Motivational Monday #6

Happy Monday Friends!

I’m excited to share this weekly dose of motivation because we’re both starting to see differences. As I have been sharing we’re still enjoying our lives, indulging in moderation, and we’re both down 5+ pounds. More than that, we’re both noticing a bit more muscle definition and feeling great! We had a wonderful weekend in Tahoe skiing and enjoying the amazing views! This week, in addition to my studio classes at Moxie, I am teaching a free class in the Mission as part of Haven Collective Yoga‘s trunk show. I met these talented ladies at the Yoga Journal conference and am so excited to be a part of their pop-up trunk show here in San Francisco. Phil is busy with work meetings and hitting the gym so we’re both already looking forward to our Valentine’s weekend together! ❤ But lets not get too far ahead of ourselves. Here’s what we have lined up for this week to keep us motivated and making positive changes.  It’s week 6 of 16 and we’re feeling like we could do this forever!

Week 6

“Once you see results, it becomes an addiction.”

Exercise

• 45-60 minutes yoga daily (me)
• 50-55 minutes yoga 2x/wk (Phil)
• 45-60 minutes cycling 3x/wk (me)
• 45-60  minutes mixed weights & cardio  (Phil)

*as much as we love doing stuff together we’ve noticed our bodies and our routines naturally have taken us in slightly different directions in fitness and in our diets*

Dietary Routine

Breakfast: 

• sprouted whole wheat bagel (hollowed) w/banana & peanut butter
• oatmeal w/almond milk, dried cranberries & pumpkin seeds
• protein shake

Lunch:

• roasted chicken w/mixed green salad
• apple and spinach grilled cheese on sprouted whole wheat bread
• chili lime tofu w/brown rice and mixed veggies

Dinner:

• healthy fettuccine alfredo w/whole wheat pasta
• healthy sweet potato gnocchi w/roasted veggies
• tofu pad thai

Snacks:

• homemade chia bars
• plantain chips
• veggies w/hummus
• trail mix

 

’til next time, keep smiling! 🙂

 

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Motivation Monday #3

Hello Friends!

I am filled with love and excitement from such an incredible weekend at Yoga Journal Live San Francisco and I can’t wait share everything I absorbed with my students! This week is going to be a little crazy with Phil traveling AGAIN  and family visiting but we’re both doing our best to stick with regular exercise and smart dietary choices. 
Our routine for the week is going to be a little harder to follow but we’re happy with how things have been going and excited for the weeks to come as well! Yoga is obviously at the center of all I do, but I’m doing some cycling to supplement this week and emphasizing simple foods to see how that feels.

“If it’s important to you, you’ll find a way. If it’s not, you’ll find an excuse.”

Week 3

Exercise:

• Yoga everyday
  & Cycling 4x/wk

Diet

• Breakfast: sprouted toast w/pb and greens powder
• Lunch: Salad w/pumpkin seeds, feta cheese, and balsamic dressing
• Dinner: Salmon burger, carrot sticks & sweet potato fries
• Snacks: Popcorn, Protein Shake, Apple, or
  Walnuts
• Dessert: 4-6 oz red wine, dark chocolate

 

’til next time, keep smiling! 🙂

 

 

 

Foodie Friday (a bit late)

Hey Friends!

With all the excitement of the Yoga Journal Conference these last couple of days I completely forgot to post this yesterday…whoops!! This week’s post is one of the recipes I’ve been using for Phil and I these last few weeks to help us feel like we’re getting something indulgent – Salmon Burgers!I was really intimidated to try and make salmon burgers at first and I really don’t know why…they’re so simple and so incredibly delicious!

Salmon Burgers

• 1 large Sockeye Salmon Filet (skinned)
• 1/2-3/4 cup whole wheat panko bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1 cup shredded cabbage
• 2 cups fresh spinach (wilted and strained to
  remove moisture)
• seasonings of choice

 

Skin salmon filet and pulse with egg, veggies, panko and seasonings until well combined. Form the patties with your hand and heat up a skillet under med/med-high heat and spray with olive oil spray. Cook patties for 3-4 minutes on each side until cooked through, then splat between two pieces of sprouted wheat bread with a creamy/healthy slaw, and you’ve got yourself a DELICIOUS dinner or lunch!

