CHALLENGE COMPLETE

I DID IT!

At the end of April I decided to beat fitness boredom with a 22 day yoga challenge. I was determined to take a class every single day for 22 days… and by the end of the challenge I would be 22 years old and a college graduate. I knew there would be tricky days to fit in a sweaty class (y’know like having to attend 2 college graduations), but I was determined to make it a priority for these 22 days.

So, how did I do?

in the end I did 21 yoga classes in 22 days.

Out of those 22 days I only didn’t attend a yoga class at all for two days– and that was because I was in pretty terrible pain from getting shots into my shoulder joint.

I went to yoga class before my huge nyu graduation at yankee stadium (which was also my birthday) and also before my Tisch graduation at Radio City. I went to Yoga in Manhattan (a lot ) and in Northern Westchester. I survived getting shots in my shoulder despite being a huge needle-phobe thanks to knowing how to breathe. I woke up at 6:15AM on days I was worried 7AM would be my only chance to go to yoga. I planned my day around ensuring I would be able to take a class. I took classes at Crunch, Yoga Vida, Sacred Space and Katonah Yoga.  I looked forward to class every single day. I had amazing classes and meh classes. I found teachers I adore and teachers I will avoid.

While it isn’t a huge feat, it was a challenge for me and something to keep me busy instead of sulking about my shoulder, and hey it did the trick.

The best part of the challenge? not allowing myself to make excuses about why I should skip class– I was gonna go to class no matter what (with the two days of pain exception). While I’m sure I would have gone to lots of yoga classes in the past 22 days, I would not have woken up super early for yoga class on my graduabirthday, I would not have travelled to a slightly farther away studio because it was the only class I could make all day, I would not have forced myself to try out yoga studios in Westchester, and I would have found a million excuses why I should skip class on any given day.

While the challenge is over, I am definitely continuing on. This girl who HATED yoga in January is definitely obsessed now, and even deeply considering teacher training— who would have guessed? It has definitely helped me find peace of mind, happiness and confidence. Before every class I get so excited to be on the mat once again.

So now, I continue to search for the perfect-for-me yoga class in Northern Westchester (can Yoga Vida please open a third location here, k thanks), and continue on this path that has already been paved.

….. and my gym buddy Annica and I are even gonna sweat our asses off with some bikram this week. Uhhh wish me luck.

In conclusion…. I encourage anyone who even remotely likes yoga to do a mini challenge, 20 days? 21 days? 22 if you just so happen to be turning that age…. any challenge, whether it be yoga, zumba, spinning, or not eating dessert, making it a challenge and knowing there are no excuses makes it so much easy to commit.
As I read in another blog after someone completed a challenge there is never going to be a good time. Was doing a challenge in the midst of finals, graduation and shoulder x-rays a good idea? no, but instead of searching for the perfect time to do a challenge, just do it. You won’t regret it.

accepting where I am

‎4 years, 4 dorms,2 apartments, changed my major 2 times, floor 9, NMTC, purple group, gallatin, a COW, more In the Heights and American Idiot lottos than I can count, 20 or so shows worked on in some capacity, very few hours of sleep, far too many hours spent at 440, dangerous amounts of starbucks consumed, all nighters in bobst, plenty of blood sweat and tears…. I can’t believe it’s over.

Friday was Tisch Salute aka Graduation Part Two!

While I quite enjoyed graduabirthday at yankee stadium, Tisch Salute at Radio City Music Hall was pretty sweet

Hopefully it was not my last time walking across the stage at Radio City (Tony Awards? Please?)

and I got to see my HERO Michael Mayer, director of American Idiot, Spring Awakening and other musicals of my childhood was our HILARIOUS guest speaker. It was incredibly fitting that after spending the second half of my college career obsessing over American Idiot, Michael Mayer would be the speaker at my graduation

—

I’m in the home stretch with the yoga challenge!

Day 19 (Saturday)

Vinyasa at Yoga Vida with one of my favorites, Jessie. She discussed our “ness”, that natural thing confident, radiant people shine out naturally. She explained that as a teacher instead of correcting a pose she instead wants to observe the “ness” and then adjust to make it help us radiate more and feel it deeper.

