01/20

Best Women’s Winter Boots. Ever.

I’m not in the snow often, but every time I’ve gone skiing, I’ve usually just taken along my rain boots to keep my feet dry in the snow between the car and cabin. After a a few ski trips I realized this was a stupid idea. My rain boots were ok for waterproofing, but cold as ice. They were also way wider than my leg, so if I was in deep snow the sides basically acted as a shovel, scooping snow into them with every step. So I set out for the perfect pair of winter boots! And never found them.

Everything I saw was either waterproof, warm, and ugly. 
Or cute, and waterproof, but not warm. 
Or everything that I wanted, but $500. 

Enter a winter sale at our local outdoor store, Quest. 
These Patagonia Lugano Boots 
were normally about $250 but I scored them for $90!!

 I originally wanted black, but they had exactly 3 pair of these in “Espresso”… and one of them was my size! It was fate! So I snatched them up faster than you could say “clearance,” and carried them far away from everyone to try them on. They were perfect. And cozy. And warm. Since purchasing these bad boys, I’ve taken them in the snow all over the country (and Canada).
They even made the weekend instagram recap collage… #whenyouknowitsright
 Even if they weren’t on sale, they would be worth every penny. My feet have never been cold or wet wearing them. They’ve been on ski trips, in snowball fights, sledding, and even just cruising through my ‘hood with Tango. The recycled rubber sole also helps prevent slipping on the ice. I should know since our sidewalks were one big ice sheet this weekend:

 They’re also cute enough to wear even if you don’t need the technical extras. 
I wore them to dinner and a concert with some leggings Saturday night! 

Top: Forever 21. Pants: Lululemon Wunder Unders. 

Added bonus: The compliments!! I get asked all the time where I got them. 
Which makes the purchase completely vindicated. 

Now I just need to find a pair of boot socks to go with them.
Any suggestions?




*Photography: Tamara.
 Models: Tango and Churchill
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Filed Under: boots, fashion, Patagonia, shoes, Tango
11/05

Things That Are My Jam Today

All that lead up with big news and then I leave you hangin’ for a week. 
My bad. Anyway… 
Things That Are My Jam Today: 
1. Unbroken
Recommended by Bridget,  this was the best book I’ve read since The Help. It’s written by Laura Hillenbrand, who also wrote Seabiscuit and it’s AH-mazing. A true story about a man who went from an Olympic ahtlete to a drafted military bombardier whose plane crashes in enemy territory during WWII. This book is one of those that, even if you have a spare two minutes before you walk out the door, you pull out of your bag to squeeze a few more pages in. This is a great read for the fellas too (you know: war, crashes, bombs, etc)! Thanks for the rec, Bridge! 
2. My nephew, Jaxson in his “Ninja Lloyd” Halloween costume. 
The moment I said, “let me get your picture” he struck this pose without missing a beat. 
That’s being in character.
3. My new kicks. 
It’s really hard for me to find a pair of running shoes that I like. I want minimalist shoes, but I also need a little padding for days when I’m on my feet for hours. These K Swiss ones feel good. And they get bonus points for matching my TRX ish. They lose a few of those points though because of the two foot long shoe strings… I meeeeeeean 
4. Getting a girl’s day with Jenn and Christy last week! 
We just hung out, shot the ish, and made cinnamon rolls. Yay for a few hours with the girls. 
5. Tango
He’s SO cute. This was him keeping watch and waiting for Trick-or-Treaters last week. 
6. My special man-friend. 
Yep. I’m dating somebody. He doesn’t live near me. BUT I’m heading his way to visit for a few days. Right now. 
Photos and deets to come later (gotta keep you guys interested somehow). 
Have a great week, everybody! 
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Filed Under: Book Buzz, christy, girlfriends, Jaxson, jenn, man-friend, shoes, Tango
11/22

My Workout JAM(s) of the week:

This song:
These shoes:
Because they’re attractive? No
Because they’re the most comfortable shoes ever? Yes

And because this happened:
(Thanks, Churchill)
What’s your workout goal for the week?
Mine is to work HARD the next few days
because I’ve got a lot of eating to do Thursday,
and then 3 days of Bahamas after that…
WOOT!
Get after it!
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Filed Under: Jam, music, shoes, Vibram Five Fingers, workout
07/28

