Yoga Sculpt

First of all, I'm not at the point of doing this position yet ha. I took another class at Barre Bliss, this time Yoga Sculpt. Now this was my kind class! It was a combination of yoga, cardio, calisthenics and weight training.  Parts of it were challenging, but otherwise it was great and I felt great afterwards. I was sore the next day but not incredibly sore. I'm not sure if this class was better because of the content, or the instructor, or both. Either way I am looking forward to taking more classes! Friday morning I'm taking a Ballet Barre class, which focuses more on ballet than the pilates we did in the Barre Bliss class. I also went for a walk around Lake Harriet yesterday instead of taking a class since it was RIDICULOUSLY nice out here. 

I've still been struggling with eating well. I still crave sweets like crazy and it's really hard to cut them out all together. I did discover a delicious flavor of Stonyfield organic yogurt called Chocolate Underground. It's low-fat and filled with protein (and some sugar). I had it as a snack with strawberries and almonds the other day and it was perfect. 

The biggest thing besides sugar that I have been struggling with is portion control. One thing that has really helped is a book I found called 400 Calorie Fix. It is a diet book from the editors of Prevention magazine, but it's full of delicious recipes. It really helps you think about the portions you're eating and how much you really need. It also has great tips about eating out and making quick meals. For a person my size who is moderately active they say I should eat between 3-4 400 calorie meals a day. They have a quick slim 2 week plan where you only eat 3 meals a day... which has been hard for me because I love to snack! It's also been hard trying to schedule meals around work and whether that means eating one meal in the morning, one in the late afternoon and then one after work... It's been a process. I've been trying to buckle down and just do this for 2 weeks but it also just seems like not enough food. So I think I'm going to stick with the 1600 limit and see how that goes. 

I'll keep you updated on how this week is going! 

Be well,

No Excuses and Barre Class

So in my last post about The Biggest Loser I forgot to include my favorite part of the new season! This season has a theme of "No Excuses," which I think is pretty fitting for my blog. Each week they go through different excuses like "I don't have time to eat healthy" or "I don't have a gym membership." I need to adopt the attitude of "No Excuses." I have no excuse not to be active every day, or to get all of my servings of fruits and vegetables. It's a great thing to keep in mind every day.

My friend Liz also reminded me about what I don't like about The Biggest Loser, which is that they do push the contestants too hard sometimes. There's a lot of drama that happens mostly for TV which can be dumb, but it gets bad when it involves the contestants' well-being. So don't take the show too seriously.

Yesterday I went to my first Barre class at Barre Bliss studio with my friend Sarah. This class was a combination of barre work, yoga, pilates and cardio. It was fun, but tough! And I am super sore today. I bought a month of unlimited classes from Living Social so I will be going again, at least 3 times a week. They also do yoga and basic barre classes which will be fun. I'm taking a Yoga Sculpt class on Sunday so I will let you know how it goes.

For the next two days I will be working like crazy. I got a promotion at work, so now I will be a shift leader... which is basically an assistant manager. Super excited! Now I just have a ton of information to learn. Enjoy the weekend!

Be well,