new year, new rules [a challenge for 2013] + giveaway

Ah, it’s good to be home. Even if my hometown is currently a cold, slushy mess. This morning I woke up at 8AM without an alarm (thanks jetlag!) and was greeted by a flock of turkeys in my backyard.

Yup, definitely not living in the city right now.

Despite the snowy conditions here I still managed to get my butt to the gym this morning for a group fitness class. In London my workouts were in “vacation mode”. Yes, I worked out most mornings but I lacked the motivation and discipline to do a real, ass kicking workout. The week ended up being a really nice recovery week for my beat up body.

[see! I went to the gym! and discovered this strange, strange machine]

Eating healthy wasn’t a priority especially since every meals was eaten at a restaurant. This week I consumed more sweets than I care to admit.

[prixe fixe menu? well I guess I’ll eat a brownie… if I have to….]

 

Being home means vacation eating and lazy workouts are over—it’s time to get back to healthy choices, home cooked meals and sweaty workouts.

I am super excited to announce that I will be participating in Prescribe Nutrition’s “New Year New Rules”  program.

But wait Kayla, you don’t want to lose weight, why are you participating in a food program?

For starters, I’ve always had some belly problems and digestion issues. Many of those problems have been resolved after cutting back on dairy last summer, but I still think there is more to be done for me to really feel my best. This program is not about dieting but focusing on eating clean and eliminating common allergens (dairy, gluten and sugar)

Also, for someone like me who is still getting comfortable in the kitchen I love a challenge that pushes me outside of my comfort zone (ya know, making peanut butter sandwiches every single day) and forces me to try new creative foods.

Not gonna lie though, I’m a bit a worried about how to eliminate gluten from my diet. Bread is arguably my favorite food after peanut butter, but I know it will force me to make healthier decisions and really plan out my meals in advanced. At first I thought eliminating dairy would be an impossible nightmare but I’ve been pleasantly surprised with how manageable it is.

Participating in this program will not only guide you through the process but also provide healthy and yummy recipes. I’m definitely excited to branch out from my usual lame cooking and try out some new recipes!

Find out more about the creators Prescribe Nutrition

Interesting in joining me? I am giving away a 20% discount to one lucky reader.

How to Enter:

1. Mandatory. Leave a comment with why you are interested in participating in the New Year New Rules program.

2. For an additional entry follow me on twitter @kaylaruth. leave a comment saying that you followed

Contest ends December 31st 6pm EST and I will chose a winner within 24 hours

highlights from LONDON

I am writing the rough draft of this post somewhere above the Labrador Sea en route from London back home to New York.

My family had a great week seeing theater, exploring the city and visiting friends.  We stayed in the St. James area which was perfect for my family– close by to the tube (subway) and it was walking distance to the theater district, Chinatown and Little Italy where my family ate most nights.

I’ve now been to London a few times both with my family and on my own and it’s definitely one of my favorite cities to visit. Our trip wasn’t the most typical since we were more interested in seeing musicals than seeing churches, but we still got to see some great parts of London along the way.

Here are some of my favorite bits of this trip to London and absolute must do’s if you visit:

• Seeing Taboo in Brixton. No joke, one of the main reasons my family decided to go to London was to see my favorite musical Taboo performed live. I originally fell in love with the show 8 years ago when we saw the second to last performance of the Broadway production. It was absolutely thrilling to see my favorite show in London and hear the amazing score live.

In addition to seeing Taboo we also loved the stage adaptation of “Singing in the Rain” and “Let It Be” which used all Beatles music. If you are looking for other musicals to see in London I highly recommend “Les Miserables,” “We Will Rock You” if you’re a fan of the band Queen,  “Wicked” and “Billy Elliot”. Like New York, London has an amazing array of theater to see—one of the reasons I love this city.

• Cruising down the Thames on a “City Cruise”Boat. I highly recommend taking one of the many boats that cruise down the river.

 

• Shopping at Harrods. This store is the mother of all department stores and a must-see for any shopaholic. Other mega department stores to visit: Harvey Nichols and Selfridges.

