Weekly Reflections - Stuck Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen. Late evening, but evening none the less. This post is a bit over due, I meant for it to happen days ago. It's been a weird week since my last post. 

Work has been insanely busy, 3 clients is a lot. The new full time schedule is perfect, but yikes. I am tired. I suppose I should tell you what I do,I work with children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and children with developmental delays as an Aide/Child Development Specialist. It's a very rewarding and inspiring, always interesting, and fun job. I love my job. I love the children I work with to bits. I could not ask for more. It often seems too good to be true. I am blessed to have such an amazing day job :) So one cannot complain of being tired. 

The last little stretch here has been hard in the way of working out or exercise of any sort. Last weeks Sunday - Wednesday stretch was basically a write off. I lost my head a bit, with the busy day to day and a total lack of sleep. I had little or no motivation for the gym. My mind  and my over tired body got the best of me. I gave in to some undue anxiety. It was not a pretty start. I did manage to squeak out a little 20 min workout with the Jillian Michaels DVD my lovely friend Shawna so graciously made for me. It was a bust, truly.  However all was not lost, as I'm told so many times, it is 90% diet and healthy choices, and 10% exercise. My choices stayed on track, and even improved slightly. So that is a success, a tiny one.  

Speaking of success, I was pulled out of my funk by Danielle, we took in two very intense classes Thursday to make up for my lack luster beginning to the week. Step and Pump and Zumba (2,500 calories burned between the two classes) at Spa Lady (Transcanada location in Calgary) Both classes I would recommend. Thank you Danielle for introducing me to the awesome world of classes at Spa Lady. Saturday was a revisit of the double classes, Cardio Step and Pump and Iron Reps. Another awesome day of burn inducing fun. Today I tried Awesome Arms, which I honestly didn't find all that awesome, but I was pretty tired. After that a one hour Yoga class to mellow things out. I needed the Yoga class. My anxiety has a hold of me, and I'm not about to let it win. 

On a very positive note, I have officially been on this little adventure of mine for a month and one day. I am looking forward to the next 12 or more months of this, and the adventure doesn't end when the weight is off.. so here's to a great many more months of adventure. I have lost 12 pounds total since December 29th. I will post pictures at the end of this post comparing so we can see what that 12 pounds looks like. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of this adventure thus far, that means you my readers, my friends and family, those with words of encouragement, anyone who has shared a healthy lunch or dinner with me, been a shoulder to cry on, or just given me a high five.
Here's to more adventures and the misadventures too! Can't forget those.. can we say Zumba? (See past post regarding Zumba if you have no idea what I'm talking about.) A bit embarrassing, but I will venture forth for more. 

Friends. We need them in our lives, the good bad and in between times. I am thankful for the handfuls of friends I have. Wherever you are, I love you ladies and gents. 

Anxiety. This week is only beginning, Monday and I am an emotional basket case. My anxiety took a front row seat today,and it wasn't invited. The day went well as a whole, it was after I got home that it hit like a ton of bricks. Not sure why or where it came from. I wasn't keen on it sticking around , so I decided that Yoga was the cure. Yoga helped. It really did. However it certainly didn't stop the emotional water works, I cried my way home from the gym. No idea why. I came home to ice cupcakes for a party tomorrow and almost cried in to the cupcakes. I cried some more while talking to a friend. Just a teary mess I am. I think a good long sleep is in order. 

That sleep part comes now. I'm far too tired now to write much more tonight. I'll get another post to you this week. Goodnight all! 

Much Love 

 

Some more fun evidence.. this blue shirt in question was purchased Dec 26. Boxing Day 2011 and it fit perfectly and a bit snugly at the time. This photo was taken last week, Wednesday, the shirt is now a few inches too big, hurray! Second picture shows just how much extra fabric is there :) 

Last but not least a little comic relief. I was bored, this was last Monday? Boredom + Paul's roll of packing tape = Terrifying Tape Mustache and a stupid face I'm making. Nice Erin, very attractive. 

Very very last, the cupcakes, that I almost cried in...

*hands to face*

Good for the Soul Food - The Green and Leafy of it.

This weeks "Good for the Soul Food" post is brought to you by the green and the leafy. Salads are one of my very favorite things to experiment with in the kitchen, you can put almost anything in them and dress them up anyway you like. My favorite combo this week has been: Spring Mix with Tuna, Cranberries and Sunflower Seeds drizzled in Raspberry Vinagrette! Yum! 

