Downward Facing Blog

It's Time.

2010-09-01T19:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, it's time.

The baby is almost 5 months old. So I need to stop looking 5 month pregnant.

Here is my plan:

1) Take a walk every morning with the baby.
She's up. I'm up. Why not? It's quiet and cool out. We've done it three mornings so far. It's been fun.

2) Do Pilates.
On Demand, Exercise TV, has a great 20 minute Full Body Pilates workout. So far this week, the baby has been very cooperative after our walk and has let me do most of the 20 minute workout. Feels great!

3) Banish Cookies and Ice Cream.
I've been using food as a reward after a long day. But after a long day, I do not have the willpower to stop eating. Time to use fruits and vegetables instead. Also, I ate a bowl of pasta on Monday for dinner, and then felt like someone hit me over the head with an anvil. I think I'm too sensitive to refined carbohydrates. I will try to focus on "superfoods" that serve some kind of purpose in my diet.

So that's the plan. I need to weigh myself so I know where I'm beginning. Although I have enough BEFORE pictures from the last few months than I know what to do with.

I would like to commit to the Broad Street Run this year, but so far my knees cannot do the running. Maybe once I get a bit more fit I can try again.

Yoga and Pregnancy.

2009-11-18T13:04:00.000-08:00

I have a yoga problem: my new home that is brimming with wedded bliss is not very close to any yoga. And I need yoga in my life.

A sweet friend of mine is going to send me some a book of yoga for pregnancy, which has me totally thrilled because the suggestions for yoga during pregnancy are confusing.

Some people say you can do almost everything you used to do before you were pregnant. Others say that you should avoid deep twists, laying on your back, inversions, boat pose and all other abdominal exercises, breath retention, and anything that causes you to put pressure on your abdomen.

I am looking forward to a little clarification, and in the meantime I am being EXTREMELY conservative. Glorified stretching with ujjie breathing. Doing even a little definitely helps the pain in my hips at night... so I think I'll rush home tonight and see if I can catch the Namaste Yoga on FitTV.

Haven't posted in awhile.

2008-10-10T12:39:00.000-07:00

superpoop.com

For those of you keeping score at home...

2008-08-27T16:24:00.000-07:00

I weighed myself on Monday again. Another 4 pounds!

I got on the scale and was like "oh..OH..OOOHHH"... Gym Buddie was all like "Oh no, I can't tell what those sounds mean... Bad or Good!!!"

Good, my friend, very good.

12 more pounds to go until I'm at my normal weight.

27 pounds if I want to be at my college weight.

None of that is bad... totally do-able!

Out of Control.

2008-08-22T11:58:00.000-07:00

So while I made it through spinning class (barely!) and yoga yesterday, today is OUT OF CONTROL!

In what way?

Well, I had an extra shot of espresso this morning, which apparently makes me crave sweets. Because I have had:
1) one piece of cake at lunch
2) half a cannoli that my boss gave me
3) one piece of coworker birthday cake

What!?! Seriously? What is wrong with me today?

I may go to the gym tonight after all.

Spinning Class tonight.

2008-08-20T08:32:00.001-07:00

I'm scared Mommy, hold me!

Four Pounds!

2008-08-19T09:05:00.000-07:00

Well over the last two weeks of concerted effort and learning to let go of my evening snack, I have lost 4 pounds.

Still have 16 pounds to go, just to get to my "normal" weight, but hey, I'm up for it.

Tomorrow: Spinning class.

Thursday: Yoga

Weekend: Working... boo, hoo.. Must find a way to get some exercise in there!

Workout...

2008-08-18T07:24:00.000-07:00

Today I am going to the gym.

Yes, I will workout, but I will also weigh myself. Something I never do.

I know what the numbers were a month ago. I'll let you know if there is a difference tonight.

Yesterday. All the memories...

2008-08-13T06:49:00.000-07:00

First I started with this...

Then I moved on to this...

Then I finished up with this...

It was a wonderful day...

Dinner.

2008-08-12T06:23:00.000-07:00

The other day I was talking with friends and I was relating how boring my diet was in college: granola bar for breakfast, sandwich for lunch, salad for dinner, and frozen yogurt for dessert.

One of them said "That's not enough food..." and I thought "but I loved it! Maybe that's the answer." So ever since, I've been having a salad for dinner every night. We'll see what the brutal gym scale says tonight, but I am feeling pretty good - and feel like my overall calorie intake has lessened significantly.

