Archives for April 2011

04/29

Whirlwind Weekend

This week has gone by slowly, which is very weird. But I’m glad. I head out to Boston in a couple hours, catch up with couple friends tonight, teach a TRX Certification tomorrow, fly home tomorrow night, then go rock climbing on Sunday. It’ll be great, but fast.
I hope you guys all have a lovely weekend… and you’re not too sleepy from watching the royal wedding this morning. (I was forced to decline my invitation, unfortunately… too many things to do this weekend. Damn commitments. Don’t worry, I sent a gift) Watch the 3 minute wedding recap here in case you missed it.
Kate was stunning, wasn’t she? Thoughts on her gown?
Happy weekend!
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Filed Under: Boston, travel, TRX, weekend
04/27

Mya!

Remember Christy? That baby in her preggo belly is actually baby #2. This is Mya, baby #1. She’s so fun and is going to be an awesome dancer in the future. This video is from a year ago, us trying to get her to talk a lot, her sleepy and obviously preoccupied… it’s fantastic.
Sometimes she even calls me Flashlight… I don’t have a video of that though.
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Filed Under: girlfriends, kids
04/26

Mother Nature: 5, Ami’s Bootcamp, 0.

I run an outdoor TRX/Kettlebell Bootcamp that meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6:00am. It really sucks to have to cancel class when it rains because I have to get up anyway and text 13 people, which requires me to be awake and lucid. I usually can’t get back to sleep for an hour or so… Last week was our last week of class before the new session starts…

Last Tuesday: Clear radar. Didn’t cancel class. Pulled up, stopped my car. Pouring rain and lightning .7 seconds later. Cancelled class. Drove back home.
Last Wednesday: Makeup day for Tuesday. Pouring rain, cancelled class.
Last Thursday: No rain. 40 degrees outside. Bootcamp sucked.
Last Friday: Makeup day for Tuesday/Wednesday. Pouring rain.
Today: Rented space so we could have bootcamp indoors to finish. No rain. Whatever, Mother Nature. Whatever.

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Filed Under: bootcamp, cold weather, rain, TRX
04/25

An Easter for the photo albums… Warning: Foul Language/Guestures

Backstory: Easter Sunday at my Brother’s in-law’s house. (Brother’s wife’s parents’ house, keep up here, it’s gonna be one of those) It’s time to leave and since we’re parked in by a bunch of cars, we need to drive around the perimeter of the yard to get over to the driveway and then to the road. It’s been raining, non-stop, every day for the past week or so here so the ground’s really wet. My sister-in-law’s brother left right before me and was told to drive a certain path. When I left, I was told to drive his tracks exactly so I wouldn’t get stuck. No problem, right? As I’m driving, carefully as to not mess up the grass, I get to listen to the hubs and his helpful hints: “don’t go too slow! don’t go too fast!” Aaaaand I’m stuck.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the entire family is watching. Great. Dad, brother, brother’s father-in-law, husband all come to help… and bail me out with the four-wheeler.
…and take photos. Of course.
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I apologize for my inappropriate hand guesture.
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Oh. There’s even a video. Thanks for that.
Warning: 1 F bomb.
You can skip the first 20 seconds if you want to get to the good stuff.
Happy Easter.
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Filed Under: Charli/Car, family, holiday
04/21