 

Until next time, keep smiling! 🙂

Wellness Wednesday

Happy Hump Day!

This week has been a little all over the place for me but I’m confident there is still time to turn it around. That is why today’s Wellness Wednesday post is all about finding your focus, both on and off the mat.As a teacher and a student of yoga it is very easy to slip into a routine…just move through a sequence without paying attention, follow the same ques, repeat the same things, etc… I know yoga is supposed to help you be present, focused, and all that jazz but trust me, it happens to the best of us, haha! I really started to feel that way yesterday; as I was teaching the 2nd of 3 classes for the day it felt like I was saying some of my ques just simply out of habit, not necessarily because there was any intention behind it. It occurred to me I didn’t have a focus…I was just showing up. And while that may be enough for some, for me, it just isn’t. So, with a few more classes to teach this week, and a whole lot of yoga journal conference to volunteer for this weekend, I decided right there and then that I needed to take a moment to step back and find my focus. With my classes I chose to focus on thoracic spine opening, and for myself I am focused on being present, staying motivated, and breathing through the tough stuff. There is much more in life to love than you can possibly imagine…you just have to focus! ❤

 

’til next time, keep smiling! 🙂

 

Motivation Monday #2

Welcome to another wonderful week friends!

I hope everyone had an awesome weekend and are gearing up for another amazing week! Phil and I are feeling energized and ready to tackle week 2 of our diet and exercise routine. We took some time to indulge in moderation this weekend with a little post yoga lunch out in the Mission and it felt perfectly satisfying – a little vegan french onion soup and mushroom, gruyere grilled cheese…perfect on a chilly Sunday afternoon.

Homemade Salmon Burgers w/sweet potato chips, sprouted bread & slaw

One of the biggest parts of our ‘change’ is leaving time for rest and not depriving ourselves of anything…it’s more about making the healthy choice most of the time and allowing for a little wiggle room. We’ve got such a busy week with Phil traveling for business and me working the yoga journal conference but we’re committed to sticking with our routine. If you are in the bay area and haven’t gotten your passes for Yoga Journal Conference this coming weekend use code NEW YOU at check out to get 15% off your passes. I am so excited to be a part of everything and I hope to see some of you there too!!

“PUSH YOURSELF! No one else is going to do it for you.”

Week 2

Workout Routine:

• 35 min. cycling or running  3x/wk
• Body Weight Intervals  3x/wk (4x w/30 sec. btwn rounds)

1. 10 push ups
2. 10 burpees
3. 10 lunges
4. 60 sec. forearm plank
5. 10 jump squats
6. 60 sec. mountain climber

Each morning starts with 15 min of meditation/stretching and detox tea

• Breakfast:

1. Greens powder water & oatmeal with apples and pecans
2. Greens powder water & cottage cheese and apples

• Snack:

1. Hard Boiled Eggs
2. Celery w/peanut butter

• Lunch:

1. Vegetarian Chili with multi grain tortilla chips & cheddar cheese
2. Grilled Chicken or Tofu with brown rice and veggies

• Snack 2:

1. Hummus w/cucumber & pita chips
2. Trail mix

• Dinner:

1. Mushroom and Fennel pizza w/cauliflower crust
2. Salmon Burgers w/sweet potato fries
3. Carrot Souffle w/tofu nuggets

• Dessert:

1. ‘Almond Joy’ protein shake
2. Dark Chocolate & Cherries
3. Avocado Chocolate Mousse

 

 

’til next time, keep smiling 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

Yoga Journal Lessons

Good Morning Friends! My Flyers may not have been able to pull out a victory last night but the sun is supposed to shine today so we’ll call it a win overall! 

As mentioned yesterday, I learned a lot at the yoga conference. More than acquiring physical ways to develop my practice, I took away some deeper messages that I can apply both in my practice and my everyday life.