[source]

• Christmas lights on Regent Street. London during Christmas time is absolutely magical.

(my dad tried marmite, he hated it)

• Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. You’ve never seen a winter themed carnival like this.

 

• Carnaby Street. Unfortunately we weren’t able to visit Carnaby Street during the day when all the stores are open (another must visit for shopaholics) but we still got to see part of the Rolling Stones Exhibit currently on display.

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• The London Eye. This mondo Ferris wheel offers the best view of London. We didn’t go on the London Eye this time around since the whole family has already gone, but it’s definitely a must do!

 

 

As much as I love London, it’s definitely nice to regroup, adjust to the jetlag and come home to my parent’s house for a few days before starting up work again.

Anyone else spend Christmas somewhere fun?

Even in London my family managed to do the typical Jewish tradition and eat Chinese food on Christmas. Unfortunately the Les Miz movie hasn’t been released in England yet or else we would have also gone to the movies 🙂

London Calling [day 1 & 2 + a WORKOUT]

hello from London! I am here on family vacation and happy to report it is currently not raining and I have some what adjusted to the 5 hour time difference. Win win.

Much of our first day here was spent traveling and napping. One of my guilty pleasures while traveling is reading fitness and fashion magazines that I would never otherwise purchase.

in actuality I spent most of the 6 1/2 hour plane ride sleeping since it was an overnight flight. Usually plane rides are my favorite time to watch movies and TV shows, but sleeping was definitely more important.

We arrived in rainy London groggy, very confused about what time it was and ready for a nap at our hotel. After a nap it was time to grab dinner and walk over to the theater district to see the stage adaptation of “Singin’ in the Rain”

the show was excellent, classic songs from the movie, excellent dancing, and simply an all around fun musical. Hopefully it will make it’s way over to Broadway next.

One of my favorite parts about London is walking around since it looks so different from what I’m used to in New York. It’s also especially magical over here since it’s the holiday season.

 

This morning I woke up early and headed to the hotel gym before family breakfast. When my parents first booked the hotel I immediately google searched that there was a gym and a nearby starbucks…. priorities 🙂

I wasn’t sure what to expect from the hotel gym and came in ready to just wing it depending on what they had. The gym is relatively sparse– a few cardio machines, stability balls and some dumbbells. Once I got there I scribbled down a circuit that focused on dumbbells and enjoyed a nice sweaty workout while listening to a Jillian Michaels podcast

Since all the cardio machines were being used while I was there I ended up doing quick cardio bursts in the form of jumping jacks, high knees and running in place in between each circuit.

The trickiest part about the workout? The weight on the dumbbells aren’t listed in pounds like in America so I had to pick up each dumbbell up and “test it out” to figure out what weight I wanted to use. I’m pretty sure the other gym-goers thought I was crazy picking up all the dumbbells to test them out.

It did feel real good to workout after lots of sitting while traveling.

After a nice breakfast of porridge and a shower it was time to explore the area.

We ended up at this ridiculous winter carnival. I’ve never since anything like this!

The concept of a winter carnival is unheard of to me. It was HUGE and filled with winter themed rides (like the Swiss Alps themed hotel above….) and lots of food.

After exploring for a while it was time to head over to Brixton for dinner and a show.

Warning: major musical theater geeking out ahead. When I was 13 my family went to see the musical “Taboo” during it’s second to last performance on Broadway. It immediately became my favorite show, even though it was an incredibly unlikely favorite for a 13 year old considering it centered around Boy George and the 80s club scene in London. I was infatuated with the songs and characters and was truly devastated that the broadway show closed. When my family heard it was coming back to London, 8 years after falling in love with the show in New York, we knew we had to come see it (yup, the main reason I’m here in London thanks to Taboo!)

While the London version is slightly different than the version I fell in love with on Broadway, it still was unreal to see my favorite show again 8 years later and hear those songs live again.

It’s unreal that I got to see this show again.

 

 

hope you all are enjoying vacations and the holiday season. Anyone else traveling somewhere far away and fun?