Hot Mess

For those of you that work in offices and have to get dressed up every day, you probably LOVE getting to lounge around in sweats, yoga pants, and other comfy clothes. I am the opposite. I wear workout clothes every day, all day long. I go from being sweaty, running around outside with my bootcamp, to drying off while training a client, to sweaty again an hour later with another bootcamp. Sure it’s nice to be able to roll out of bed and be ready in 10 minutes in the mornings, but the downfall is that I look a HOT MESS. All. Day. Long.

Exhibit A:
Hair a mess.
Outfit: tank, sports bra, and workout pants.
Make up from the day before, gone.
Tango’s the cutest part of this photo.
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So when I finally do get to go out, even for the tiniest occasion, I jump at the chance to wear cute clothes, put some make-up on, and throw on some heels. This was last week’s NKOTBSB concert. I might have been the fanciest chick there. DID NOT CARE.
Exhibit B:
Make up.
Cute clothes.
Hair still in ponytail, but minus the sweat.
Fancy earrings/heels.
Eyebrows raised, get some.
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At least I thought I looked good. Apparently some old guy thought I was a hooker. While I was walking back to my car at the end of the night, he circled the block 3 times to holler at me and asked me to go with him. Sigh…
Earrings and heels: Forever 21
Shirt: Gift from BFF
Shorts: Express
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Filed Under: clothes, shoes
01/08

Post Bronchitis…

After spending the last 4 weeks with Bronchitis and feeling like crap, I FINALLY feel like I’ve got some energy! Yesssss. So I went for a little run today and did some TRXing to get back in the game.

Look at my new shoes: (A Christmas gift from the hubs)
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And look who approves:
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These are the new Saucony Kinvara shoes. A minimalist shoe with just a slight difference in the toe height vs. heel height (4mm to be exact). I’m hoping I’ll like these a little more than I liked my Nike Free shoes. Since I can’t run on the treadmill/pavement in my Vibrams, I wanted to try these guys out. I’ll let you know how I like them! Also, I’m going out on a limb with this pink color. I wouldn’t call myself a ‘pink shoe’ kind of person, but hey, it’s a new year right? I can be a little crazy…
Hope you guys are feeling good today and doing something active! Happy Weekend!
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Filed Under: running, shoes, Tango, TRX, Vibram Five Fingers
08/03

Toning Shoes = Toned Booty?


I know you’ve probably seen all the new toning shoes out now; Reebok Easy Tones, Sketchers Shape Ups, Masai Barefoot Technology, etc. They claim to work the leg and booty muscles while you’re walking and running to make your body work harder, without really doing any extra work… but do they really help tone your body as you go on with your daily routine? I’m a skeptic (and a bit of a judger) so I decided to look it up for myself.

The American Council on Excercise, or ACE, does their own series of scientific research studies to prove how effective, or ineffective, new exercises/equipment are. As an ACE certified instructor and trainer, I get updates on new information. Their Get-Fit website has tons of resources to check out, like this Workout Watchdog. To read the full study, (don’t worry, it’s not that long) click here. It explains, step-by-step, how they came to their conclusion. They ran two studies, one with regular running shoes, and one with the toning shoes to measure the muscle activation when walking with each.
If you want the short version: Each kind of shoe works slightly better in some circumstances than regular shoes, but in some circumstances they fall short. All in all, there’s no significant difference in the toning shoes compared to regular athletic shoes. But don’t feel bad if you’ve already shelled out the money for the new shoes. If they make you get out, walk more, run more, or just move more, they’ve done their job and they’re worth it!
Personally, I don’t see how a shoe shaped like the one above could promote correct walking mechanics, let alone make you better. But that’s just me… I’m a fan of good old-fashioned barefoot training. More about that later!
P.S. If you want to read more studies on different exercises, products, or trends, check out ACE’s Get Fit website. You can also find your own workouts, healthy recipes, or workout calculators there. It’s a very handy tool to check out!
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Filed Under: ACE, Get Fit, research, shoes, studies, toning shoes