Today...

Was long. I had work for almost 7 hours...I work full time during the week, then I have 2 part-time jobs. It is a lot, but it is what I have to do at he moment. I got out at 3:30, and it normally ends at 12:30. We had a faculty meeting, so my whole schedule was messed up. I got to the gym a little past 4, thinking that it closed at 5. Unfortunately, I was wrong. Gym closed at 4. That meant no workout today. Tomorrow, I'm planning on trying a "Group Power" class. It's apparently weight lifting to music. Might be interesting. I've never done weight lifting with a class before. And I've done weight lifting 2 times in my life. And I've never used dumbbells before. So as I said...interesting. Depending on how I feel, I might try a yoga class. We shall see!

Kickboxing!

So yesterday was supposed to just be a healthy eating day, however since my plans were cancelled for the night, I figured that I might as well go to the gym.  I was incredibly nervous about trying a new class, but the boyfriend encouraged me to give it a try.  I dressed in my incredibly fancy workout gear (old yoga capris that don't really fit, a free giveaway shirt, and these nifty blue sneakers I picked up from Payless...can't find the link, but they are REALLY blue.  I love them) and headed to the gym.  I got there a bit early and picked up a water bottle for $2.00 (totally worth it).  Something really great my gym does is that they let you load money onto your account so you don't need to worry about bringing cash...always good for someone that NEVER has cash with her!

I walked into the class, told the instructor that I was new, and then proceded to be tortured.  Nah, I'm kidding- sort of.  It was brutal but in such a good way!  We didn't actually kick or punch anything other than air which is totally fine.  I am totally feeling the burn today though.  I'm at work in my delightfully comfortable work clothes (business casual...heels included) and I am hobbling around because of the muscles in the back of my thighs.  It's a super good type of pain though - not one that feels like I actually injured myself.

Since yesterday was my "healthy eating" day, I figure I should share what I ate...

Breakfast:
Decaf Coffee
Honey Nut Cheerios
Skim Milk
Pear

Lunch:
BIG salad (like 12 ounces or something ridiculous)

Afternoon Snack:
TAZA Dark Chocolate - 1 segment (I will share more about this in the future.  I'm in heaven)

Dinner:
Dr. Praeger's Veggie Burger w/ Cheddar Cheese (1 serving)
Steamed/Roasted Veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, garlic, onion)

Nighttime snack:
Stop & Shop String Cheese

Probably not the best healthy eating day ever, but WAY better than my normal eating habits.  I'm definitely going to try to eat from the salad bar at lunch every day, even my non-healthy days.

Shabbat starts at sundown, so I am going to run now...I'll be back tomorrow night!

Zumba

I have a long history with Zumba... I started doing Zumba in the summer of 2009 after a camping trip (don't be fooled - I don't make a habit of camping). A girl on the trip was in GREAT shape, and she told me about this dance exercise class. I am by NO means a dancer, but I decided to check it out. I loved it. I felt goofy, but also strangely sexy. Zumba is HOT. My mom even bought me a Zumba Wii game. I went there several times and really enjoyed it. For some reason I'm still not sure of, I stopped going there. Then, I moved, went to grad school, etc. I still loved Zumba, but didn't do it. Man though, when I saw the infomercials, I missed it. Eventually, I moved and joined the local YMCA which had...Zumba! I went there a bunch, but then my schedule changed, and I had to stop. Well, the gym I joined yesterday has Zumba too!

I went to a class last night. It. Was. Awesome. I love Zumba. We boogied and sank down low, and did an entire song of squats...it was intense. You know it's a good workout when you feel your muscles burning DURING the class!

I had a change of plans for tonight - it was supposed to be just healthy eating day for me, but my weekly Thursday night plans were cancelled...and I'm going to go to the gym. You know, notepad of sitting around my apartment playing video games (though my love of Mario Party was recently reignited...)

Guess what I'm going to try...

New Year, New Blog

Why that title? Because time and time again, I have tried to start a blog, and failed.  Lets try again, shall we?

Plan: 3/2/2 - 3 days gym, 2 days healthy food, 2 days off

Why? I'm an abstainer.  A short-term abstainer.  What that means is that if I say "I will not have xyz", then I don't have xyz.  The issue comes in when I deprive myself of xyz for too long.  Strangely enough, this only really applies to food - I don't have any issues abstaining from other stuff.  So, I'm working with my strengths.

I'm good at abstaining from food short term.  As an observant Jew, I am required to observe 2 major fasts (sundown to nightfall the following night: essentially 25 hours with no food or drink at all) and 4 minor fasts (no food or drink from sunrise to nightfall).  As a result, I figure that I can do anything foodwise.  You know, as long as it's only 1 day!

My schedule looks like this:

Sunday - Gym (maybe run? No classes run at a convenient time, and I would like to train for a 5k...)
Monday - Gym (Maybe strength training class and/or yoga?)
Tuesday - Healthy eating (no junk food at all!)
Wednesday - Gym (Zumbaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...will explain my long history with Zumba another time)
Thursday -  Healthy eating (this is the trickiest day for me I think!  Again, will explain later)
Friday & Saturday - Off!  (totally a part of the "observant Jew" thing)

This whole thing started yesterday (first day back at work)...I'll tell you about how my first day went later on :)