It got me thinkin’ about happy people, how happy people radiate this positive essence and therefore it makes other people happier. It is as sample as being nice to the starbucks barista instead of silently grabbing your macchiato and avoiding eye contact. Use your “ness” it it’s best ability.

Day 20 (Sunday)

One last class in Manhattan before heading to Westchester for the summer. Took Domenic’s class at Yoga Vida, a guaranteed sweat-fest and challenging class. The discussion in that class was about freeing your heart– that is what the breath does. That is why it is so important to gain control of your breath, especially for people like me who have anxiety issues. Free the breath helps control the anxiety attacks, you don’t get those hiccupy panting breaths when you free it. I was super sad to leave Yoga Vida not knowing when I’ll be back this summer. I have a feeling I’ll be making some yoga day trips to my neighborhood in Manhattan this summer….

and then I was homeward bound with my parents for a summer in the suburbs

random things I bring home: whole wheat bread, girl scout cookies, yoga mat…

Day 21 (Today)

Today began the quest to find quality, fabulous yoga in Northern Westchester! Ready, set, go!

This morning I took at vinyasa class at Sacred Space. My philosophy for the day was accepting where I am– physically and literally. Physically yes, I have limitations. Yes my right arm is literally weak, but that doesn’t mean I am weak— and today began the journey to repairing my rotator cuff with physical therapy. Literally, this is where I am for the summer, for better and for worse. This is where my friends are, my family is and my boyfriend is. But I also feel out of place here– whole foods and trader joe’s are 30 minutes away, yoga is expensive and harder to find, suburbia is obviously a very different rhythm from manhattan– and I’ve always been a city gal at heart.

The class was good, it is also weird having a different instructor and slightly different style of yoga for the first time. I’ve become very used to the general “yoga vida” style that all the instructors follow, and love taking Amrit’s class as well. It felt very different this morning, but I hope it is something I will get used to.

so my yoga mat and I will travel around northern westchester together in search of a good sweaty class. Thinking about trying out Katonah Yoga tomorrow….

and I’ll have to settle for Mrs. Greens as my go to grocery store….

but sometimes it’s nice to be home

and when it is torrential raining all day it is pretty nice to have a car as my main form of transportation instead of walking……

challenge continues

after a mini hiatus from yoga due to painful injections in my shoulder, I was thrilled to return to the mat

day 16: MY GRADUABIRTHDAY.

When I was little I would wake up basically every hour too excited about the fact that it was my birthday. Apparently at age 22 some things never change because at 6:15AM I couldn’t contain my excitement about the day. After a few practice downward dogs on my bed to make sure my shoulder joint was ready for yoga, I was off to Crunch for some graduabirthday vinyasa at Sunrise Salutations.

Between my excitement to be back in a yoga class after 2 days away, my excitement for being the birthday girl and my excitement to graduate college I was a hot, but incredibly happy mess in this class. I knew it would be a slightly lost cause from the start because my body was literally buzzing, but I knew I wanted to go to yoga.

I really try to make a conscious effort now to workout in some format first thing in the morning since it was really reduced my anxiety. I didn’t want anxiety to ruin the day. It was an incredibly sweaty but lovely class.

I’ve never left before shavasana in a yoga class, but I knew it was necessary in order to get ready with enough time to go to Yankee Stadium. Leaving I gave a cute little shrug and said “sorry, graduation!”

 

day 17: after the whirlwind that was graduabirthday I definitely needed to calm down and re-calibrate my mind and body. I went to a basics class at Yoga Vida with one of my favorite teachers there. As much as being injured is a downer and consuming much of my life now-a-days, one odd perk is that people remember me now. Teachers remember who I am since I am the one-armed girl modifying everything. Generally I am shy and would never introduce myself to instructors at the end of a class, but because of the injury it has brought about conversation from instructors and other students.

a big focus in this class was finding balance, something that I definitely needed to find after being a ball of energy on Wednesday. It was incredibly difficult for me to balance, a mixture of being a bit dizzy all class and feeling wobbly the whole time.  As frustrating as falling over was, I knew it what mirroring how I felt this week. As thrilling and exciting as graduating is, I definitely feel off balance.