While I already knew this, the weekend was a major reminder to be authentic to your true self – whomever that might be! There were a myriad of framed messages with Buddhas all over the conference that seems to convey just that…who you are is beautiful, unique and to be celebrated! While we all must wear many hats in this life, its paramount to remember true happiness lies in being honest with yourself and to who you are, even if that someone isn’t who others want you to be – you’ve got to make yourself happy first! I don’t know about anyone else but this is something I struggle with sometimes – in an effort to please others I end up being inauthentic to my true self and become unhappy or resentful…not so good!

Another overarching message I took away from the conference was to slow down & shut up, which again, I already knew but obviously needed to be reminded. There is a universal rhythm…a natural flow to this crazy existence we call life and if  we don’t take quiet moments to catch our breath, we’ll constantly be fighting life’s current. I am committing myself to daily meditation, in addition to the other self-care activities on my list, in an effort to better tap into nature’s rhythm. I know it sounds odd to some but I really believe a calm and peaceful mind can help cultivate creativity & an open heart! When you slow down and tap in, your naturally more open to love life fully because you’re not tensing up from the chaos and stress of battling the day to day!

I could go on for days about all the inspiring messages I took away from the weekend but I think these were the two big ones! In terms of action steps (besides adding morning meditations to my routine), I have officially applied for a yoga teacher training program that starts in the fall, fingers crossed I get accepted & as soon as my gym membership is officially up (5/20) I am signing up for YogaGlo to keep learning from yogis and not just practicing on my own!

Namaste!

 

Daily Eats

• Breakfast: Strawberry Banana Protein Shake
• Snack: Greek Yogurt w/Blueberries
• Lunch: Mixed Greens w/Tuna & Lemon
• Snack: Raw Almonds
• Dinner: Cioppino w/whole wheat sourdough bread
• Dessert: Cacao Fudge Bars w/Unsweetened Coconut

Yoga Conference Breakdown

Happy Hump Day Lovers! My yoga conference buzz is still pushing me through this gloomy week! I know I’ve said I love rainy days but let me be clear, I am not a fan of several in a row!ANYWAY, I promised to share all the amazing details of The Yoga Journal Conference in New York this past weekend! The lovely and talented Kristin Ritter of Nourishing Storm was my partner in crime for the weekend & I couldn’t have been more blessed to have such an inspirational force to share the weekend with!

In addition to our 6 workshops this weekend, Kristin and I decided to do a little yoga throughout the city, striking a pose wherever and whenever the mood struck…

All silliness aside, I learned so much this weekend. I started with Tiffany Cruikshank’s ‘Inspire’ workshop which focused on the breath and harnessing our inner strength with the breath. Afterwards Jason Crandell did a 360 degree tour of the hip joint in his workshop! We dissected all the different muscles that connect/wrap through the hip joint and the connection to the spine/back bending – totally awesome! Finally, I finished Day 1 with Shiva Rea’s ‘rhythmic vinyasa’ workshop. It was all about understanding our synchronicity with the universal rhythm and using the fullness of our breath to tap into that rhythm…totally inspirational!

Day 2 began by de-mystifying revolved triangle with Rodney Yee and his wife Colleen Saidman. The two worked in tandem to expand our understanding of twists & totally revolutionized the way I look at getting into poses, holding poses, and directing my energy during practice…those two are no joke! While I loved Rodney & Colleen’s worksop, it was a total yogic juxtaposition to take ‘down to fly’ with Dana Trixie Flynn next. With rock/rap music blaring, glitter flying & dance parties in between sequencing DTF approach to yoga is definitely unique but I love her message: be authentic to yourself, have fun, & keep it light! I closed the conference with Tiffany Cruikshank’s ‘release’ workshop. Our focus was on myofascial release and boy did we need it! I have messed around with myofascial release after intense work outs but it was totally invaluable to learn from a yoga, sports medicine & chinese medicine expert!

Since this post is already long enough I will save my take aways & action steps moving forward for tomorrow! Game 7 of the Flyers v. Rangers Stanely Cup Play offs is tonight…LETS GO FLY GUYS!!

