After our fabu farmers market trip, hubby and I did a little shopping (unsuccessfully) for furniture.

We decided to hit up a new sandwich joint in town – Which WIch.

The ordering style was unique – select a bag for the sandwich group you want, mark the sandwich and all the toppings you want and add your name at the bottom.

They make your sandwich to order and promptly have it ready for you on the other end of the counter.

I really liked the concept and the people there were really nice. I hope they do well.

Hubby and I took our sammies to go.

I got the black bean patty on wheat with provolone, lettuce, avocado and bell pepper, plus salt and pepper.

It was really good! I LOVED how the bread got nice and crunchy since they toasted it.

I really like my sammie but hubby loved his! He kept raving about it. Guess we’ll be back.

Then I was off for National Dance Day celebrations!

I started with a 1-hour hip hop class to learn the Nappy Tab dance (the one I mentioned before). I must say, while I feel comfortable in zumba classes now, I feel so awkward in hip hop classes! I have a hard time remembering all the steps!! As class was beginning, I stood there, feeling a lot like I did in my first zumba class, worried if I was going to make an a$$ out of myself. “They’re all gonna laugh at me!” was my fear. But, I used what I’ve learned in zumba to let loose and enjoy class and that is – dance classes are best enjoyed when you don’t think so much about what other people are going to think about you. Remember to just let loose…and by that I mean really, let loose – let your arms and legs move freely, don’t hold back because you won’t be able to get into the dance as much. Focus on learning the steps, not on what people are going to think about how you do them. HAVE FUN! That’s why you’re there, isn’t it? And if this still doesn’t help, just think…in 20 years, is anyone going to remember that you messed up a couple steps in some hip hop (or zumba) class one time? No. They’re not. So there…let loose people!

Anywho, after the hip hop class, I also did a 1 hour master dance class. Phew! That’s 2 hours of dancing folks and it was freakin fantastic!

I was definitely in need of nourishment post class and just had some Vega Whole Health Optimizer mixed with water. Oh and I had a LOT of water, too! Jeez I sweat a lot today! Great workouts and great fun = the need for major hydration.

Phew! Tired but HAPPY!

Took a trip to visit the new Lululemon store in town and munched on a banana.

I picked up groceries for a little bloggie brunch get-together I’m having tomorrow (can’t wait!) and for dinner tonight. I used this mixed vegetable container from TJ’s in a red sauce for that ravioli we picked up this morning.

Served with Whole Grain Goodness toast with a dab o real butter.

I’m off to hang out with some friends tonight.

Cheers!

Did anyone else celebrate National Dance Day? I’m tellin ya…a dance in your living room would be super fun!

Years ago, I used to like eating unhealthy stuff for breakfast all the time. It seemed like breakfast was when they had the good stuff: chocolate croissants, sticky buns and other delectable sweets. But not just the sweet stuff – Bagels with cream cheese, egg sandwiches.

At some point, I realized that my indulgent breakfasts, while decidedly delicious to eat, were typically not that filling and would often leave me sluggish. So, I cut back on them – a little at first and then more and more. At some point, I fell in love with healthy breakfasts like oatmeal and Power Toast – breakfasts that filled me with healthful food and gave me plenty of energy.

And while I love my healthy breakfasts and truly prefer them over the more indulgent ones, sometimes you just want something a little over the top. Breakfast was pretty indulgent today. Hubby picked up a GH cinnamon roll and I made us fried eggs. I forgot how HUGE that cinnamon roll is! I stuffed myself trying to finish it. Bad idea. The cinnamon roll wasn’t such a bad idea…eating more than I was comfortable with was. Oops. Next time I’ll save some for a snack later.

Lunch = leftover chicken noodle soup and Whole Grain Goodness toast.

And I had some Power Toast for an afternoon snack.

Great Harvest Whole Grain Goodness with:

• Barney Butter
• chia seeds
• hemp seeds
• cacao nibs

Organic cherries, too!

***

Guess who came to zumba with me tonight?!

Check out all my bloggie friends: Irene, (me), Katie, Jen, Jen, and Brittney.

We all had a fantastic hour of zumba tonight – the firs time trying zumba for most of these girls. How did they do? They danced like rock stars, of course!