I have found great comfort this spring semester. Sometimes the semester feels like a mad dash to the finish line where I just want the insanity, work and stress to end, but this semester I remained calm for much of it. I found a schedule that worked– I had a good grasp of when I would work out, when I would go to yoga, when I would eat, where I would eat and kept a pretty consistent schedule week to week. I feel frazzled now knowing I will have to create a new sense of schedule when I get home, another schedule when I start work, and a completely new schedule when I move to california. I already miss the sense of balance I had this semester, but I am sure I will find it again

day 18: later today is part two of graduation. Yes, we have TWO graduations at NYU! Today’s is for all the students at Tisch. I am ridiculously excited for our guest speaker Michael Mayer who directed American Idiot. How fitting that the guy who basically created the broadway show that made a hugeeee impact on my life at college would be speaking at my graduation?

Worried I wouldn’t be able to make it to a yoga class later today, I went to Yoga Vida early this morning for a class. The instructor started off class talking about making room for change. Allowing change to happen and not being afraid of it. Oh wow, how perfect for the day of my college graduation, and the day I cut off my last tie to New York University.

Change is scary, terrifying even, since there is a lot of unknown. But this morning I was reminded that in actuality we are constantly changing– my downward dog is different today than it was yesterday, my relationships with my friends are constantly evolving and changing in their nature and I am constantly changing

While big changes like graduating college and leaving Manhattan for 6 months are rightfully scary, it also leaves room for so many good things. Incredible opportunities that I don’t even know about. Change doesn’t have to be bad. 

the last hoorahs of college and 21

uh, graduabirthday is TOMORROW? WHAT. it feels like just yesterday I was an itty bitty freshman (and by itty bitty I mean the exact same height as I am now…) moving into Hayden Hall with my parents, anxious and excited to begin my college journey. In some ways it went by super fast, in other ways it has definitely been four long years.

This awkward limbo week with no homework or finals has been absolutely crazy with workouts, yoga, friends visiting, end of year parties, and a brief trip home to Westchester.

Here’s what’s been going down, and how the challenge is going:

Thursday (day 10)

Day 10 was a $1 Karma Yoga class at Yoga Vida. $1 yoga? sweeeeeet. The class is taught by a recent graduate of the yoga teacher program. I am deeply considering attending the teacher training at Vida in the near future, so it was awesome to see the final product of the program and take a class with one of the new teachers. The class was pretty basic, no crazy inversions, but that is perfect for me and my arm at the moment. It gave me a really good feeling about the teacher training program and even more incentive to sign up in the future.

Thursday night was my friends birthday and a trip to DINO BBQ! nom nom nom. I’ve never been to Dino BBQ, but people are OBSESSED with this place. I’m not a huge bbq gal, but this food was awesome, the portions were epic, and the price was great for college students. I highly recommend taking this trip way up town for some delicious food

bbq chicken, totes worth the food baby

Friday (day 11)

Woahhhh we’re half way there!

Friday’s class was a super awesome and inspirational one at yoga vida. The instructor explained that we are going to focus on “pratyahara” today. She explained it as going from the inside out instead of the other way around. So often we look for happiness in outside things– possessions, boyfriends, material goods, etc, when really we are our own source of happiness.

I really connect with this concept, especially after reading “The Happiness Project” last summer and taking “The Science of Happiness” at nyu this semester. It is easy to blame other things for our unhappiness. I had always been super convinced that having a boyfriend would make me happy and solve all my problems. Last summer I realized though that in order to even “get” the boyfriend, to make that connection with someone else, I had to be happy to begin with. I am seriously convinced that this is why my boyfriend and I did get together at the end of last summer- happy people are simply more attractive, more fun to be around, and the people you want to have a relationship with. If I hadn’t spent the summer laughing, smiling, confident and focusing on having the greatest summer of my life, I don’t think this relationship would have happened.

This is also true with material goods– We all want the newest iPhone, the best gadgets, things that we think will make us happy. But then an even newer, better version comes out, and we are once again sad.

I am a strong believer than money does not bring happiness. You can own all the possessions in the world, but nothing can buy that true key to happiness– human connection, and the ability to find happiness from within.