Do It All: Hot Yoga

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I’m going to start a new series of posts, I’ve decided, called “Do It All.” Why? Because I always get asked “what’s the BEST thing to do, or “I don’t have a lot of time, just tell me one thing I can do all the time that will work.” Usually I’m getting asked this in a grocery store or in line somewhere where people see me in fitness clothes, ask if I’m a trainer, and then proceed to get as much advice as they can out of me in those mere moments. My response: “Do it all.”
They don’t usually like this. They think our convo alone will help them lose ten pounds, but it doesn’t. So I say, “Do all of it. Go run, do TRX, swing kettlebells, take yoga, take kickboxing, go skip around, lift weights, do Pilates, jump, swim, kayak, play kickball, etc. The more different ways you move your body, the better off you’ll be.” So to start this series, I’m gonna give a few tips for one thing, then you go try it. It’ll be fantastic. Promise.
I’ll start with Hot Yoga, because I’m gonna go take a class later and it’s on my mind. Remember, there’s a difference between Bikram yoga and hot yoga. Bikram is a set series, it’s an hour and a half, and it’s typically 110 degrees. Most hot yoga places are a little less hot (100 degrees +/-) and offer lots of different class durations. I go to a hot yoga place because Bikram just isn’t my jam, I’ve found. Here ya go:
Hot Yoga Tips:
1. Hydrate the day before.
If you’re thirsty going in, you’re already de-hydrated and asking for trouble. Bring water with you to class, and put a couple ice cubes in it so it doesn’t get warm while you’re in the heat. The ice will melt and you’ll have nice, moderate temp water.
2. Don’t eat too soon before!
Everybody’s different, but most people need about an hour and a half to digest their meal. Just ate? Take a later class. Haven’t eaten in several hours? Grab something small and light, like a banana, a handful of nuts, or a protein bar an hour before. If you puke up your Starbucks latte, you’ll be bummed. And they might kick you out.
3. Arrive ten minutes early.
This gives you time to fill out necessary paperwork and to inform the instructor if you’ve never taken yoga/hot yoga before. And if you have any injuries. They need to know these things. It’ll make class better for you.
4. Bring your own mat and a towel. And a water.
You can usually rent/buy these items, but who wants to pay for that? And don’t think that you won’t need a towel. You will. And you’ll love it when you can’t open your eyes because there’s sweat in them. Not.
5. Pick the right class level.
So many people jump right into the 1.5 hour Bikram class that’s 110 degrees (when they’ve never done anything like that before) then they puke, then they hate hot yoga forever. Check out the class schedule online first. There’s usually a beginner class or ones that are shorter (1 hour) and a little cooler (85-90 degrees). START WITH THESE.
6. Listen to your body!
Your body has certain responses for a reason. If you’re about to pass out or puke, it’s because you’re doing too much for your body and it’s doing that to make you STOP. So if you feel a little weak/queasy, sit/lay down for a moment. Take a drink of water. When you feel ok, jump back into it. Most yoga places (most) want you to take it at your own pace and they won’t degrade you for taking a small break. If they do, they’re assholes. Go find another place and don’t give them your business. Anybody can do yoga, you just have to go at your own pace.
7. If something hurts, don’t do it!
You know the difference between something being hard to do, and something actually hurting you. If it hurts, wave down the instructor and they’ll give you a modification. Promise. We don’t want you to get hurt. Then you won’t come back : (
8. Don’t stretch too far!
The heat makes your muscles reeeeeally stretchy. This is good. However, if you stretch too far, you’re going to be reeeeally sore for a few days and may injure yourself. That being said: if you can touch your ankles usually but now you can touch your toes, that’s ok. You’ll be able to get a little closer in hot yoga, that’s good. If you can only touch your knees usually and now you can touch your toes, scale it back a little, buddy. You’re going too far and you’ll pay for it the next day (or week).
9. Keep going.
If you feel weird/awkward at first, duh! It’s your first time. Nobody’s great their first time at anything. So try it again. You’ll get better as you go. Promise. And you’ll see the benefits if you go a couple times a week.
10. Don’t wear cotton.
If you wear a huge, cotton t-shirt, you’ll probably regret it 10 minutes into class. You’re going to be hot, you’re going to be sweaty. The less clothes you wear, the better, but if you’re not comfortable only in a sports bra and shorts, make sure the top/bottoms you’re wearing are made of light, breathable fabrics. Your body sweats to release heat, so if you wear clothes that don’t allow that to happen easily, you’ll feel hotter than you should. I’m not just trying to get you naked, I’m serious.
Benefits of hot yoga:
Improved posture
Improved flexibility
Better balance
Sculpted muscles
Time to yourself!
You have time to breathe and chill… and what’s better than that?
Questions? Ask away: fitwithflash@gmail.com
*that photo of me is NOT what I look like taking hot yoga. it was for a shoot with this guy. I usually have a red, sweaty face, with hair in a messy, sweaty bun, looking a HOT mess. : )
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Filed Under: Do It All, hot yoga, tips, yoga Tagged: , , , , ,
04/20

My BFF is in town

until SUNDAY! Woo hoo!

We’ll probably only get to hang out once or twice this week, but I’ll take it. : ) I’ll be glad when we live in the same vicinity again…

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Filed Under: Amanda, BFFs, girlfriends
04/19