Thank you ladies for coming to class with me! I hope to see you there again soon!

Oh and random note, a lady in class was wearing some sort of calorie counter and said she burned like 850 calories in class tonight! Whoa! Michelle is giving me her old heart rate monitor so I’m going to be doing my own experimenting with calorie burning. Can’t wait to see what the number is!

Post class it was time for a protein shake – Vega Whole Health Optimizer.

Yay zumba! I always feel like a million bucks after class.

Post class hubby and I headed out for dinner at a local Mexican restaurant – 1900 Mexican Grill. It’s probably our favorite Mexican restaurant in town because the food is good, the drinks are awesome (especially the dirty margarita), and the owner is sooo nice. I love to support his local business.

The weather was too gorgeous to not eat outside.

I started with a dirty margarita – made with tamarind!

We started with some cheese dip (starting to prefer guac over cheese dip…who am I?) and chips and salsa.

We shared a combo – beef burrito, chicken enchilada, and rice and beans.

My portion – I barely finished.

Post dinner, went over to hubby’s bacherlor-friends’ apartment to chill out. We ended up watching a lot of Terminator Salvation before heading home. I’m pooped but I have a big day of dancing tomorrow!

What are you up to this weekend?

Wow you guys are so inspirational!

I loved reading your Own Your Strength stories! Click here to view them or add your own.

***

I heard an interesting song on the radio today – “Head Full of Doubt” by Avett Brothers. Good tune. The line that caught my attention was:

“Decide what to be and go be it.”

I love this quote. It’s so simple but so true. I think sometimes we hold ourselves back from achieving a goal because we let self-doubt, worry and fear get in the way. Sometimes we think we need to put 10,000 years of planning something before we move forward with it. Sometimes we procrastinate. Most of the time, I’m guilty of all of these things. And sometimes the problem isn’t the “go be it.” Sometimes the problem is being able to decide what to be. Know what I mean?

Do you know what you want to be?

Hubby made breakfast today – scrambled cage-free eggs and WW toast with coffee.

I had lots of water and a banana to help recover from my double-workout-day (yoga and zumba in one day!) and they totally helped. Especially the water – it really helped my muscles loosen up.

Later in the day I remembered I had 3 precious Green Monster muffins left in my fridge. I heated (in my over-fresh-encore style) 2 up for me and 1 for hubby.

Someone help me- I think I’m addicted!

Lunch started with a huge veggie salad: baby spinach, farmers market cucumber, carrots, celery, tomatoes from our garden, and sunflower seeds.

Lookie what Girard’s sent me! I got 4 salad dressings (*): Champagne, Peach Mimosa, Creamy Balsamic and Apple Poppyseed. (there will be a chance for you to win these same flavors very soon, so stay tuned!)

Hubby and I decided to try Girard’s best-selling Champagne dressing (*). We both really liked it. Hubby said it reminded him a bit of Italian. I could see that except minus all the spices. The dressing was sweet but not sweet. Light yet flavorful. It was really good, even though it’s a bit hard to describe.

I also had leftover Lemony Lentil soup and more WW toast but with a dab of real butter.

A Cashew Cookie Larabar was my pre-workout snack today.

Pre-workout for what??

For teaching my FIRST Zumba class! I mean, I’ve led songs solo and I’ve even led classes solo, but tonight was the first class I led as an official instructor. It was too cool! Class was with a local company who signed up for some private sessions so sorry if you’re local and were hoping to go. I’m hoping to have a public class soon.

Anywho, here are some of my fave songs from the night:

• La Colegiala
• Let Me Think About It
• El Alacran
• Billionaire (my cool down)

Class was a blast! I surprised myself with all the energy I had give my intense workout schedule the last couple days. Guess it’s easier to find energy to share when you have so many people to share it with! Luckily, I have a rest day planned for tomorrow. Phew!

This is the exact type of place where I put the above quote to good use. I decide to be an energetic, enthusiastic, loud and fun zumba instructor and just be that way in class. Seriously, that’s what I try to do for real. Since I have a little stage fright, this is easier said than done for me, but I try to push out of my comfort zone to be a better instructor. It makes things more fun, too!