What I wonder is, does that mean outside things can’t also ultimately make us “sad” or the opposite of happy?

I know death, trauma, etc, can make us unhappy (and justifiably so), but if going on that principle of finding happiness from within, does that also mean we can only find sadness from within?

Saturday (day 12)

Day 12 was a sleep walking through class kinda class. I just kept telling myself to push through.

Sunday (day 13)

On sunday I decided to stay after zumba for Buddha Belly at Crunch. The class was a sort of yogalates fusion combing moves from both vocabularies. While I enjoyed the class, I slightly regretted not going to one of the vinyasa classes I am more accustomed to. I found myself stressed about not doing the moves and poses correctly since a lot of them were new to me, compared to when I can go into full on “I AM FOCUSING ON MY BREATH” mode in a flow class because I know ultimately how to position my body

And it was mothers day! On Friday I left flowers and cupcakes in my parents apartment to surprise them when they arrived that night. I absolutely adore my mama and cannot even begin to thank her for putting up with me…..

For mothers day my family did what my family does best– we went to see a broadway musical! For the past 10 years we have been mega fans of the incredibly talented Raul Esparza, so we knew seeing his new show “Leap of Faith” would be something that made the whole family happy.

Ironically we ended up with tickets to the closing performance of the show. My family loved the show, based on the movie, that reminded us a lot of “The Music Man” meets the energy of Footloose. so sad to see it close

Even better than the show was stagedooring afterwards, where Raul recognized my brother and I. You know you’ve stagedoored too many times with the actor remembers you….

ya know, two NYU Tisch, Playwrights Horizons Graduates 🙂

can’t wait to see what his next project is

Monday (day 14)

When I decided to do a 22 Day Yoga Challenge I knew there were some possible “problem days”. One is tomorrow, Graduabirthday, because I am still not sure how the timing will work out with everything.

The other problem? Knowing I would finally be getting my shoulder checked out and a less than pleasant arthogram.

As someone will a bit of a needle phobia the thought of having a needle stuck into my shoulder joint made me queasy when I found out about the procedure a month ago. While the MRI part didn’t scare me (ya know, just lie in a machine and listen to showtunes, no big!) I was incredibly anxious about getting the dye injected into my shoulder.

Day 14 was my version of Yoga, willing myself to not going into full panic attack mode, keeping my body relaxed, and remaining as calm as possible to make the procedure easier for both the doctor and myself. I like to think that this is what the whole challenge as been about, finding a way to cope with anxiety inducing situations while avoiding full on freak outs.

and I did it! and being the “teachers pet” that I am, I was super happy when the anesthesiologist told my mom I did a really good job. Gold star for Kayla.

In the height of pain I zoned out and went through every trapeze trick I have ever done, visualizing what I looked like and hearing the commands. When that failed me I also sang in my head my favorite musical from childhood, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat”.

I am okay now, my shoulder is still a bit sore from the procedure, so I decided not to go to yoga at all yesterday.

In my opinion this is not failing my challenge, because physically I cannot go to a yoga class in this condition, and ultimately I felt I still practiced what a class would have given me.

Ironic part of the procedure? While listening to showtunes in the MRI machine (I love how they give you a choice of music stations… and I love how I am probably the only person that picks the showtunes station) “What I Did for Love” from A Chorus Line came on. A song about getting injured doing something you love, in the show it is about what happens if your dance career is over. For me, it’s the song I’ve been singing to myself about performing and trapeze since I got injured. super freaky.

So 8 weeks later, I found out I have tendonitis in my right rotator cuff. The good news? I don’t need surgery. And physical therapy starts monday. the road to recovery begins

Back in the city at night I hung out with my bestie David before he headed back to the West Coast.

we enjoyed an INCREDIBLE meal at Red Bamboo, this delicious vegetarian restaurant in the village

above is my coconut “chicken”. delish. David had an asian “beef” dish which was also delish. Even though I eat chicken and turkey, I still really enjoy vegetarian food. My big suggestion is enjoy the dish for what it is, not what it is trying to imitate.

