Gym-less Yoga and A Better Way to Cut an Apple

Today, I am officially gym-less. It wasn't a hard decision to make. Since reactivating my membership to the local Y, when I look at the amount I spent every month vs the amount of times I went... well, I wasted a lot of money. Part of the problem was that I'm not a morning person and that's about the only time the Y isn't stinkin' busy that I'm able to go (my other option is during work hours but I think my work might take issue to that). I decided trying to go after work once it became obvious that the morning idea was really not going to work, but I spent almost as much time waiting for machines and weights that I gave up after two visits. They have told us at work that as soon as they sign our next contract, they're going to put a gym in the ground floor for the employees. I hoping that will be soon but in the meantime, I'm setting up a few 'at home' options (which means a trip out to Wal-Mart for cheap weights which bugs me because a) I have to go out to Wal-Mart on the bus and b) then I have to carry the weights home).

Yes, my fingers are really the part of me I'd like to slim down and tone up!

One of the at home things I'm setting up is yoga. I always really enjoyed yoga but the times at the Y didn't work with my schedule and the class at my work is done on a cement floor with carpet laid over top... no subflooring. I actually found various moves a bit painful on the joints which is not what one wants from yoga (or if you do, I think you're crazy... and so does your body). I've done enough yoga classes as well as dance/movement classes that I feel, with a little help from Mr. Internet and Mrs. Library, I should be able to figure out a set or two to regularly do.

Or maybe more of this would make the calming yoga obsolete...

Two weeks ago, when C passed away, one of the items in my post that was never posted was about a Health, Wellness and Fitness Conference ("healthy living blogger summit" is what I've been calling it) happening Toronto next May called No Limits Canada. There's no definite time that's been set out yet (as far as us peons go) other than 'May' and I'm really hoping I can make it out there for it. At this point, however, I have a wedding in Spain in September 2011 and that takes priority for me as far as my travel budget for next year... here's hoping I win the lottery or find a sugar daddy!

Have any of you done yoga from a DVD, book or website? Do you have any recommendations?

Pac-Man Cookies!! Aaaaaand some other stuff about this blog.

I have begun the task of separating Chilkoot-me from real-me just a little bit more for two reasons:

1.) I wanted this blog to focus on creating healthier habits and living and healthier, more active life. Over the last little while, however, I feel more and more of the other bits creeping in. I am, after all, a story-telling, Irish offspring. But does talking about my desire to go to w00tstock really have a place on this blog? Or the fact that anytime I respond to Wil Wheaton on twitter, my 12 year old me who had the biggest crush on him secretly panics and fears he will read the tweet and think 'dork'. Does that have a place on this blog? Not really. (Well, it does now. It has a place as an example. Heck, while we're on the subject of what a dork I am, I think everyone should see this.)

2.) Since the two worlds started to combine bit by bit, I've noticed that I've stopped the focus in my life in general towards making healthy choices. I also know that most of the people who read this blog are friends who are being supportive but don't necessarily care about the actual content so much. It's easy to let your focus slip when you know that's the case. I need to step up the game and I think the best way to do that is to use this blog to focus solely on the healthy living aspects. Not to say that personal things won't pop up now and again (I'm not going to stop having a life and it will affect this blog), but that's not what this blog is about.

I've started another blog for all my long-winded trips down memory lane, I've separated into two twitter accounts, and I'll be pottering around here, changing up a few things. I'm also taking a more proactive approaching towards the whole healthy living thing in general. I spent about an hour this evening going through the blogrolls of the healthy living bloggers I currently follow and adding other interesting bloggers to my RSS reader (seriously, if you follow a lot of sites and don't have one of these set up yet... DO IT!) to test drive them over the next few weeks (and then if I like them, I will do the mature, grown up thing and stalk them on twitter). Mostly I hoping for new recipes and food ideas, but I'll gladly take their workout advice as well!

In short; I'm separating church and state so to speak, expect a few changes around here, and Wil Wheaton is still kind of dreamy in my geeky, geeky eyes.

This picture has nothing to do with this post but I think these cookies are awesome.

Instructions found here!

On my feet again

I just got back from my first run in two weeks and it felt so good. Granted, I didn't go as far or as hard as I should have, but I didn't eat proper meals in those two weeks so I'm still getting my 'exercise-legs' back so to speak. I was a little apprehensive given the amount of time off, but I needn't have worried. I did lag a little in parts but that's to be expected even if I hadn't been sick. The extra bonus is that it felt so good to be running, all the little nagging doubts that crept in during my extended illness about the ability to continue towards the half-marathon in October totally evaporated. I will have to make a few adjustments to the training schedule so I can make up for the training sessions I missed without just jumping up in distance and intervals, but I can totally still make this happen. That is a great feeling.