 

A colorful and veggie filled salad I made this week, Orange Bell Peppers, Mini Cucumbers, Spring Mix Lettuce Mix, and a little Salsa to top it all off. Yum! 

Spring Mix Salad I made to accompany my meat loaf and beans, Mini Cucumbers, Spring Mix and Sunflower Seeds with a Raspberry Vinagrette

The amazing combo I threw together with my eggs this morning,  1 Mini Cucumber, 4 Mushrooms, a handful of Spring Mix, 1/2 Cup Onion, and mixed in my 3 eggs and topped it with Salsa and a sprinkle of Parmesan. 

Dinner out at Boston Pizza with the ladies - Lemon Herb Salmon, Mixed Vegetables and Salad with Raspberry Vinagrette. Yum! 

Thanks to My amazing Mom! I have Turkey Chili at least once every two weeks! Love Turkey Chili :) 

Vanilla Yogurt with a handful of Natures Path Granola and Craisins Dried Cranberries 

( You can find Nature's Path it in the Natural/Gluten Free section at Superstore) 

The beloved Spring Mix! Salads, Sandwiches and even melds well with eggs! 

It Fits!

Happy Saturday to all of you! 
I woke up on the later side today. Had some low key breakfast, oatmeal with cranberries and cinnamon, and an apple sauce on the side.Spent some time hanging out with Paul. Then he sent me out for lunch. Edamame beans for a snack and a chicken sandwich for lunch. Still unsure what to do with the day, I watched a movie on PVR. Red Riding Hood, I wouldn't give it 5 stars but it was pretty good. Then I decided I should probably get this body moving before the day was gone, so I put in Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred. For the workout you require hand weights and a mat, and jump rope if desired. I have no hand weights to speak of, so I improvised with Paul's electric guitar. The DVD has 3 levels of difficulty, which she suggests you work through in order. I was impressed with how difficult the first level was and will try it again this week when I have real hand weights to use with it. After the 20 mins was over, I was mid stretch when I ripped my pajama pants right down the bum. Cute. haha. Tip: do not work out in pajamas. 

In other news the cute winter coat I bought before Christmas finally fits properly! It is what I call a " lady coat "
a fairly standard wool coat, cut to be slimming and cute. It's blue and black plaid. However it has one tiny fault , a rather annoying snug silk lining. A month ago my arms could only move in slow static motion, and driving with the coat on was nearly impossible. Now I have lost just enough from my arms that I can move freely in it and the buttons in the front do up nicely without a funny gap between them. It is small, but it is a success. Something to celebrate! hahaha. I know I'm a bit lame. But now I don't feel as much like a chubby girl in a little coat. 

The Coat! It fits! 

With love and sadness for my now ripped pajama bottoms. 

Sincerely,

Erin 

I call this post "Weekly Reflections"

Hello lovely readers. At this point I am not sure of how many of you actually exist out there.. make yourselves known if you so desire, I would love to hear from you. What do you like? or dislike about my blog thus far, what would you like to hear more of? or less of ? please grant me some insight in to the readers brain. I am writing this as much for myself as for you. A little peek in to my world. 

On that note, let's get this post on the road. 
There's a few posts I would like to keep as a regular thing, a weekly theme if you will, one is the Good for the Soul Food posts, I like taking pictures and taking pictures of amazing food is fun and reminds me why I am doing this. Also it might inspire someone else! and Secondly this brand new post, drum roll please...badadadadaa
I will call it "Weekly Reflections", fairly self explanatory.

This week I would like to reflect on a few things. 
First, the adventure so far. Here's an update. 
I started this December 29th 2011, with all the motivation in the world and a hope that I can make positive change in my life. So far, so good. I am still motivated and inspired! The changes in my eating habits have been drastic, but so welcome. Smaller portions and a fine balance have been achieved, just need to fine tune. I have found my down falls in cravings, and the weekend, oh the weekend. Giving in to cravings has miraculously only occurred a tiny hand full of times. When hit with a craving, I have tried to stick to a healthy alternative to it, for instance chocolate, I have just a little chocolate. I wanted dessert so I had some Frozen Yogurt with Strawberries. As I've said before indulgence is necessary, to keep self punishment at bay. So for my Mom's Birthday I had 2 cupcakes (light cream cheese icing, and gluten free but a cupcake is still a cupcake):) Weekends, my other down fall, weekends tend to be when I need to amp up my will power. It's usually time to kick back and relax, maybe go to the gym, hang out with friends and family. Well not all of my friends and family are following the same plan as I am, with all that comes temptation, to abandon all reason and have a little weekend food party! but where would I be then? So I make a strong effort to stay on track.  