Post class I had a half scoop of Vega Whole Healthy Optimizer mixed with just water to help recover from class.

Then I hit up the grocery store.

Here are some buys:

They had this Pacifica body butter $6 off!

Chocolate syrup to top my homemade vegan ice cream. Also on sale.

Sweet Cacao nibs were on sale.

A mini Justin’s Natural Maple Almond Butter.

Organic spelt flour

More hemp seeds.

Organic cherries.

And plenty of applesauce so we hopefully don’t run out next time I’m baking.

Got some other stuff, too, but you don’t need to see everything….riiight?

Dinner was Robin Miller-esque. I roasted 4 chicken breasts – 2 to eat tonight for me and hubby and 2 to make something different tomorrow! Need it twice, cook it once, right?

And since I went to Earthfare for groceries tonight, I definitely got a vegan WW chocolate chip cookie for dessert. (Hubby got a PB Choc chip). Nommm!

***

I get the feeling I’m going to be saying the quote in the title of this blog post a lot. Could it be a new motto for me for awhile? Maybe?

What’s your current motivational motto/quote?

I can hardly believe I actually did yoga this morning at 6:30am! I usually don’t even wake up that early!

Yoga was one of the best decision’s I made all day. I’d forgotten how yoga puts me in the THE BEST mood for the REST of the day. Even a Monday work day couldn’t take the happiness away. I was so cheerful and smiley all day! lol

Yoga with friends = best part of day (except for maybe zumba which may tie) – so glad I went!

Saying “see you later” (you guys know I don’t like “goodbyes”) to Kath who’s moving this week = worst part of day. I hate farewells, and I’m going to miss my friend! Hopefully, she visits us again soon!

I celebrated Starbucks Monday and got a spinach feta wrap and grande vanilla soy latte.

My last fancy green tea in my desk. Guess it’s time to re-stock.

Lunch was leftover Lemony Lentil Soup and a piece of GH Whole Grain Goodness.

PS I had lots of leftovers of that soup! I stored 2 medium sized containers in the fridge for lunch this week. The rest are going in the freezer to be meals when I need a quick, convenient, but healthful meal at a later time.

Plus vegan chocolate cat cookies leftover from the vegan homemade ice cream I made this past weekend (and boy are there a TON left!).

Larabar in Cherry Pie was my pre-workout snack of choice.

***

Post work I decided a second workout for the day was in order – ZUMBA! Yes, I pushed my way through a fun-filled hour of zumba the same day I already did an hour of yoga. I’m not normally a fan of multiple workouts in one day since I like to give my body plenty of rest, but what can I say….I really wanted to zumba and my body felt up to it. Guess I was just owning my strength.

***

Post zumba I had a date with some friends.

These friends: L back to R: Michelle, Jessie, Katie, Kelly, Jen, Jen, Brittney, me.

We met up at Dandelion Market thanks to a Groupon we all purchased to try the restaurant out. We paid $10 for $20 gift certificates! Score! Click here to check out Groupon for yourself – it’s all over the country.

Loved their table water pitchers.

I tried the Blue Point Toasted Lager. The beer was served a little warm but the flavor was really nice.

Michelle and I split 3 tapas:

Aged Cheddar + Ale Fondue.

Stuffed zucchini.

Flat bread with caramelized onions and truffle oil.

We chatted and snacked and chatted some more.

I love my food blogger dinners!

Apple crisp. The topping was a puff pastry like topping, not so much a crisp. Perhaps the menu had a different name and I’m remembering it wrong, but it was a lovely, hearty dessert. I ended up saving some for hubby to try later.

Btw, if you check out Dandelion Market, be sure to ask for Rick – he’s very nice and will take great care of you!

Back home, it was treat time for Bailey.

Gimme five!

Booyah!

Nom nom nom time for Bailey.

Remember to tell me your strength story!

Kath talked me into waking up extra early this morning for hot YOGA at Y2Yoga!

I was up around 5:45am (earliest I’ve been up in a long time!) and had a banana and some coffee. I was hoping this would give me some fuel but would also digest quickly.

It was still dark when I left the house and was slowly getting lighter.

