Christmas Engagement!

My Christmas Surprise...

If you are my friend on facebook then you know I recently announced Jay proposed to me! I wanted to write this blog to give more details to anyone who is interested, so here goes...

Christmas morning we opened all our presents, Jay spoiled me and bought me quite a few nice things (camcorder, M.A.C makeup, Dior perfume...) anyway, after presents we just relaxed, played with our gifts and lounged. Jay and his dad were setting the table in the dinning room so I wondered in there to see if they needed help, they both said "no!" and ushered me out. Funny thing: Jay said "You can't sit down we all sit down at the same time in this family" I was like-uh..ok. Next, we were called to dinner, Jay told me where I was to sit, and we, still standing held hands and said our prayer.

Dun-dun-dun! I pulled out my chair to sit and I'll be damned there was a small box wrapped on my seat! It was to me from Jay, It was pretty big to be a ring box, so I thought it was maybe a nice watch, earrings or necklace but as I unwrapped it was a ring box! shocked, I looked at Jay and he got on one knee and said simply, "will you marry me?"

I said yes and held it together until I looked up and saw Jay's mom crying to i cried too, lol. It was awesome. I think the best part was that Jay and his dad planned it together and even filmed the whole thing! I got to see after dinner the movie and Jay practicing and making sure the camera was just right. Seeing the behind the scenes of the proposal made it that much cuter. I am so glad I have these memories on film to maybe one day share with my kids.

Needless to say it was an amazing Christmas and I feel blessed and happy.

Not a fitness blog but..."bootcamp"

As a woman who was slender and tall-ish (5'7'') the majority of my life, I find it frustrating that I cant lose the 20+ pounds I gained two years ago. This gain I blame on the partly on the recession and partly on love :) I lost the job i loved and moved states, this caused both depression and home-sickness that both contributed to emotional eating. And secondly, like i mentioned love. Although wonderful, many night of dining at restuarants and cocktails and "the honeymoon phase" added pounds too.

In any case, i have been trying different work-outs to find one i enjoy enough to stay consistent. I bought 20 sessions of "bootcamp" style work out, it is a fitness class outdoors that does strength and cardio training. I went 6 sessions and lost 5 pounds. That's the good news, the bad news is my ankles hurt, ALL the time, like it hurts to walk! it also hurts to go up and down stairs. I don't know what to do to repair this and it makes me worried that the pain will never go away...

So bootcamp is out obviously. I didn't mean this to be a blog on fitness so i may periodically update my workouts to update you on when or if i find something i can stick to.

Yoga Day 1: I'm about as flexible as a crow bar

Today I woke up early, with anticipation of beginning my yoga experiment. I checked the schedule last night and yes, beginner class, (Venus Beginners) starts at 10am. Perfect! not too early.Well, I showed up to the studio bright eyed and ready with my never been used mat- bought just the night before and checked in...
My first fail! Venus beginners was YESTERDAY! 10am this morning is "Mars Power Vinyasa". That just SOUNDS hard, where's my Venus? soft loving Venus? I was about to just go home, but the instructor assured me that the class was doable, there was not much difference and in fact, the room is 5 degrees cooler than the Venus beginner class. I didn't want to turn back so I said I'll give it a shot.
Ok, to drive my point, without boring you, I have NEVER done a yoga class, the only experience I have is of my WII fit in my living room where I've done maybe two easy poses one time because I was bored.
The Room:
It's hot! well no kidding right, but it's a bit intimidating. There are already a few people in class, mats on the ground and they are lying flat on their backs with eyes closed. Should I be doing that? I don't, I sit cross legged, then with legs stretched in front, then cross legged, then I sip water....I'm nervous.

The Class:
The class begins and as the instructor warns, the "power" in power yoga means we don't stop between poses, we transition from one right to the next with no breaks! this is intense to say the least. About ten minutes in I'm soaked with sweat and feeling faint. I sit and drink water. A few minutes pass and the instructor says directly to me, "you'll like this one its good" and I do! It's a nice leg stretch and I am able to benefit from it. The rest of the class goes like that. I sit out what I can't do, the instructor will suggests poses she knows will work for me, and I try my hardest to make it through most poses and not pass out. I probably executed half. Also, I was not the only one sitting out some, even the advanced students struggled with a couple (can we say head stand?). This makes the class comfortable, we do not judge each other in yoga, we focus on our own bodies. I can't help but look around though :)
The End:
The cool down series is amazing! It leaves you feeling energized, and really loosens up your muscles. That series alone makes the class worth it. After class, the instructor approaches me and tells me I did a good job! Gold star for me! She knew I was a complete novice and her words really motivated me to continue. That and my 30 day experiment too ;)
P.S:
I got home, took a cold shower, ate a light lunch (turkey sandwich) sat down and wrote to you! I feel great not too tired. If you decide to follow my journey with me, let me know what you need from me in the comments? less rambling? more? I'm open to suggestions.
`Until tomorrow.

My Yoga Journey: Introduction

I have been struggling with this blog since day one, I post things then take them down. I love to write but I wanted my blog to have a focus, I didn't want me rambling on about mundane things and bore people to death. Yes, I am writing with anticipation that people will read. So inspired in part by a book I'm currently reading about one women's journey with love and spirituality and also by my own lack of direction I got the aha moment I've been waiting for. I'm beginning a journey that I will document and share, as of tomorrow I will begin 30 days of yoga and share my experience. What that means is I will go to yoga everyday for at least the next 30 days and share not only my reaction to the class but what it does to my life and how the two blend together. I am a complete beginner in the task, I have never been to a single yoga class and so I begin this journey completely virgin- wish me luck!