Now the successes, I have lost 10lbs since starting this adventure, truthfully I don't rely much on the scale to tell me what I want to know. I trust in the fit of my clothes, I have space for a small melon in a few of the t-shirts I bought on boxing day and my jeans are feeling a bit slippy. Crossing my fingers for one size down by mid February. I have gained some perspective and a new way of looking at what I eat. I am thoroughly enjoying my workouts, even the absolutely agonizing ones. My measurements have only decreased in mere 1-2 centimeter increments. I am happy with my progress so far.

I want to thank all my readers and supporters from the bottom of my heart, for reading, for leaving commentary and just for being there. Even if the sum of my readers is small, I am thankful for every one of you. I love writing, for me and for all of you. :) That's mean you! Thank you from my pink squishy heart to yours. 

I posted a few posts back about this website:
www.operationbeautiful.com Go check it out now! 
I want to say this is the week I start taking part. I am going to keep a pad of post it notes in my purse and my gym bag and leave messages where ever strikes my fancy. I think that self confidence, optimism and love for oneself is hard to come by, and it's on the decline. I believe in random acts of kindness, these post its are just that,random compliments and uplifting ideas and quotes.Call it cheesy. I love it! We all love the cheesy and happy notes that come from a fortune cookie, it's  like a real live fortune cookie. Who doesn't love that? 

I made a friend at the gym this week. I don't know what came over me. Being the part time shy girl that I am. I was leaving the gym and saw a woman that had been working out near me, she seemed nice, she smiled and was working hard. I thought I wonder if she would be interested in a work out buddy? So I just walked right up to her and said "Hi, I know this is kind of weird, but might you be interested in working out with me sometime?" and then proceeded to explain that I don't know anyone else who goes to that gym and how nice it would be to workout with someone once in a while. She smiled and agreed, and then we had a little chat. It was nice, and just goes to show me that being friendly pays off.  Am I totally weird? 

Energy, I love the energy I have gained from all this movement. There are nights, like last night for instance when I get home from the gym and I am aching all over, muscles crying out in pain, tired and a little bit grumpy. Most nights are quite the opposite, I feel pumped up and happy,I drive home from the gym singing. The mornings and days following a good work out are worth all the pain in the world, it is like waking up inside. 
I have so much energy, I don't feel like I need to reach for a coffee and I am able to think clearly and just enjoy my day. Doesn't mean I don't have my bad days, but wow! Love the energy kick! Who needs coffee? 

Inspiration - The last week or so music has been a huge inspiration. Good music in the car on the way to the gym and leaving it, and good music to workout to. Upbeat, high energy stuff. I'm also feeling inspired by all the strong women I encounter at the gym, I want to be there, I want toned arms and a nice butt. 

I am feeling good about this week and with some newly acquired knowledge from my amazing friend Kristin I feel like moving forward the food equation will be a little less confusing.  Thanks Kristin. 

Hurray for Wednesday mornings, my favorite day of the week. 
Not so excited for waking up in 4-5 hours. Oops! 
I am a night owl at heart. 

Cheers readers and so much love! 
Erin 

Adventures in Flailing - My First Zumba Class

Well ladies and gentleman, I participated in my first ever Zumba class yesterday and I loved it!

For those of you who have no idea what I am talking about when I say the word Zumba here it is for you: 

 Zumba^® – When participants see a Zumba class in action, they can’t wait to give it a try. Zumba classes feature exotic rhythms set to high-energy Latin and international beats. Before participants know it, they’re getting fit and their energy levels are soaring! There’s no other fitness class like a Zumba Fitness-Party. It’s easy to do, effective and totally exhilarating, often building a deep-rooted community among returning students.

Quoted from the Zumba Fitness website located here:

http://www.zumba.com/about/

So that's Zumba essentially. An intense 1 hour class full of a range of dance styles, moving to an amazing mix of international music and club music. I loved every minute of it. I love to dance! anyone who knows me well can tell you that. However I am an amateur in the biggest sense of the word. First of all my body has no rhythm for dancing, and my arms and legs do not coordinate their efforts well. I looked a bit like a confused and flailing child. Once I managed to get the salsa steps in chorus with everyone else the class had move three steps ahead of me. When I did land a move, I looked up from my feet and grinned ear to ear, expecting someone to give me a sticker or a high five. 