I was immediately reminded of early mornings spent in high school waking up at the crack of dawn, going to the skating rink to have lessons while the rest of the world was seemingly still asleep. I never was good at waking up early. Sometimes I slept in my skating practice clothes just to save time. Sometimes I only allotted myself 5 minutes to throw clothes on and run out the door – it maximized my sleeping time. It would often be pitch black outside even when I arrived for figure skating practice and I hit the ice at 6:45am (that means arrive closer to 6:30 with 15 minutes to do off-ice warm ups and stretch and put my skates on). My coach would give me just 5 minutes to warm up before he wanted to start working on jumps. First, we’d try the double axel. Then, the triple salchow. Those were some rough mornings. But some good ones. I miss those days of training at the ice rink.

I forget how peaceful the world is that early. It’s quite lovely.

Soon enough it was time for 6:30am hot vinyasa. I actually haven’t done yoga in roughly 3 years thanks to a wrist injury. In my pre-zumba days, I was quite the yoga-fanatic. I had a favorite teacher and drove 45 minutes after work to visit her because she was so good. I fell in love with her teaching at her first class when her music system was broken and she sang to us instead for the last 5 minutes of class. After she quit the gym where I was a member and then the wrist injury, I started looking into dance fitness classes and found ZUMBA!

And while I adore and am infatuated with my zumba, there’s something about yoga that makes you feel strong and relaxed at the same time. I’ve often wanted to go back but feared my wrist wouldn’t let me (I did try a couple classes after my wrist injury and it was too painful).

But this morning, I went to yoga anyways and hoped for the best.

I asked Tanner before class about the wrist thing and he said to dig your fingers into the ground. NOT like the above photo – not so cupped.

More like this – like you’re digging your claws/fingertips into the ground. Apparently this helps take the pressure off your wrist. It certainly seemed to work today.

I forgot how hot hot yoga is! I loved the heat. I felt like it helped my muscles relax, even though I was dripping sweat so much the whole class I was practically watching streams of sweat slowly roll down my arms and I felt hot beads of sweat dripping down my face. Luckily, I brought a towel to help wipe off.

About half way through class I started to feel a little dizzy and like I may throw up. I don’t know if it was the coffee or banana not digested enough…or perhaps I was dehydrated…but I kind of wanted to leave the room. Instead, I just went into child’s pose for like 5-10 minutes and made sure to drink lots of water. I felt crappy for skipping so much of the class, but I was glad I was listening to my body. Passing out would have been much worse! I rarely used to stop in the middle of yoga before, but I guess I did pretty good considering how long it’s been since I last did it. I was surprised at how my body seemed to remember so many moves. Guess that’s muscle memory for ya. So smart!

My wrist held up decently, as well. I wonder if having stronger arms helps? I wasn’t in as good of shape when I last tried yoga post-wrist-problems. I feel like having more arm strength would help alleviate pressure on the wrist, but who knows?

Anywho, I was really glad I went to yoga today! I can see why Kath and Emily like Tanner so much!

Yoga buddies: Caitlin, Kath, Emily, Me

I saw this sign in the yoga studio. It says, “Do one thing a day that scares you.” Tanner also said this quote during class. I’ve heard it before and love it. The funny thing is that today, I did something that scares me – YOGA!

I’m constantly surprised at how much stronger my body is than I think. Just when I think I can’t run or can’t do yoga, here I am doing them all in one weekend. Just goes to show you it’s good to Own Your Strength. That’s the line I put on the Operation Beautiful signs I made with Caitlin for the 4 miler this past weekend.

Currently owning my strength:

• Run/Walk for 3 miles Sunday
• Hot Yoga for an hour Monday morning
• Zumba Monday night

I don’t know about you, but I feel like I constantly underestimate my own strength and endurance. Is it just me? I think I can’t do something but when I try, though it’s not always easy, or even do-able, I find I’m capable of so much more than I originally expected. I think sometimes you just have to reach deep within yourself and push yourself to go farther and do more. You may be surprised at the results, in a good way, of course!

Have you had a moment when you realized you were stronger than you thought? How did you Own Your Strength? Tell me about it.