Travel Thoughts: Chapel Hill, NC

  • “North Carolina, c’mon and raise up! Take your shirt off, twist it ’round your head, spin it like a helicopta!”
  • Thank you, Petey Pablo, for never letting me hear the words “North Carolina” without singing your stellar lyrics in my head… or out loud for all to hear.
  • Saturday: 3:45 pm, arrive at airport
  • 3:50 pm see that flight is delayed from 4;45 to 5:20. No biggie. I’ll read.
  • 5:45 pm board plane to Baltimore.
  • 6:45 pm de-plane. It’s going to be awhile before anybody can go to Baltimore because of all the storms/tornados. I’ll keep reading.
  • 10:00pm re-board plane. Thank you Southwest Airlines for my free wine.
  • 12:00am arrive in Baltimore to catch my plane to Raleigh/Durham. I’m gettin’ sleepy.
  • 1:00am. Plane arrives, pilots timed out. Flight to Raleigh/Durham cancelled.
  • 2:00am leave Baltimore in rental car for the 300 mile drive to Chapel Hill. Luckily, the roads are empty and the rain has stopped. Un-luckily, I’m tired as ish.
  • Why have I seen 6 people walking on the freeway since I’ve started driving? In 3 different places…
  • 4:30am Pull in to McDonald’s (don’t judge me, I had no other choice, nothing was open) for a coffee and a coke. I needed caffeine so I didn’t drive off the road.
  • 5:00am regret my previous choice. I don’t drink either of those very often so now my stomach hates me. But I’m awake, so I guess I’ll be glad of that.
  • 7:00am pull into Chapel Hill parking lot. It’s beautiful here. Recline seat. Fall asleep.
  • 8:00am get up, go into Studio 54 East, wash my face, brush my teeth, change my clothes. Teach a full TRX Certification course to 21 trainers/instructors.
  • This is the cutest studio I’ve ever seen. With the sweetest owner I’ve ever met. She bought me a breakfast sandwhich and protein bar too! I love you, Katie.
  • 5:00pm head to Raleigh/Durham airport.
  • 6:30pm board plane to Baltimore.
  • 8:30pm fall asleep in BWI airport with head in hand.
  • 9:30pm wake up (with huge red area on my forehead, I’m sure) to find our flight is delayed. Awesome.
  • 10:30pm take off. I fall asleep on the edge of the seat of the old guy next to me. I. Dont. Care.
  • 12:30am arrive in Louisville.
  • 1:00am head hits pillow.
So that was my weekend. Not a whole lot of anything else happening besides me traveling so sorry this one’s not as interesting or funny. I’ll be back to posting as soon as I make up for all the lost sleep. I’m heading to bed for a two hour nap. : )
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Filed Under: North Carolina, travel, travel thoughts, TRX
04/15

The best photos of me, ever. Obviously…

Since I promised you I’d post some photos of our dress-up-dance-costume-party in NYC last weekend… here ya go:

Annie, Me. You wish you had socks like these.
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Jeff… I can’t show you his dress up photos. Inappropriate.
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Even this little guy got in on the action
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You’re welcome.
I’m heading out to North Carolina (“c’mon and raise up! take your shirt off, twist it ’round your head, spin it like a helicopta!”) tomorrow to teach a TRX Certification and will be back late Sunday. Ya’ll enjoy your weekend! Holla : )
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Filed Under: Annie, dance, dance party, NYC, photos
04/13

Aww Sugar, Sugar

“you are my candy girl… and you got me wanting yoooooou.”
 Love that song. Moving on…
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So I was going to write this big post on sugar and get up on my soapbox and everything, but I’m just going to tell you a fact and then you can do with it what you will. There. Here it is:
4.2 grams of sugar = 1 teaspoon of sugar
“Yeah, ok. a teaspoon isn’t that big. So what?” OK, so now go get a teaspoon of sugar and pour it into your hand to see how much a teaspoon actually is. Go ahead, I know you’re at home while you’re reading this (neglecting your family/dinner/chores) or you’re at work, (not writing proposals and ignoring emails) and there’s sugar around.
No? OK, OK I’ll show you. This is a teaspoon of sugar in a pile in your hand and then all shook up and spread out. I promise my hand’s not that fat looking in real life.
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The point of this? Take a look at whatever you’re eating/drinking all day and check out how many grams of sugar are in it. Then, divide that number by 4.2. So that Vitamin Water you got there? 13 Grams of sugar = 3 TEASPOONS OF SUGAR! In WATER. Dumb? You betcha. Thinking that yogurt + fruit + cereal mixed together is a good idea? Add all those grams up to see how many teaspoons of sugar are in the mix, then decide. Don’t even me started on soda. OK, that’s all I’m gonna say. Have a lovely, low-sugar day, peeps!
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Filed Under: Fitness, nutrition, sugar Tagged: , ,
04/12

Happy Birthday, Jenn!

Dear Jenn,
Happy Birthday! I wish we could go ride roller coasters again…
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Our story: We met dancing in college…
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then hung out a lot at the town coffee shop…
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then went climbing a lot…
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and paintballing…
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and snowboarding…
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and a ton of other stuff along the way.
We have a lot in common and have had sooo many fun times and great trips! We are actually living in the same state for once and have been able to hang a lot in the last few months, which I’m extremely grateful for! At the end of this month she’ll move away for the summer to go back to seasonal work in Wyoming (punky brewster). But it’s ALL GOOD ’cause I’m gonna go visit this time! Yessss. So enjoy your Birthday, Jenn! You have a fun few months ahead and I’m glad you’ll get a break from all the craziness lately. Winners! (high five)
Love you,
Flashdance
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Filed Under: Birthday, girlfriends, jenn, winner

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