I also take up a lot of room when dancing, I dance like I mean it. I was trying with every fiber of my being to get the steps right and in turn almost knocked over the poor woman beside me, thankfully for my sake she had a sense of humor and laughed right along with me. If Zumba were a children's dance class I would be the kid spinning in circles in the corner and making wild arm movements, saying look Mom I can dance! Did I mention the instructor taught us an entire dance routine from the movie Hairspray ? I am sure of it, the song, the moves! Too funny! I laughed and smiled along with huge sighs of frustration. Most importantly I felt amazing afterward, pouring with sweat , but amazing none the less. I even took time after the class to get in some strength training and a little cardio cool down on the Elliptical. I would recommend Zumba to anyone who enjoys dancing and a fun, intense workout, whether you can dance or not. Zumba again on Saturday! I think yes!

Much Love 

Erin 

Good for the Soul Food :Random Fun in the Kitchen

Sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words.
Here's some pictures from the past week.  

Frozen stir fry veggies. +

Pad Thai Sauce and Rice Noodles = Veggie Stir Fry *Remember to use very little sauce, it's 400 cal. for just 4 tablespoons of this stuff. Did I mention Rice Noodles are amazing? They are! Only 3 minutes to cook them and Gluten Free and low cal/fat. Yay!

Some trail mix I threw together, Dried Cranberries, A handful of Natures Path Granola with Pumpkin seeds and Flax, Almonds, and Sunflower Seeds too! I put a baggie of this in my gym bag for a good after workout snack :) 

Mom's Birthday Dinner at Moxies, Mango Chipotle Chicken. So good! Comes with Rice and Fresh Grilled Veggies , Peppers and Beans. 

This is what happens when you pour icing sugar into a mixer that's on the highest setting. This only happens when Erin is in the kitchen. Oopsie. 

The result of the mess in the kitchen, Gluten Free Lemon Cupcakes with Light Lemon Cream Cheese icing. Yum!

Dinner that my lovely Sister made for Mom's Bday, BBQ Chicken marinated in Franks Red Hot. and Tons of Grilled Veggies, Red Peppers, Red and White Onions, Mushrooms, and Brussel Sprouts.

Web Links : Loving Yourself - A Guide

Here's something fun, a link and here's what I found there, some of it is a little cheesy but I like it. 
http://www.wikihow.com/Love-Yourself


Step 1. Treat others with love and respect. Bringing joy to other peoples' lives will help you find joy in your own. In addition, those that you treat well will likely repay you with the same kindness. Gradually you will start to feel your worth through the smiles of gratitude.

Step 2. Create goodwill and thankfulness by practicing random deeds of kindness by sharing your being with others in many ways. Share your knowledge in nice ways or make a small donation to a needy elderly person or to an unfortunate child.

• Share opportunities for your potential happiness by sharing goals and accomplishments with a special person or a group. Help a candidate or a political cause or a community project. Help at a school or church

Step 3. Express yourself, perhaps in letters, if that fits your circumstance, or write an article, when you have a topic. Share your ideals, time -- or things you have or get.

Step 4. Learn to let go of past events. You deserve a fresh beginning! There are a lot of people out there that have had hard lives/bad beginnings or moments. Don't close yourself out of grief, disappointments, or fears of future ridicule. Acknowledge your feelings, but work to put them behind you. Cherish what you have learned from your challenges, and how you have changed and grown from them.

Step 5. Forgive yourself. Don't punish yourself for something you have done in the past. Instead, look at the mistake as a learning experience. Say to yourself now: “I forgive myself for _______.” Go look in a mirror and say it out loud to yourself, look yourself right in the eyes and speak forgiveness like you mean it. Don't ever demean or ridicule yourself, or if you do then laugh realizing that was then and this is now. Every day is a new beginning.

Step 6. Post positive statements up someplaces where you will see them each and every day. "I am beautiful." or "I have the courage to love." Read them outloud, every day, at least once, ideally at least ten times each time you notice one of them. Sticky notes are fabulous for such affirmations and goals.

Step 7. Sit in front of the mirror. Imagine in the mirror is someone putting you down. Then practicing calming replying to her/him, "I do 'not' care," with a smile. Practice it until you truly believe it.


