March… poof! Where has it gone?

Where has March gone?  It is hard to believe it is the end of the month already.

Because I have been strength training at home a couple of times a week, and going to group exercises classes at the gym 3 times a week, and getting out for lots of walks in between, running has taken a back seat.  Well, honestly, running has barely been in the car at all!

So last night when we went to bed I told The Captain that I was going for a 5km run this morning and he said he would like to go along.  This morning we both had a bit of coffee before drinking our pre-run smoothies and off we went. It was a bit breezy along the waterfront so I was glad I had worn my Tommie Copper beanie to keep my ears warm.  It was quite sunny though and I warmed up quickly. 

It was slow, I have to admit, and The Captain did walk a couple of times on uphill stretches so that he wasn’t running away from me! But It was great to be out and afterward, I enjoyed a long and leisurely stretch on the balcony in the sunshine.

W1 R37 @12/1 W4
stretch 5 minutes

March in Numbers:

• 3 number of runs
• 4 number each  of Body Pump, Flow Yoga, and Body Flow classes
• 9 number of strength training sessions with The Captain
• 12 number of treadmill runs that I did before group exercise classes ranging in time from 10 to 25 minutes, no keeping track of distance
• 15 number of kilometres run

I am so looking forward to April… one more Body Pump class and one more Flow Yoga class before my gym membership expires and then the routine changes again.

I am gathering information about stretching hips and hip flexors, starting a home yoga practice, and looking for some beginners’ yoga workouts that I can share with The Captain.  I will be changing our workout schedule and the exercises in it as well.  

It is gonna be a fun month! 

Any special plans for April?

March Gym Update... Favorite Reads From the Week

My focus for the month of March has been Getting Into The Gym.  You will recall that I won a month’s membership at GoodLife Fitness in a giveaway…

I can hardly believe that March is almost over. And with it, my temporary gym membership is almost over as well.  The actual expiry date is Thursday, April 3rd, but because I don’t go on Thursdays, my last class will be Flow Yoga at noon on Wednesday.  I am sad about that because I do really enjoy that class so much.

But, in all honesty, I have such mixed feelings about the whole experience. There are so many things I have loved about having this gym membership and… other things, not so much.

What I loved:

• the variety of great exercise classes I have participates in such as Body Pump, Flow Yoga, and Body Flow
• the availability of a wide variety of other classes I could attend including, but not limited to Body Shred (the new Jillian Michaels product), RPM Spin, Body Combat, Body Step, and Zumba
• the selection of cardio machines – lots of them and a good variety of types – treadmills, ellipticals, bikes, steppers, moving steps, and at least 2 or 3 styles of each as well.
• tv screens on each cardio machine
• mp3 player jacks on each cardio machine
• huge group exercise room
• lots of Spin bikes in the cycling room
• lots of yoga mats, yoga blocks, steps, barbells, and weights  in the group exercise room
• large stretching/balls/mat area
• large weight area along with several scary machine and good assortment of dumbbells and weights and benches
• knowledgeable and very friendly staff
• good locker room facilities (with hair dryers and nice counters) that are clean and tidy and well-maintained
• there is a women’s only affiliate club at another location that is part of the overall membership
• they do not allow image-capturing devices to be used anywhere on the premises
• they encourage everyone to participate and don’t seem to show favoritism among the clients
• I haven’t seen any creeps or ‘lunkheads’ or ‘Barbie dolls’ 
• there are well-stocked sanitizing stations all over the premises and signs asking clients to clean the machines after using them
• there is a towel service
• there are tanning booths
• there is a courtesy phone in the foyer of the locker rooms
• this gym is only a short walk from my home

Not so much:

• large space with lots of machines that no one seems to use. They are used in succession for circuit work but I rarely see them being used. A waste of space I think.
• some fellow clients can be annoying – coming into class late and squeezing in where there really isn’t adequate room – leaving yoga class and disturbing people during the Shavasannah when the instructor has clearly asked that no one do this and has suggested people leave before it starts if they cannot stay to complete it
• there are several clocks in the locker rooms and in the fitness areas and they all seem to have different times on them
• the classes I like are only available at 6 a.m. or noon
• the prices is $60 per month plus taxes – I am not sure how this is compared to others – I think it is a bit steep 
• there are no paper towel dispensers in the washrooms and only hot air blowers to dry your hands – they seem to blow the water all over the wall behind them and I think it is yukky

Am I being petty?  Do I sound ungrateful?   Perhaps… but I have to admit if I get another chance to have a free month next Spring, I will jump on it!  It is a nice change of pace for me and has allowed me to reconnect with my love for yoga and stretching.