TODAY (Tuesday)
and today. I set my super early alarm, ambitiously hoping to go to early morning vinyasa at Yoga Vida. While I was wide awake and ready to go at 6:15, my arm is still a bit sore from the injection. I decided to wait and see if my arm is a bit less sore to do a yoga class tonight

Instead, I went to LaBlast and Pilates Fusion at Crunch Christopher street. I must say I was SUPER impressed with everything there. The gym is spread out and not crowded, the people in class were seriously the loveliest I have taken a group fitness class with recently, and Carol was awesome about making sure I was doing okay with my lame arm. Two thumbs up for this mornings sweat.

 

 

and now, tomorrows the big day! Turning 22 and graduating!

a lil’ sneaky peak at what’s in store:

I get to wear that… uh lovely… purple tent all week!

hellooooo humidity (and pasty white legs)

the humidity today? ick. New York City, I demand better May weather. This grimy rain is depressing!

this morning I was back to waking up early for yoga, although that meant I had to brave the 6:45AM rainshower that occurred.

day 9 was brought to you by: Sunrise Salutations AND Buff Yoga at Crunch. Two yoga (well the second was yoga-ish) classes in one day? YIKES

The first class was the usual sweaty mess that is Sunrise Salutations courtesy of Amrit’s humor and cruelty. I’m a bit sad I won’t get to see him for a full week now since I won’t be in the city Monday morning. One negative about yoga at the gym is the music that sometimes creeps into the sorta sound proof room. Towards the end of shavasana there was some funky techno going on in the room next to us. Less than relaxing, but what can ya do!

Later in the day I decided to try out Buff Yoga. My schedule all week is craziness with meetings, friends in town and lack of school to add structure, so I am basically trying out any group fitness classes nearby that fit into the craziness. Today I happen to finish a meeting on the same block as Crunch Lafayette just in time to take Buff Yoga.
the teacher was very laid back, california surfer attitude — but don’t let that fool you this class was INTENSE. Adding weights to already challenging yoga poses is not easy. For the majority of the class I was an unbalanced mess, but working hard so that’s what really matters. This class was more so yoga inspired than a true yoga class, I felt my brain was not in the “yoga” state, but more so in the “tough girl strength training” state of mind. I enjoyed the class, although my legs are currently rebelling because of it.

After mass amounts of yoga it was definitely time for a well deserved shower and lunch

Chicken Salad

 

during the summer my mother often makes me chicken salad to bring to day camp, since the camp I work at is nut free and I can’t bring my go-to peanut butter on whole wheat. This weekend I decided to make a few batches of my own chicken salad to eat for lunch throughout the week. My simple chicken salad includes pre-made grilled chicken from Whole Foods, some grapes and a bit of mayo to mix it all together. Add a little salt and pepper and serve on a cracker with mozzarella and you’ve got a tasty lunch.

While it’s not exactly warm out today, the humidity sure makes it feel like it

for the first time all year I was wearing a dress without leggings or tights… and it felt oh so liberating to let my pasty white legs breathe! Can it please be summer now so I can wear pretty dresses sans tights all the time? my legs need to see the sunshine!

I had a lovely afternoon meeting up with a high school friend who was in the city on her way home from college. While it feels like so much is currently changing with graduation and the big scary question of “what’s next”, it is nice to know that some people will never truly change. It is wonderful to catch up with a friend from home over starbucks in the middle of grand central.

 

For dinner I did something very simple, but very daring for me since I am terrified of cooking

instead of my usual turkey wrap or chicken quesadilla, I decided to fuse the two. I made deli turkey + mozzarella cheese quesadillas with hummus on the side. I was a bit worried if the deli meat would work in quesadilla form, but was pleasantly surprised with the warm melty dinner. Definitely a keeper to make again in the future. It definitely beats trying to microwave and melt the cheese in a turkey wrap. two homemade meals in one day? big deal for kayla.

Although this is finals week and I have no finals or homework left for college I feel like I am busier than during the school year. So much for relaxing before graduation

 

 

 

one week til graduabirthday!!!!

soca, no joka

6:15AM was not happening this morning. After going strong ALL semester and only missing maybe 1 or 2 morning workouts since January, this morning I realized it was soooo not happening. At the end of every college year I have a tendency to crash and burn– the first few days when I’m back in my childhood bed in Westchester I sleep for HOURS to recoup from the semester. My body and mind finally slow down. While this semester I’ve been a lot better about sleep and avoiding burn out, I am not surprised that my body is starting to realize “oh hey we are done, this means we get to crash!” Sometimes you just need those extra hours of sleep….