So I'll let you know tomorrow what that terrible machine of torture at the gym says.

Hoping for a quiet weekend...

2008-08-08T08:22:00.001-07:00

Yoga tonight!

2008-08-07T06:39:00.000-07:00

I am going to my favorite, friendly yoga class tonight. I'll let you know if I get to meditate on my spleen or anything!

If you want to come, just let me know.

Running news...

2008-08-06T12:41:00.000-07:00

I am a terrible runner. My feet hate it, my back hates it, my lungs hate it.

Oh, wait... maybe I just hate it.

But that's not actually true. I love the feeling of strapping on some shoes and hitting the pavement. Not face-plant style, but taking-it-all-in-while-you-go-along-some-great-path style.

I just read this article that sprinting burns more fat (3 times more fat) then running at slower consistent paces. Maybe I'll try that, then with my new sleek physique I can run at those slower consistent paces with less of the parts that I hate.

Moment of Silence

2008-08-06T06:35:00.001-07:00

What I am currently craving...

2008-08-05T11:51:00.001-07:00

While in general, I am doing quite well with OPERATION WONDER WOMAN, there are a few things that have slipped.

I didn't work out yesterday and my uncle's death has made me start craving some sort of homemade fruit dessert like there is no tomorrow. Peach cobbler, apple crisp, or some other homey-goodness.

I am going to start with a small slide. A cup of chai from that evil corporation in a few minutes. There may be cake tonight.

So then tomorrow, I'll go back to my workouts. Thursday I'll be in yoga as usual. And maybe this weekend I'll plan something fun and active to do. In the meantime, if you want to invite me over for some sweet stuff like the picture above, I would probably not say no. Or click over to my other blog to see the birthday cake I would like to get for my friend tonight.

The Price of Thinness

2008-08-02T17:17:00.000-07:00

The price of thinness is, apparently, quite high. One head of lovely, milky-white cauliflower, one locally grown cucumber, a bottle of water, a can of tuna fish, and some plastic wrap just cost me $18.00.

The beautiful cauliflower was over $6.00.

I am now feeling the rising cost of food.

That means that I will work over 20 minutes - after taxes - to pay off that cauliflower. I hope it feels worth it while I am eating it. I'll let you know.

Operation Wonder Woman: An introduction

2008-08-01T06:56:00.000-07:00

What I want: A List of Demands

- To lose enough weight that I put on my skinny jeans and think "Nice, these are hot AND comfortable"

- To cut down my dependence on a certain corporation that lures me in with friendly staff and steals all my money.

- To cut out as much sugar, dairy, and meat from my diet as I can while staying grounded, fun, and most importantly... HEALTHY!

- To continue to add more calcium, vegatables, and fruit to my diet and eat less processed food.

- Add to my workout routine until I meet the goal of 55 minutes of exercise, 5 days per week.

- To finish paying off the wonderful, magical spring that I spent with friends and family with or without a second job.

- To complete four major career goals: 1) Apply for a residency 2) Apply for a Grant 3) Apply for Graduate School and 4) Take the GREs.

I hate my hair...

2008-07-08T13:44:00.001-07:00

I am really not liking my new haircut. I believe it is nearly indistinguishable from my first, super-short haircut. For almost a week, I've been trying to figure out why it feels so different.

Here's what I have come up with:

1) It's more humid than Satan's trousers. That translates to mean shrinkage. Not the kind you fellas worry about this time of year, but the super curly, Shirley-Temple kind of shrinkage.

2) The BANGS. Sweet Heidi had a last-minute impulse at the LAST haircut to give me some wispy bangs. BAD IDEA. Now I look like a combination of our friends at the top.

So expect that I will straighten as much as I can in the coming weeks. And eat alot of protein to try to encourage growth. I may even buy some topical treatment to see if I can get it to grow faster.

I'd like to start this back up...

2008-07-08T07:33:00.000-07:00

I feel out of love with yoga when it became my job. I still enjoy a gentle class (Yay Corina at Wake Up Yoga!), and I still do yoga everyday on my own.

Maybe I will start posting photos of me doing my favorite poses. Kind of like a beginner class via the internet, except I cannot be responsible for anyone's actions or even my own, so imagine some fancy disclaimer here... consult a doctor, a lawyer and maybe even a psychiatrist before even attempting to do anything you find on the internet... here or elsewhere.

There, now let's see what kind of yoga fun we can have.

The end of my yoga experiment...