I have read so many great blog posts and articles over the past week that I am eager to share some of them with you. This is a fairly long list, but I don’t want to leave any out:

• Essential Stretches for Runners by HappyFitMama
• 7 Tips to Boost Your Immune System by Urban Nutrition
• Best Dang Workout Program Design To Build A Better Body & Be More Awesome by Nia Shanks
• 10 Advanced Ab Exercises For the Summer by LiftingRevolution
• 8 Tips to Have a Positive Body Image and Stop Obsessive Eating Habits by Your Trainer Paige
• Benefits of Strength Training by SlimSanity
• Discomfort vs Pain - the Runner's Dilemma by Run To The Finish
• Cross Training the Secret Running Ingredient by KatrinaElle
• 6 Reasons to Build Lean Muscle by The Get In Shape Girl
• Maximize your workout efforts – Learn how to Fuel Your Post-Workout Days by Ben Graham
• Grips and angles | two simple ways to progress your workouts by FitKnitChick
• March Mad (Fit)ness: My Final Four by Running With Ollie
• Fat Loss 101: Five Strategies that Work by Sarah Jane (The Fit Cookie,Fit Betty)
• 12 Great Stretches for Tight Hip Flexors by FitBody HQ

and just for fun:

• 18 Signs You're With the Man You Should Marry by Cosmopolitan

Bet you will find something on this list that speaks to you, too.

So for the month of April, I have decided to concentrate on FLEXIBILITY.  That will mean lots of stretching and starting a home yoga practice. I think I will get The Captain involved too.  IF you have any advice, I would be glad to have it. 

And a little Spring cheer to leave with you… here is the view across the street from our apartment today… sun shining… willow tree busting into full leaf, and turtles basking on the log in the lake.  I wish you could see all the herons flying around, picking up bits of twigs and branches as they build nests in the tall oak and fir trees in the park.

Do you stretch or do yoga for flexibility?

Any beefs or bouquets about your gym?

What is your favorite thing about Spring where you live?

Welcoming Spring, Gym Update, and Sharing Great Reads

I am always so excited to welcome Spring. I think it is my favorite season… flowering Spring daffodils and tulips are my favorites... and I love to watch the bursting pink and white blossoms on the cherry and plum trees, the little green leaves growing on the deciduous trees, and the fern leaves uncurling.  The herons in the park across the street are starting to build nests, and the local coffee shop patios are filled with people who are out and about and so happy and friendly in the warm weather.   There are new baby goats at the Children’s Farm in the park and a couple more nannies are ready to give birth any day.  So exciting.

I have thoroughly been enjoying my gym time since the beginning of the month.  I have settled into a routine of noon hour group classes… Tuesday is Body Pump, Wednesday is Flow Yoga, and Friday is Body Flow.  I normally walk to the gym and then run on a treadmill for 15 or 20 minutes before going into the group exercise area, stretching, and getting any equipment ready for the class.  The Body Pump is really hard and really fun and I love it. It leaves me so tired with a huge grin on my face.  Such a nice change to the heavier lifting we do at home. And now that I am tasting yoga again, I do intend to start a home practice and keep it up.  Really.

I have also been working out twice a week at home with The Captain, doing strength workouts…  and also some running, and some walking.  This Spring weather is beckoning me out more and more. 

All in all, I am loving the workouts… but I really don’t care for the timing of it all. Taking an exercise class at noon is very disruptive to the rest of my day.  If I could take a class at 7 or 8 a.m. I would be thrilled.  But there is nothing available at those times here, so I will continue status quo until the temporary membership runs out the first week in April.  I think I will try some of the other cardio machines next week.

I wanted to share some blog posts and articles I read this week that really spoke to me.  Some of them are by bloggers I normally follow and some are new to me.  I bet there is something you would find interesting in this list, too.

• 12 Great Stretches for Tight Hip Flexors by FITBODYHQ

• Tips For Staying Safe While Running by Crazy Running Girl

• 6 Minute Ab Workout (with video) by Go Fit Gals

• 5 Common Fitness Saboteurs and How to Defeat Them by Women’s Running

• The Fatigue Fallacy:  Why You Should Not Finish Your Workouts Exhausted by Nia Shanks

• Am I Hungry?  by Its a Harleyyy Life

• Those Are Some Bad Words by Gigi Eats Celebrities

Just a little photo of my very favorite thing about Spring arriving on my street…




Yes, the turtles in the lake across the street from us have come out of Winter hibernation and crawl up on this log to bask in the warmth of the sunshine… usually for a few hours mid-day. Sometimes there are as many as 17 of them.  Nice that the willow is leafing out too, of course... but I don’t think I will ever get tired of seeing these turtles.