—

this morning I had the terrifying realization that my days as a college student are numbered. This thing that has identified me for 4 years— Hello, my name is Kayla, and I go to NYU for theater, will no longer define me in a week. I know this means I get to decide how to define myself now, “Hello, my name is Kayla, and I’m a semi starving artist”, “Hello, my name is Kayla and I audition for a living”……..

While a part of me feels very ready and okay with being done with college, it is the weird little things like that which totally freak me out. ahhhh adulthood

—

after day 8 of my yoga challenge (8 days and still lovin’ it!) my bestie David and I tried out “soca-n-wet” at Crunch Union Square with Brooke

soaking wet thanks to splash mountain

the on line description reads: Ready, set, sweat! This class combines intense high and low cardio moves to a give you a calorie scorching cardio workout. Set to an exciting rhythmic, Soca music soundtrack, Soca-N-Wet will leave you rip roaring and soak n’ wet.  

Lemme tell you, it was no joke.
we were both expecting a sort of dance class. There was a bit of dancing, kind of like a zumba class, but on crack….
I don’t know what about it was exhausting and absolutely sweat inducing, but by the end of the class we were both drenched. The class combined cardio moves with simple conditioning. I was pleasantly surprised to be using weights since I miss my strength training classes. Brooke was an awesome motivator and I would definitely take another class with her.
All in all it was a lovely 45 minute sweat-fest

—

Considering I have no school, homework or finals this week I have been oddly and delightfully busy. Today was filled with yoga, soca, hanging out with David until I eventually decided to buy tickets for Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway last minute. who knew free time could be so action packed?

“is this just lust, or could it be the dawning”

got some early graduabirthday gifts from my bestie David

look familiar?

uh wow, everyone else has a pretty tough act to follow 🙂

—

Successful Day 6 & 7 of my 22 day yoga challenge!

thoughts from day 6 (vinyasa @ yoga vida)

— IT WAS SUNNY OUT!

hello glorious sunday weather. you were very appreciated!

— I couldn’t help but wonder, will I get bored of this by day 22? At the beginning of class I had the “didn’t I just go to yoga” feeling, like when you watch the same episode of a TV show twice in a short period of time. While I don’t know how I will feel on day 22, as day 6 went on I felt anything but bored with the class. There is still so much to be explored with each pose and things I simply cannot do but hope to some day.

— oh hey, I finally learned how to correctly do a shoulder stand! My toes have been hovering over my face instead of away from it. It is amazing when you click into the correct position after doing a pose incorrectly day after day, you feel the shift of energy and the “a-ha, this feels awesome” moment.

–I tend to get obsessed with things– boys, broadway shows, trapeze, and now yoga…. but I hope this is one of those obsessions that last longer, because I am definitely benefitting from it mentally and physically

thoughts from day 7 (sunrise salutation @ crunch)

— Today I technically didn’t have to be anywhere until 2:30pm. I kept my permanent 6:15AM monday alarm, if I seriously wasn’t motivated I would allow myself to go back to sleep– there was plenty of other yoga class I could take before 2:30. At 6AM i bolted awake, did I miss my alarm? Do I really now have an internal clock that goes off that early!? oh god, I know it is still a few days til I turn 22, but am I getting that old?

— After taking lots of afternoon classes, most of them post dancing and sweating in other capacities, a morning class felt SO WEIRD. At first I was wondering why my body wasn’t being bendy, but hey it’s 7AM, you just woke up.

— My mind kept telling my body “this IS the best you can do right now”. It is how I pushed through the soggy, sweaty class this morning, reminding myself that as long as I was doing the best I could do, it didn’t matter what things and variations I wasn’t doing.

One week into the challenge and I’m going strong!