Step 8. Try to look past "material" objects and feelings: We all want a nice house, nice things, someone to share our life with. Find your true wants objectively. Do you crave power, a religion or simply a motive? Sometimes it's easier to hide the truth from yourself, but figuring out what you really want will help you know yourself better and hopefully aid in answering important questions you often ask yourself.


Step 9. Keep a journal. Write about your experiences, good and bad. When you write down good experiences, allow yourself to feel those feelings. When you remember bad experiences, allow yourself to feel self-compassion. Compassion is not self-pity, but rather willingness to be present/accept with one's own pain and regret. Most people experienced chronic emotional invalidation growing up; adults shouldn't expect others to be validating, and need to learn how to validate themselves. Compassion allows us to be present with our pain so it can acknowledged and let go.

1. Step 10. Be Persistent. Work as steadily as you can at loving and accepting yourself just as you are right now. A large part of love is accepting another "as is". This is no different for yourself—learn to love yourself "as is". Only after we've accepted themselves we might think about changing some less-than desirable characteristics.
2. Step 11. Start working toward how and what you want to do and be. Do so with a positive attitude by working toward your higher purposes and greater appreciation of your problems as motivating your finding new and better opportunities. Be enthusiastic and cheerful (appropriately).
3. Step 12. Define yourself by what you've accomplished rather than what you haven't. Remember that success is not a destination. Success is making progress (toward the desires of your heart). Accept yourself, and others will follow your lead.
4. Step 13. Hug Yourself. Show yourself love through a hug by hugging the real you
5. Step 14. Be yourself. Be who you really are, express yourself, laugh, play, sing. Don't be afraid of what others think, they feel the same way and want to express themselves, but are afraid to show it too.
6. Step 15. Trust yourself. Don't just blindly follow other peoples suggestions. Learn to trust who you really are.
7. Step 16. Think of five positive words that describe you. Try not to use words like *pretty* and *nice*. Try variety.
8. Step 17. Think about what you really want someone to be like in a relationship. Do those characteristics also apply to you?
9. 
   

The Art of Loving Yourself

Few things in this world are constant and unconditional. Love is. 

I have learned the hard way that having a little love for yourself goes a long way. Picking myself apart for kicks and perfecting the art of self criticism didn't get me very far. 

I count myself lucky, I am happy, and comfortable in my own skin. A rare thing to find in your twenties. Someone said to me once that " in our twenties we think we know everything!" "young people think they know everything!" I don't, and will never claim to. 

I had to learn how to love me.  

I rarely felt that I was pretty, at least not conventionally pretty. I was smart and sometimes funny. I was also detrimentally shy in previous years. Paul says I was "queer shy", so quiet it became on oddity. SO shy in fact that I was often mistook for being a snob,or just plain weird. I suppose I still am shy in some small way, I just find I have so much to say and this energy that I need to unleash. I'll admit to being awkward at times and I am infamous for long drawn out, often pointless stories, but I rarely see that shy girl anymore. Coming out of that safe shell of shyness has given me freedom. Freedom and a carefree lease on life, I could have missed out on so many amazing people and friendships had I kept it up. With that came confidence, and an ease that I have never felt. I was so anxious, and then suddenly so at ease with other people and myself. I sometimes feel like I've lived two lives, the quiet one and the ridiculous one I parade through now. I enjoy my life!

Back to the business of being pretty. Like anyone, there are things about me I cannot change, but spent years before obsessing over, stupid things like the shape of my nose or my big feet. Having always been curvier, and blessed with certain assets (I am talking about my chest)I hid from the world most of the time.  

My weight has fluctuated up and down and all over the place. 

Sizes 12-24 I've been there. The highs and lows, the times I felt the best were the times I wasn't worried about what others thought. The lows came with antidepressants and rampant weight gain. I loved the inside me. My appearance was an after thought. 

Until that nagging feeling crept up on me, I went from not feeling very pretty to feeling down right hideous. That's when it came together, I didn't have to feel that way , I could do something about it. So I spent more time finding clothes that fit me and I loved, at that size, instead of wishing I were smaller. I put love in to the things I felt I had control over and the will to change, like my hair,my clothes,and makeup. I learned it was okay to put myself first sometimes and spend time on me. 

I learned the value of self confidence and telling myself good things, rather than criticizing myself constantly. I learned how to love myself as a whole. 