2008-02-11T16:24:00.000-08:00

I have been working for a yoga company for the last four months. It was an attempt to do two things:

1- Generate $1500 revenue to donate to a new foundation
2- Increase my knowledge of the yoga offerings in the city
3- Allow me enough extra income to submit my graduate school applications and maintain my current lifestyle.

Unfortunately, these were the results:

1- I didn't even approach $1500 in earnings, let alone savings.
2- I was seriously injured twice, racking up $500 in yoga-related doctors bills
3- I spent $600 on clothing that neither I nor my family needed
4- I put off my graduate school application another year.
5- I took 4 sick days for yoga-related injuries and 4 vacation days for trainings.

Lessons learned:

1- I love yoga.
2- I need to come up with some other way to make money.
3- I play well with others (and I love my new yoga friends.)

Dhyana Yoga - Tried a new teacher!

2007-12-13T08:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning I dragged myself out of bed and down the street to Dhyana Yoga (1737 Chestnut) to go to Jonathan's class.

It was worth the extra effort! His style was very familiar - being a combination of Iyengar and Anusara, his assists were phenomenal, and his transitions were fluid - almost lyrical!

He stopped by an event we had last night and I asked him about his music selection. He told me that he likes to push the envelope in his music selection, because he feels like western music can be just as inspiring during yoga as eastern music.

Rock on Jonathan!

So there was much music that I recognized. And I was psyched after the millionth time we did a vinyasa and ended up in Warrior II to hear Tribe Called Quest! That youthful energy of his combined with an ancient practice was a refreshing change of pace.

Tomorrow I'm going again, as Tuesday he has surgery and will be out for a couple weeks. Saturday I'm going to try his other studio (not his class) called "Practice Yoga" on 4th and Catherine... then I can stop by Fabric Row too.

Namaste and type to you then.

12th Street Gym - 12th between Walnut and Locust

2007-11-18T06:21:00.000-08:00

I've been on a week long 12th Street Gym extravaganza! It's been great. It will end this Tuesday, so I'll write about it all then.

Busy Yoga Week... Wake Up Yoga, Dhyana Yoga, the 12th Street Gym and Svaroopa at the Print Center

2007-11-09T08:04:00.000-08:00

You can read about about Wake Up Yoga below, but I wanted to say a bit about this week's classes at Dhyana Yoga and Svaroopa at the Print Center:

I went again to Sara's Vinyasa class and again loved it. The hour goes fast and while I felt it was fairly gentle, I did get a good workout. Dhyana has a great event coming up - go to their website to learn more. It's a donation event that will benefit an AIDS charity. There will be a vinyasa class, followed by a restorative class. Sounds amazing! The suggested donation is $50

I'm still loving Svaroopa at the Print Center. With such a busy week this week, I had trouble just relaxing into the poses and I kept wishing for more activity, but that's kind of the point... to slow your body and mind down. I'll keep going and keep trying!

There is also a great event on Saturday at the 12th Street Gym. It's called Tails on 12th and it will benefit a local animal shelter/rescue place. Those that attend will receive a free week at the 12th Street Gym. I will definitely be there! So expect that next week's blog will be mostly about the classes at the 12th Street Gym!

Wake Up Yoga - West Philly Location

2007-11-09T07:37:00.000-08:00

Last night I finally made my way to the great Wake Up Yoga place on Baltimore Ave in West Philly. It was great!

Where: 4916 Baltimore Avenue. On Baltimore between 49th and 50th. The 34 Trolley goes right there. If you get there early, peek in first to see if the class before is still practicing, there is no waiting area. If it is, wander down the block to the cool African shops or go to the co-op - I love that neighborhood! (Although I was a tiny bit nervous walking alone after class.)

What to expect and Type of Yoga: They have lots of different types, but I went for Yin Yoga. The teacher and owner of the studios calls it "lazy girl, painful" yoga. That's an awesome description. Basically every pose is passive and done entirely on the floor. Poses like pigeon and supported bound angle poses, easy forward bends, etc. The trick (and the pain) come in the fact that each pose is held for 5 minutes or so. You really open into it, but it does get alot of sensation rolling around in your joints!

The Best Part: Corina. She's amazing. It's rare that I feel like questions are okay to just shout out in a class - but she is incredibly welcoming and warm - and questions really are okay to just pipe up and ask. She really explains things well and allows each person to be who they are. I can see why she's kind of a big deal in Philadelphia. I'm glad my introduction to her was through this class - it felt very intimate.