—-

After yoga this morning I decided to try out LaBlast at Crunch. Online description: Created by world champion and ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” dancer and choreographer Louis Van Amstel, this class will lead you through various dance genres combining exhilarating body movements and creative fitness routines to burn fat and blast away calories. No experience and no partner necessary.

I get oddly nervous before taking a new fitness class, wondering if it is going to kick my butt, if it is going to be too easy or if it is not gonna be my cup of tea. I was pleasantly surprised to LOVE LaBlast. It follows a similar formula as zumba. The big difference is the sequence of the choreography. In zumba you match the part of the song to dance moves– so every time you hear the chorus, you do the same choreography. In LaBlast we did 8 or so steps repeating the full set throughout the song. The dance styles were also similar to zumba, both include cha-cha, salsa and swing. I loved that like zumba the steps were constantly changing, if you messed up whatever you’ll probably get another shot. I like fitness dance classes that don’t feel like a competition, it is about the sweat, not mastering choreography. It was the perfect 45 minutes of cardio that I was craving– something fun and more motivating than the treadmill.

I high recommend LaBlast to lovers of zumba and other dance fitness variations.

—

Considering I didn’t have class or homework all day it was a jam packed day of yoga, LaBlast, guitar lessons and my final college performance– a musical theater cabaret. It is so weird to now REALLY be done with my last show at college. So happy to have a relatively free week now where my biggest concern is what yoga class to take….

And one final final thought, I ampraying the weather gods keep May 16th sunny and warm– I do not want rain at Yankee stadium for graduabirthday!

(yes I checked the weather at 6:28AM! May 16th was finally on the 10 day weather forecast)

Love Happened Here

“may 5th, my heart is like a bomb……”
–American Idiot

Another gloomy day in New York.

( I’m almost positive that the ridiculous castle looking penthouse is Alec Baldwin’s apartment. Yes, I have the ability to stalk him from my living room window….)

This blah weather we’ve been having makes me even more excited to live in California this fall. I miss the sunshine.

Gloomy days are perfect for yoga though….

Day 5 of the Yoga Challenge

This morning was much better than yesterday’s class. My body was far more cooperative and it felt so so good to stretch this morning. The class was with a teacher I’ve never had before. It is great to have the opportunity to take class with various teachers at Yoga Vida, experiencing their different styles of teaching and what their trade marks are. Todays class had a whole lotta chatarungas. I might be a freak because I love me some chaturanga, but wow doing a lot of them at the beginning of class is tough!

Today was all about listening to my body, what was the best variation for me today. Sometimes it is easy to become secretly competitive “obviously I’m going to take the most difficult variation!” For me personally there’s always this inner guilt that I am being lazy if I don’t try the hardest version of a pose. THIS IS NOT TRUE. and this is something I have to constantly remind myself. Some days I can push harder and try things that are difficult, but other days I need to back off. By listening to my body I took cues for what was really the best variation to be doing today, the one that doesn’t hurt my arm, the one that feels good and the one that is the best match for today.

One of the most difficult parts of being injured for me is feeling lazy. As someone who prides herself in being strong, it is such a challenge to acknowledge the fact that I am not strong right now, and that is not because I am lazy. It’s actually because I injured myself being anything but lazy. Modification is not laziness. When I drop to a lower weight in a strength training class it is not because I am lazy, it is because I have to. When I modify a pose in yoga it is not because I am lazy, it is because I have to. Constantly I have to remind myself that it is not laziness, laziness would be sitting on my couch sulking about my arm. Modifying is necessary for me to continue doing some of the things I love. I’m trying to kick the lazy stigma in the butt (and also punch it with my working left arm). Doing something to the best of your ability is never laziness.

and now, it is time for a super exciting intenSati workshop about positive psychology! getting to be nerdy while also getting to exercise? yes please!

Final Final Friday.

On the final friday of every school year my theater school has this huge pep-rally type event “All School” (and sometimes called “Final Friday”). The whole morning is spent celebrating and showing the work we’ve created all year. It felt super weird to finally be part of the senior farewell, while a part of me feels like it has been a very long 4 years, another part of me is in disbelief that I was one of the seniors today saying goodbye. The class of 2012 went out on a high note singing a parody to Les Miz’s “One Day More”, with the Les Miz march, flags, and all of us taking off our shirts at the end. oh theater school.

