hitting the lottery!  What do you think?  Maybe I’ll return to running fast like a cheetah?

As always, hoping your Saturday is full of joy and the chance to do something extraordinary! Enjoy!

Are You Ready to Meet at The Barre???

I know the blog has been a bit silent lately (more on that to come later this week), but one thing that I want to shout out loud would be the opening of The Barre Studio in Capitola.  If you have never done a barre class before, now is your chance to try a class for FREE… that’s right… FREE.  If you have done a barre class before, then you know how incredibly awesome the workout is (and you can try for FREE too).  Keep reading for all the details…

If you’ve checked out the About section of this blog, you know that I’ve been a fitness instructor for a long, long time.  In this time, many trends have come and gone, but one thing that is here to stay would be strength and flexibility.  This happens to be just two of the benefits of a barre class.  If these don’t have you convinced, let me tell you more.  According to Jessica Von Duerring, a certified Pilates and Barre instructor, barre is:

• hard on the muscles, but easy on the joints
• beginners have no fear… barre is for everyone
• it’s a full body workout (but, hello sexy butt!!!)
• work muscles to failure (sounds scary, but it’s all good)
• your muscles will become more flexible… and they will thank you for this
• it’s fun
• you’ll lose weight and inches
• increased range of motion (which transfers to other sports)
• results so fast your friends will wonder what you’ve had done

Still not convinced… read the whole article 10 Benefits of the Barre

In the last few years, I’ve started to notice several imbalances in my body from doing the same exercises time after time.  Don’t get me wrong, I love running, teaching my classes, and subbing for others, but muscles have memory and if we do the same things over and over, we start to develop weaknesses in some areas while overdeveloping other muscles.  Over time, those weaknesses can turn into injuries or lost range of motion and tightness.  When exploring options for workouts that can turn my weaknesses into strengths, I kept winding up at a barre class.  It was shortly after that a friend of mine had this idea to open up a barre studio.  This girl raised her hand quickly and said… “I’ll do anything you need.”  Soon, I will get to join an awesome group of instructors to bring this amazing class to Santa Cruz County and beyond.  We have all been certified and have practiced over and over to bring you a top-notch barre class.  And if you recall… you get to try the class for FREE!

Now… just one more thing before I give you the details on the studio and those FREE classes.  If you are new to barre, it can be scary to enter into a studio.  The good news is that most people in class with you will be brand new too.  Even better news is that I’m going to tell you what to expect in a class.  Here goes:

EQUIPMENT:  You will be told what to grab at the beginning of the class.  This will/may include a mat, weights, a ball, a strap, or a band.  The studio will have a barre mounted to the wall.  One piece of equipment you will need to have for class would be those sticky socks.  They will be available for sale at the studio if you don’t have them already.

CHOREOGRAPHY:  Fun, uptempo songs will keep you moving throughout the class that will include a warm-up, upper body (oh… you will be asked to grab weights or bands here… don’t be cocky… this is hard and even going without weights will make your arms burn, baby, burn), butt and thigh work at the barre, flexibility after you make those legs shake (and burn… big time), core work, more flexibility and a cool down.  Here’s the key… most moves are done about 16 times.  Just when you think you can’t keep going, remember that you are really, really close to being done.  Breathe and keep pushing… your goal is to work the muscle to fatigue.  You will be rewarded greatly for doing so.

LANGUAGE:  Barre is a descendant of ballet.  You will hear some ballet terms like relevé, arabesque, and plié.  Don’t fret if you haven’t a clue what they mean… you will learn, and with this new knowledge, you will slowly start to adopt these words as a part of your everyday vocabulary.  Before long, you will feel like a dancer and your body will become graceful like a dancer, your posture will improve, and of course, all will start to ask for your tips on looking so fine.

TECHNIQUE:  Open your mind to a completely new experience.  Other than the warm-up, there are very few large movements in a barre class.  Muscles are worked through very small (one inch most of the time) movements.  You may hear the word “pulse” or “micro movement” during class.  It’s very important to understand this concept because this is what will give you the results you are seeking.  Don’t be alarmed if your instructor gives you a little tap or puts a hand out to help make your movement smaller.  You will be grateful when you slide into your skinny jeans.

CLOTHING:  Like I mentioned before, you will need sticky socks for class.  Other than that, there isn’t a barre uniform, but you will feel most comfortable in leggings or capris.  It is best to wear a top that is somewhat form fitting in the beginning.  This will allow the instructor to see that you are aligned properly during the movements.  The Barre Studio will have a clothing boutique with so many clothes that are too cute for words.  Bring some extra dough because you will want some for your next class.

CALORIE BURN:  A typical barre class (when done correctly) can burn between 300-500 calories, and you will continue to burn calories for hours after class.

Now that I hopefully have you convinced that this is a can’t be missed workout, taking advantage of a FREE class is a must do!  The Barre Studio opens on Saturday, October 18th and you can sign up for FREE classes on Saturday and Sunday here.  After you try out the workout (and you’ve fallen in love with the workout) the studio is offering a 1-month unlimited special for $99.  You have nothing to lose but inches and some lbs.

I’ll see you at the barre!