I’ve been kind of avoiding the whole yoga/pilates thing for awhile, even though I hear all sorts of great stuff about how it can actually help flatten the tummy and lengthen the muscles, etc. I did a couple of videos this past week (thanks to streaming Netflix) and I think I’m hooked. Who knows, maybe, at the very least, my posture will start to improve (I slouch at work all the time). Whatever the outcome – it felt great, and I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of muscle toning incorporated into the routines I was doing. The second was a combination yoga/pilates routine – and when you get a good flow going between moves, it’s surprising to me how much of a workout you feel you’re getting. What’s even more surprising to me is how great it feels afterwards – relaxed and stretched while having worked the muscles. I’m thinking of doing some sort of yoga and/or pilates 3 times a week for the next month and seeing what kind of difference it makes in my regular cardio routine.

The other thing I’ve been getting hooked on is Jillian Michaels’ workouts. I bought the 30-Day Shred DVD and have to admit – it’s pretty amazing. I really enjoy the weights + cardio element which she also does in her Maximize workouts, except those use a step, the 30-Day Shred just uses hand weights. I have another DVD of hers to pick up – one of the two new ones that were just released. I’m excited to try it out.

So, there’s my updated workout routine – Jillian Michaels, yoga/pilates, and spin at the gym. It’s making me happy.

Just had to share.

So, I finally got myself out of bed to get to a 6:30am class at the gym. I know that sounds sad to those of you who knew me as the get up at the crack ‘o dawn girl, making it to the gym for a 5:30am class, if not earlier to do my pre-workout workout. No, here in Seattle, I’ve become a slacker. I still work out regularly, but the time in the morning varies. There have been times I’ve done work in the morning, then worked out at home before getting into work in the afternoon. That’s what a flexible work schedule will do!

Anyhow – I made it to the spin class at the gym. I had tried one in the evening before, and I wasn’t impressed. It seemed very low-key, low-intensity. The instructor wasn’t wearing cycling shoes or cycling gear, which threw me off – at the Tri-Cities, the spin class I took, the teachers I liked always wore their cycling clothes and shoes. In fact, one of them is the reason I got the cycling shoes I have. Anyway – the instructor this morning was the same as I had experienced before – no cycling gear or shoes, so I wasn’t expecting much. Combine that with the fact the instructor never turned the lights on, was kind of quiet, and nobody spoke in that class…and I wasn’t sure I was ever going to come back. I was pleasantly surprised. It was 55 minutes of interval training. Granted, you can always do your own intensity, but those of you who know me know I’ll go all out when I can. It was a killer class. The teacher said next week would be endurance training – I cringed inside. She said last week had been climbing. I’m glad she changes things up, and it sounds like it’s always a pretty intense class. I decided to pay for the 10-class punch card. If I’m going to get my groove on for cycling, I need to have something that helps challenge me and push me along.

So, I’m getting back in gear and looking forward to the next steps on my road to getting back on my bike and out cycling!

Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you.

(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

1. I grew up watching Star Trek – the original, then Star Trek: Next Generation, then Star Trek: Deep Space 9. We started losing interest in the series part way through DS 9.
2. When there was a Star Wars marathon during the holidays, we’d watch it.
3. I’m also a James Bond fan – I watched a couple of the Bond movies growing up, too.
4. I will usually choose an action or comedy over a chick flick.
5. I enjoy reading murder mysteries.
6. My family didn’t own a computer until I was 12 – it was a Mac. I worked on Macs at home and PCs at school and work.
7. Even though my mother is from El Salvador, we didn’t eat traditional Salvadorian food – we did have Salvadorian desserts, though.
8.