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YOGA CHALLENGE: DAY FOUR

Day Four was another class at Yoga Vida (yes, I am addicted, IT’S SO GOOD)
For whatever reason it was a super rough class for me. I’m not sure why, because it wasn’t super humid in the room and my arm was feeling decent. I was feeling a bit nauseous though, for no reason, and got distracted by that gross feeling. Such a bummer after having the most fantastic class yesterday. In the end though, it was definitely worth it to push through the yucky feeling. Each class I feel that I am able to self correct more and more, my body is learning these poses– something that was super foreign for me in January.

A common question is gym vs. studio yoga classes. I thoroughly enjoy both, but I think it is really hit miss on both ends. At my particular gym the yoga classes are very small and intimate so there is a lot of personalized attention and adjustments. The class I constantly go to, sunrise salutations, is taught by an incredibly knowledgeable instructor whom yoga is his passion. I know this is not true at all gyms– the yoga could be taught by someone less qualified in yoga and who has more of a fitness background. My gym also has a specific yoga room, which is nice because it is sound proof and very calming. A very different environment than the group fitness room. While overall I enjoy going to yoga at the gym, I find it is hit miss with the teachers, some I love, others I find their class long and painful to survive.

I haven’t gone to a lot of yoga studios– in Manhattan I think only Yoga to the People a few summers ago and Yoga Vida. The classes I have taken at these studios are much larger than at my gym. I like that there are a lot more options as far as times of day. Some studios offer a variety of styles, some specialize in one thing. The great thing with a yoga studio is that you can shop, especially because first classes are usually a good discounted price.

Overall I haven’t noticed a HUGE difference in the quality of the classes. This is probably very particular to Manhattan– in order for the gyms to keep many of their members, they have to offer top notch yoga. Ah, reasons to love Manhattan. I’ve already expressed my concerns about the lack of yoga and Whole Foods in westchester to my mother. how’s a gal gonna survive summer!?

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and the best part of my day? finding out that NYU has finally cleared me for graduation. this means May 16th I get to graduate AND wear my pretty new clothes.

Graduabirthday, here I come!

ch- ch- changes

Today was my official last day of classes! What better way to end my college academic career than with presentations in the class “The Science of Happiness”. A happy bonus, the professor gave us extra credit for attending the last day of class. Happiness indeed!

YOGA CHALLENGE— Day Three

after finding out that a bunch of my co-workers aka my best friends would not be coming back to work this summer, my yoga class was much needed to calm me down from the mini freak out I was having. (buying new gym sneakers also helped calm me down….. I am a strong believe in retail therapy…. but yoga has more lasting benefits!)

I decided to try out Yoga Vida’s “Basic” class today out of curiosity. While I am not a totally clueless yogi, I am still new to practicing, know there are some fundamentals I could get stronger at with my poses, and wanted something a little less intense on my right arm. Before school this morning I had sweated it out hardcore in zumba and conditioning and knew my body would thank me for something a little bit more gentle.

The class was perfect, it wasn’t significantly different than the typical Yoga Vida class, but it was nice to have less students and more individualized attention. We even got adjustments during shavasana- a first for me at yoga vida. ahhh bliss.

The instructor, who I had never taken a class with, was really great about helping me make adjustments for my injury. I was happy that the class wasn’t too slow or watered down, it was still a fabulous stretch. I was shocked how quickly time flew by in this class. Back in the days of hating yoga, I felt like classes dragged on. I would constantly look at my watch counting down the minutes. This particular class was one of those “wait, we are already lying down? how can that be! that was too short!” kind of classes, which means it was an awesome class. I felt super focused on the yoga, not on all the other drama and sadness about summer.

what more can I ask for in life than a group of friends who would learn ridiculously cheesy dances choreographed by yours truly… on my best friend’s drive way AND willingly perform these cheesy dances in front of the whole camp the next day?

my beautiful friends, rocking our “burnt cinnamon” colored staff shirts.

These changes have definitely caught me off guard, and it’s a lot to think about along side the whole “ah I’m graduating college, life will never be the same” freakouts swirling around in my mind.

 

guess I just have to keep adjusting.