I wish I could have given myself the same advice years ago.Realized I was wasting my time being my own worst critic.

 An actress I follow on YouTube and now on her own page, by the name of Joy Nash puts it best "Now is all you've got" and "Today you look at pictures of your 13 year old self and you're shocked at how cute you were, why didn't anyone tell you how cute you were? Well guess what, ten years from now we'll be looking at today, of us here and now and we'll be shocked at how cute we were!" "Here's the mission: To live today like you wish you would have 10 years from now, because in the future we will look at the past and wonder what the hell our problem was, we get one life, this is it, live it up!" All quotes from her videos. Check her out here: www.joynash.net or you tube search Joy Nash. 

I love me exactly the way I am now, of course there is always room for growth and positive change. But I genuinely like who I am, and feel happy in this body , at this size as I am right now. 

Flaws and all. I might even call myself pretty.

Don't get me wrong I still have bad days and I still get down and  have those awful awful days where I don't want to look in the mirror and I just feel gross. In the grand scheme of things I am happy and healthy, I can walk, a roof over my head and family and friends that love me. That is a lot to be happy for.

A bad hair day or a classic "fat day" isn't going to be the end of the world as we know it. That happiness is the reason this adventure has come about, I am happy, but I do not feel I am as healthy as I could be. 

I don't think I ever really believed I could change my physical make up, not on my own. I stumbled upon periods of miraculous weight loss, I'd lose 20-30 just because my eating habits had changed slightly or I was working somewhere that required more physical labor. It hasn't been until now , in the last year or so that I have felt empowered, to change what I previously felt was impossible. I have all the motivation in the world, determination and energy. I want change. "I refuse to fail" as my dear friend Chelsey might say. I love me, the way I am now. However I have higher hopes, for my health and well being. My family history is chock full of danger, and I want to live a very long life. Life had better watch out because here I come. 

Some thoughts..... 

Remember to love yourself. 

Remember to speak kindly to yourself.

Find the features you love and highlight them. 

Dress to fit your body now, don't wait to dress the way you want when you lose 20 pounds. 

Don't worry about what other people say or think, your opinion of yourself comes first, make it a good one. 

Don't spend all your time comparing yourself to others, be your own person. 

"Comparison is the thief of all joy, you're beautiful being you."

Do spend time on you. 

Do take time out for yourself. 

Love yourself inside and out. The rest is cake. 

Much Love 

Erin 

Manic Monday

Good Afternoon! Monday, Monday, Monday.
Busy morning and a quiet afternoon and I'm happy to have it. I ran to the office, got as much done as I could in the short time I had to be there, visited with my work ladies, and then picked up my Mom and came home for some lunch. Turkey Chili and Zucchini with Red Pepper Dip was on the menu. Yum! Spent most of this afternoon hanging out with my Mom in the family room. So nice to just relax, especially when I look at the insanely busy week ahead of me. It's almost time to go to the gym! Tick tock. The weekend was busy busy too. Highlights included spending time with Shawna, Ladies Night with the ladies from work, spending time with my boyfriend Paul, you'll meet him later in picture form :). Sunday I spent my morning working out with the ladies from our Health and Fitness group, thanks to Danielle's organization,. Sunday we met at the stairs in Sunnyside, (if you don't know Calgary, this won't make sense, it's a giant wooden staircase that scales the side of a very steep hill over looking the river.) The plan was to go up 8 times, which when counted was 1,320 stairs in total. 3,000 calories burned! It was daunting, and harder than I imagined it would be, by the 5th time up and then down again my legs were rubber. By the end, I felt amazing, like I could do it all over again! Today my calves still burn and my buns! I would do it again in a heart beat. Yay for stairs! Tonight I think I may try to make it to a class at the gym and get a good burn on.

Happy Monday!
Much Love
Erin

Some mood lighting for Yoga time in my "living room" (I currently, and temporarily reside with my parents in their basement, and the living room is kind of my everything room)

Yoga Mat, Towel and Resistance Band/Mat Strap 

The view from the top. The Bow River and Downtown Calgary 

Down, down we go. 

The stairs in all their glory, they kind of blend in to the brown hill. Brown hills in January? I know! weird!

Another view, way to right in the distance somewhere are the Rocky Mountains. 

According to the tape measure I've lost 6 centimeters from my abs. Feeling good!!!