WHAT'S NEXT?

I thought it was time to do a little spring cleaning around my blog so I packed away my snow covered birdhouse header and replaced it with a new photo that reflects both my love of gardening and the color purple. Other than a few other minor changes I left it pretty much the same. I hope you like it.

Now that spring is here it's good to see people out in droves raking their lawns, cleaning out their gardens or biking, walking, jogging, playing ball and just having fun. Spring always seems to have that "kick ass feel" to get people outside and moving after a long tired winter. I managed to do quite well this winter to stay active...walk every day, some skiing and snowshoeing plus some time working out on the equipment in the basement all in an effort to stay as fit as I can, although there is always more I can do.

One of my favorite sections of the daily paper is "Arts and Life". I'm always interested in reading about new health studies or the latest exercise trends, but sometimes I am totally amazed. I think pole dancing would be a lot of fun as well as an excellent total body workout, and although I don't think I could ever go for "hot" yoga...I hate being hot... I can see the value in it and that some people would love it. But the latest craze to come out from California, "nude yoga"classes has me scratching my head. Slow to pick up coed participants, it is picking up steam among the male crowd...MEN!...you gotta love em! I wouldn't want to be in a back row in that class!!!

Another trend that started in the US but has made it's way to British Columbia, is the Street Strider. The Street Strider is a mobile elliptical (or elliptical on wheels) that combines fun and the excitement of being outdoors with a proven high calorie burn rate. Supposedly, you can burn three times as many calories as running and it's easy on joints. If you could get past the fact that everyone would be staring at you, it could be a lot of fun. It would sure beat a stationary elliptical or bike...at least you would get from point A to B.

YOGI TOES

Who says you can't push the gender stereotypes

...the boys were up for some
quality "girlie" time with me.

Attempting "downward facing dog"

...tongue out to make it more authentic.

...focusing on the breath..

...and some "spa" time.

JUST THREE DAYS

The past weekend was a special time for my daughters and me...three whole days for some girlie time without the guys...time for Frenchy shopping, belly dancing, yoga, walking and kayaking.

Our yoga instructor

dressing up for our belly dance lesson...

the girls...

me and my oldest...

me and my youngest...


Dressing down for a late night walk

...safety before beauty!

A great day for kayaking!

twice around the lake for the girls...

me and hubby/dad...
ok, so it wasn't a totally "girlie" time,
but someone had to haul the kayaks to the lake for us
...should I mention that "someone" loaded the kayaks onto the truck
and forgot to load the paddles,
so "he" had to go back home to get them.
I guess you do need a man to add a little excitement!

STIFF AS A NAIL AND TWICE AS RUSTY

When it comes to exercise, I sometimes fall into a rut…a very deep rut…that’s very hard to crawl out of. While it usually last a few days, it can drag on for weeks, especially after a long weekend or holiday, as was the case over Easter. You would think having a four day break from work would be the perfect opportunity to fit in a few workouts…right? I generally find it easier to get motivated during the week. Weekends are meant for relaxing…after shopping, laundry, housework, gardening and preparing meals for the following week, a little “sloth” is called for which feels soooo good but only makes it harder to get back into to a routine.
So, after a rough day of caring for overtired kids (first day back after a weekend home with Mommy and Daddy “Monstrous Mondays” is always hard ) I forced myself to go for a walk, followed by some ab and hand weight exercises in front of the telly. I attempted to do some of my favourite standing inverted yoga poses, which I find beneficial for arthritis in my upper back resulting from years of “big boob fatigue”. WOW… rigor mortis! Now, I’m not dumb. I know the benefits of regular exercise, so why is to so hard to keep at it, especially when I always feel so great afterwards?