Any signs of Spring where you live yet?

Did you read anything shareworthy this week?

How would you feel about a noon exercise class?

Checking Out the ToiletTree Products Professional Oral Irrigator

The opportunity to try out and review this   ToiletTree Products Professional Oral Irrigator could not have come at a better time for me.

You probably recall that I finally visited my dentist and dental hygienist in February, after having put it off for a couple of years while waiting to see if my immune system was healthy enough.  Once I got the go-ahead from my immunologist, I made an appointment for both a dental checkup and dental hygiene… and came away vowing to do a bettter job of keeping my teeth clean myself. I have been faithfully brushing and flossing, especially before turning in for the night.

So when this ToiletTree Products Professional Oral Irrigator arrived, I was anxious and very excited to give it a try… I plugged it in right away and left it for 8 hours to fully charge the battery.

The first time I used it I was a bit nervous about the possibility squirting water all over me and the bathroom counter… but it was for naught. This tool is very easy to use, and control. And it is also very easy to care for.

It is light and fits comfortably in my hand. 

The irrigator has an off/on button, and three different modes of spray… Normal, Soft, and Pulse.  And what a great job it does!  I just run the nozzle along my gum line, upper and lower, and it easily removes any bits of food caught between my teeth… I do tend to have problems with this, especially when I eat meat, and this great tool takes care of that easily… better than floss, and more safely, I think, than a toothpick.   And the pulse mode offers a nice massage to the gums.

The Oral Irrigator comes with 2 nozzles, so that you have a spare, or one for a second family member, and battery charger. It is fairly compact so doesn’t require a lot of storage space.

My conclusion… this is a wonderful addition to my dental care regimen and I certainly intend to keep using it.  And yes, I did give the second nozzle to The Captain, so that he could try the Oral Irrigator, too.  He has  been faithfully using it a couple of times a day, usually right before he brushes his teeth.

I am so glad to have this new device in my dental care tool kit!

If you are wondering if this oral irrigator might be for you, check out this article. It has lots of technical information and is quite interesting, too.

Of course you realize that I was given this ToiletTree Products Proffesional Oral Irrigator at no cost to me, but the opinions and enthusiasm are genuine and my own.

Have you ever tried an oral irrigator?

Do you have a dental hygiene regimen that you follow or are you kinda hit and miss?

My Favorites this week

I have read so many great blog posts this week and wanted to share some that really stand out to me… I am always interested in workout advice and food tips… so here goes… hope you find something interesting here, too.

Here are my 7 favorite blog posts of the week:

• The Power of Play  from Weight Watchers U.S.A.

•  The 10 Biggest Fitness Myths from  Go Fit Gals 

• Gluten-Free Cheat Sheet from Abby at Back at Square Zero 

• Yoga For Runners  from Christine at Love, Life, Surf 

• Tips to Prevent Workout Injuries from Tamara at fitknitchick 

•  6 Nutrition Guidelines Whether You Want to Lose Weight or Not from Paige at Your Trainer Paige  

• Deconstructing Our Cravings from Laura at Mommy Run Fast

And I also want to share 2 books I am thoroughly enjoying right now.
 
The first is called  Ultimate Booty Workouts   and was written by Tamara Grand, who blogs at fitnknitchick.   There has been a lot of buzz around this book already and if you haven’t seen it yet, you really need to get your hands on it.  I know you can find it here on Amazon.  
 

 

Due to some exercise commitments that I had already taken on before I got my own copy of this book, I have not been able to start Tamara’s workouts… but I plan to do just that.  Great background information and detailed workouts, all with lovely and helpful illustrations.  It is an easy, interesting and informative read… now to just do it!

 

The other is a cookbook called Cooking With Coconut Oil  by Elizabeth Nyland, who blogs at Guilty Kitchen and it was was also just recently released.

 

 

Elizabeth gives lots of background about the health benefits of coconut oil and some great tips.  The recipes are ones you will actually make. I love this book.  You will too, I know it.  It is also available at Amazon and you can find it here.  It is also available for Kindle.

 

Both of these women live in my Canadian province, British Columbia.  I am so excited for their achievement of having published these books, and want them to be wildly successful so they will continue in their work and share more with all of us.

 
I am not an Amazon affiliate, I just wanted to make it easy for you to read about and find these books if you are interested. I am sure there are other sellers as well.
 
What did you find this week that you would like to share?