Could It Be True?

I woke up this morning feeling really, really good. I think I might be back to normal. Every morning for the past week and a bit, I've woken up feeling *meh* and achy but not today. The fever that I wasn't so sure I had? Well, I actually felt it break last night. Apparently I did have a fever. I'm very excited because hopefully this means I can be back to the training tomorrow. YAY!!

Summer is back!!

After a week and a bit of very questionable weather in Victoria (and Vancouver from the sounds of it), summer is definitely back. I left the air conditioned office for my morning coffee break and wished I had some shorts or a skirt to change into because it was already uncomfortably hot and it wasn't even 11:00am. Of course, part of the reason I found it uncomfortably hot could be because I once again had to leave work early (I don't even know why I bothered going in) and I appear to be running a bit of a fever. I don't actually have a thermometer in my house because I only think to buy them when I'm sick and the last thing I want to do when I'm sick is leave the house to go buy something. One of these days, I will get one... probably when I have children.

Obviously, tonight's exercise involves pilates-type single movements as I toss about the bed in my overly hot bedroom, followed by core work as I try to keep myself upright long enough to make something to eat, some upper arms as I flick through the DVDs to watch and then, to round things out, a bit of yoga. I plan to stay in shavasana for a long, long time.

I'm totally okay with being sick and indoors during the nicest weather of the year. Totally!

Yeah, I remember that

Remember how yesterday I wrote that I was feeling better and I'd be back on track for Friday's run? Remember?

Apparently my body lied to me because someone had to leave work early today and won't be weighing in tonight, and quite possibly, won't be doing anything of the athletic variety tomorrow night.

Boo-urns.

For my mom, who will have no idea what 'boo-urns' means.


PS. How have I been able to go an entire 13 months without once labelling something 'Simpsons'? I feel like blogger-me has failed real-me.

It's like I'm being kicked while I'm down

They say things happen in threes. I'm not a believer of that theory as I can think on many times when things *didn't* happen in threes, but if they were right (whoever the f* 'they' are) then I would feel that the universe might owe me three good things this week.

The weekend started off with the crummy: C died. Then on Saturday, I noticed that I seemed incredibly tired and my arms really hurt after carrying home my groceries. By Sunday morning, I was pretty much bed ridden. I had caught the flu which was going around the office and I spent an entire 48 hours either in bed sleeping or doing things that didn't involve much thought. To give you an idea about how much thought was too much, a friend had lent me Iron Man on DVD because I had never seen it. After 15 minutes, I turned it off because it required too much thought. Yeah, that sick. The upside is that I didn't really eat much because I couldn't stay awake long enough to make anything. The downside is that I haven't done anything physical in a week. I'm not expecting great things tomorrow. Quite frankly, I'll be happy if I break even.



My third thing happened late last night. I had been giving most of my extra free time this summer to helping organise a BC Tour for Ballet Saamato. We diligently sent off the visa applications in early July and then started the process of waiting... and waiting... and waiting... and being asked to send additional documents... and then waiting... and still more waiting. It was an agonizing situation to be in. We wanted to move forward with the planning, but how can we confirm concerts and sell tickets if we don't even know if they're coming? Ballet Saamato were supposed to arrive tomorrow but two weeks ago we pushed it the flights back to next week. Then last night we got our answer. From my 'things in three', I'm sure you can guess that it was a decline. The Embassy has their reasons (not enough paper trail to prove that the artists will return to Guinea once the trip is over) and we have to accept their answer, but we have already started creating that required paper trail (proof of land ownership, copies of birth records for children, I know it sounds odd but paper trails rarely exist in Africa; when the literacy rate is less than 30%, a piece paper doesn't mean much) in the hopes that we will be able to try this again.

I'm still not entirely back to my usual fabulous self, that will take a few more nights of decent rest and proper nutrition, but I'm hoping to be back to the running by Friday. I've missed a lot of time on my training and although I'm not too worried (yet) that I won't be able to catch up, too much more and I'll have to rethink the run-walk a half-marathon plan. Sigh... perhaps I'll just spend a little more time in the self-pity wallowing pool. Just for tonight; I promise.

Do you guys ever have a week that makes you think 'ugh, why bother'?