The Worst Part: Holding "plow" for an extended period of time. It's never my favorite pose. I have gotten better at it since I've lost weight, but it still compresses everything in a way that makes me feel all fat and squished. I did it though and felt quite proud of myself afterwards.

Dhyana Yoga - Sara's Vinyasa class

2007-10-31T20:06:00.000-07:00

See the other Dhyana post for all the directions and such, but I went again for a vinyasa class this time.

Sara is a lovely teacher. She was very supportive and I liked her approach. She feels like the kind of person that would offer you a bite of her organic, homemade granola bar if you looked hungry on the train, but that makes her a wonderful yoga teacher.

She had a very clear and concise way of explaining things. She read some things that were nice, but also explained things clearly and used good analogies. She definitely let you be wherever you are in your practice. (That was good because I'm a bit sore from this crazy week... and it's only Wednesday!)

I wanted to try Wake Up Yoga in West Philly... maybe next week. This week I needed something closer and less scary. This class was perfect. I felt great afterwards and Sara was extremely sweet and welcoming. I really like everyone at Dhyana... good vibes everywhere.

Power Yoga is scheduled for Friday. I'm intimidated, but ready. Type to you then.

Yoga Squared (Yoga)2 - Rittenhouse area

2007-10-30T08:30:00.002-07:00

Where:1923 Chestnut Street, 3rd Floor (above the bike shop)
What kind of yoga: Ashtanga yoga

What to expect: Ashtanga yoga, or in this case myesore, takes you through a series of movements in a particular order. It's similar to a vinyasa class, but some of the movements are different.

The best part: The owner, Karen, is awesome. I felt like she would really help you get into the class, learn the yoga, and would be open to as many modifications as you need. She's had injuries before, so she's sympathetic and open to lots of individual attention and questions.

The worst part: I had to be there at 6am for a promotional event... the alarm clock was rude and annoying at 5am. I suggest joining one of their afternoon or evening classes so you aren't caffeine-dependant like me for the rest of the day.

Bliss Yoga at the Print Center

2007-10-24T07:55:00.000-07:00

For the last two Mondays I've been attending a restorative class at the Print Center. It's like the best night's sleep you've ever had. I've rarely gone to restorative classes before, and now I wish there were more of them around the city.

Where: The Print Center (may be private - by special invitation only)

What type of yoga: Svaroopa or Bliss yoga

What to expect: The basic idea is that your body opens into support more than it does while working. So all the poses are held for a long time, but the body is fully supported in each pose. I felt like I was in shavasana (or corpse pose) even when doing a lunge - how often does that happen? The teacher, Liz, is a master at alignment and adjustments - every time she adjusts your position, you feel like a new person: taller, stronger, faster and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.

The worst part: Can't think of a bad part of this class. Very nurturing.

The best part: You leave with that feeling that you've had a full-body massage. I want to learn how to do this style of yoga on my own... and for other people. Everyone needs this in their lives.

Dhyana Yoga - Rittenhouse area

2007-10-24T07:44:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday I went to Dhyana Yoga for a Kundalini class. Here's the breakdown of what it was like:

Where: 1737 Chestnut Street

What kind of yoga: Kundalini (but they also have Vinyasa classes)

What to expect: The Kundalini practice is done with your eyes closed. The teacher, Dhyana, likened it to swimming - which was a helpful analogy for me. There were times I needed to open my eyes to orient myself, but it did help me stay inwardly focused. The emphasis was strongly on breathing, especially "breath of fire" which my abs weren't accustomed to. The movements are different than Hatha yoga practices, but felt very energizing. While I didn't feel like it was a tremendous workout during the class, I did feel my hamstrings the next day.

The best part: The focus on your chakras. If you're not used to this kind of practice, it might seem like hocus pocus, but I enjoyed the chanting and the emphasis on moving energy through your body.

The worst part: This is a style of yoga that might offend fitness buffs. Living on sunlight for 411 days is okay by me, but I know there are some that would go running for the hills at the very thought.

Welcome to my blog about yoga in Philly.

2007-10-18T11:19:00.000-07:00

To give you a little background on myself, I've been doing yoga for over 15 years. I started as a teenager going to Hatha classes with my father. It was a great way for me to spend time with him - even at a time in my life when my dad seemed not-so-cool.

Now I'm living in the city and spending alot of time doing yoga at different places. I thought I should share my findings with you.

I just did two new classes, so reports on those will be my first posts!

Be sure to leave me comments, if you have any questions or if you want me to try something out for you!