 

Daily Eats

• Breakfast: Greek Yogurt & Blueberries
• Snack #1: Pumpkin Seeds
• Lunch: Brown Rice Noodles & Tofu w/Vegetables
• Snack #2: Sweet Potato Chips’
• Dinner: Citrus Cod w/Snow Peas
• Dessert: Popcorn & Cacao Fudge Bars w/Coconut

 

Checking in..

Hey there WordPress family!

Sorry I have been MIA but since my return from the Yoga conference I have been trying to get back into the swing of things…perhaps I will get back into the rhythm by tomorrow. I want to recap all the excitement from the weekend as well as my take aways but for now, here are a few of the highlights from my yogatastic weekend!

From striking a pose…

…to cracking fresh coconuts…

…I learned a lot…

…and got to see some amazing performances…

 

I can’t wait to share more photos & every delightful detail…Namaste!

 

Daily Eats

• Breakfast: Strawberry Yogurt Smoothie
• Lunch: Tofu Stir-Fry
• Snack: Pumpkin Seeds & Apple
• Dinner: Poached Cod w/harbed quinoa salad & snow peas
• Dessert: Cacao Pudding w/Strawberries, Unsweetened Coconut & Sliced Almonds

 

YJC 2014 & Today’s Adventures in Exercise

I may not leave for the conference until tomorrow but my excitement is already palpable! That’s right, the road to Yoga Journal Conference NYC 2014 is almost complete – in a mere 33 hours I’ll be checking in for a weekend full of incredible energy, excitement & inspiration!

Last year I attended the business of yoga workshop & participated in the free group classes but this year I am taking 6 workshops covering various aspects of practice. I’m super excited to learn from some of the world’s most amazing yogis – no joke, most of these inspiring folks are internationally recognized & travel extensively to share their practice – but I’m a bit nervous! Considering a lot of the conference attendees are teachers themselves or veterans in the yoga community, how could I not be nervous?!?! Instead of letting my nerves get the best of me, I’m transferring that energy into absorbing all the weekend has to offer! Beyond the workshops, its incredible to feel the sense of community & positive energy from everyone around – knowing you’re surrounded by people who share your passions is very powerful!

Wish me luck!

Today is pilates class number four & I finally feel like I am getting the hang of it! I really enjoy the isolated movements…you can totally feel the shape of your muscles changing! Also, this will be the second week I’m experimenting with weight lighting. Its been years since I have done any lifting but with my back pain increasing it makes sense to try & strengthen all the supporting muscle groups. I am lifting with my pilates partner in crime over at Kissing Chubby Goodbye since she’s been into the lighting scene for about 8 months now & we’re definitely easing me back into it. The plan is to keep it simple, play it safe with the spine & see how it goes…I’ll keep ya posted!

Have you tried anything new lately? I’d love to hear about it!

Daily Eats:

• Breakfast: Quinoa Protein Porridge w/Banana
• Snack #1: Greek Yogurt w/Blueberries
• Lunch: Egg Salad w/Mixed Greens & Pita
• Snack #2: Peanut Butter & Honey Whole Wheat Pretzel Sticks
• Post Workout: Apple
• Dinner: Baked Tofu w/Exotic Mushrooms & Sweet Potato Fries
• Dessert: Cacao Mousse Tarts

Authentically awesome

The Yoga Journal Conference was amazing! The energy was positively infectious, the speakers inspiring and the classes enlightening! The trip definitely affirmed my desire to pursue this path and also confirmed my concerns that this isn’t going to be easy, haha!

The most important thing I took away from the conference would probably be something I already knew – be authentic! There is an immense amount of pressure (perhaps self inflicted) to conform to whatever is popular or mainstream in an effort to be excepted – RESIST!

There is nothing and no one more awesome than you, just as you are! I guess the hard part is knowing who you are and what makes you unique – well, at least for me! I feel as though I am discovering things about myself everyday and the definition of who I am is still being defined…but I digress!

My point is whatever you do, whatever your passion, be true to yourself – keep it authentic and it will always be awesome!