Diving Board

Even with all the drama going on in my life at this moment, I still made it to my last swimming class. I really needed it as well, it was a nice short break for me. I was a bit sad as this was my last class and hopefully, I'll be able to take Aqua Adult 2 in a couple of months but for now, I will practice my front and back crawl. Tonite, we practiced our front and back crawl in the shallow end and then we got to try on flippers, oh my that was super fun! Flippers magically turn you into a mermaid, you move so quickly and smoothly in the water and I was instantly comfortable in them. Altho some of the others were having a hard time using them, I really love them! I think I need to pick up a pair for myself! After swimming and practicing with the flippers, it was time to finish off the class in the deep end of the pool. We swam across, I did it very quickly while the others were having to do it on their back or with a flotation device. I did my front crawl all the way to the deep end and by half way thru, I was a bit shocked by the depth of the deep end but quickly regained myself to get to the end :) After everyone arrived, it was time to jump off the diving board! She did have a flotation device to assist but I went twice without it and it was such a RUSH! I am so excited, I can't wait to swim lengths across the pool!!! By the end of the class, she handed us a pamphlet on what we had learned and a guide to help us with our techniques. I asked her if I was ready for Aqua Adult 2 and she said yes but for the rest of the class not to worry about going back into Aqua Adult 1 since this class is 6 classes condensed into 1! I can't wait to do Aqua Adult 2 and I'm so proud of how quickly I accomplished this goal! I can't believe just a few weeks ago I was terrified to put my head into the water and now I can do the front and back crawl the right way!!!

Front Crawl

I officially learned the front crawl tonite! It was awesome, I'm so excited and I can't wait to actually go swimming in a pool!! Our instructor was not here today so we had a sub, she noticed how quickly I was swimming and taught me 2 new steps, well one is to prepare me for the "front" crawl :) I had an exercise where I bring my arm up from the water and brush my finger tips along the water, this is to let me know how it feels to have my elbows up in the air. After a few laps of this, she directed me to point my fingers and slant my arms like a curve as my hand hits the water to pull back, it feels like I'm scooping the water. No longer a straight arm crawl :) It was awesome, can't wait to use my new front crawl move in the pool!

Frontcrawl & Backcrawl

OHMYGAWSH! I finally managed the side float without a kick board! I'm so happy and proud of myself! At first, I was using it but trying not to grab it instead pushing the board away from me as I did the front crawl and barely touching it while on my side. I can't believe it, I'm so happy to finally not have to depend on the board. I think I will get a lot more practice on this move this coming Saturday. I was really happy with my improvement and the sub instructor noticed how advanced I was so she asked me to move from the shallow water over to the deeper end of the pool. What an improvement! I guess my arms are too long for the shallow end so I kept hitting my hands on the bottom of the pool which may have caused me to lose balance on my crawl. But after practicing in the deeper end, it really made the difference! We also learned a new item, the back crawl which is much harder than it sounds! Balancing on my back is one of my best skills but trying to move the arms back and forth in opposite directions is HARD! But I'm sure I will get this move in no time as long as I practice, I'm so excited!! I'm really learning to SWIM :)

Deep End!

Tonite's swimming lesson ended with a BIG SPLASH in the deep end of the pool! We had a great class and we are starting to learn the front crawl which is very exciting! I am hoping to float on my side without the kick board altho I am having problems doing so right now. Also I am trying to blow the bubbles out of my mouth instead of my nose since I have to open my mouth when I do my side float to suck in fresh air before dunking my head back into the water. Right now I'm trying to get as much practice as I can, I realized in the previous class that I am tensing my shoulders and having too many things to think about as I'm doing the side float! Like blow, kick, arms moving forward, side turn, kick harder, BREATHE!!! Hahahaha, oh well it'll probably take me years of practice before I'm really comfortable and smooth but right now the goal is to manage the front crawl without sinking on my side! Before ending our class, the instructor made each one of us jump into the deep end as she wanted us to get comfortable with the idea of it. Of course, we all wore life jackets and there were a few of us that managed to jump in right away while others had to take their time and did not make quite a splash, another option to jumping in was to get in off the ledge. I was so excited in fact that I started to bounce up in down in my life jacket hoping to catch a glimpse of HOW DEEP the water was! My instructor was impressed that I was so excited to be in the deep end and let me tell you, it was super deep and a bit scary! But it's so much fun and I'm so glad that I decided to take swimming classes. I'm enjoying my classes and swimming so much more than hot yoga! Luckily, I have quite a couple of intense swimmer friends so if I ever feel lonely in my own pool, I can have a "swimming" gathering! :)

Swimming Lessons!

Tonite I started my first swimming lesson in Aqua Adult at Bonsor Community Centre. I was excited but nervous about this class but it turned out really great! I'm glad to know I am not the only adult out there who can't swim properly. It is also good to learn the basics all over again as in why we need to put our head in the water and how to balance our body in the water. Altho I am more advanced than the others in the class, it is good practice at fighting my fear and having my head into the water. It's a 45 minute class but it went by quickly, we learned two steps which is floating on our front and floating on our back with flotation devices of course, thank goodness for those kickboards! Altho by the middle of the class, I did not use them cos I am quite comfortable in floating on both sides. Can't wait to learn more and learn the front crawl, this will be a challenge!

Swimming Lessons

I signed up for swimming lessons at Bonsor Community Centre tonite! I'm so excited to (re-learn) learn how to swim :) I had taken swimming lessons when I was younger but never made it to the end of the program. So I guess, I never really learned how to properly swim and I am excited to learn how to breathe, front stroke, and put my head into the water. Recently, I have taken up swimming again for fitness but I feel I'm not getting that much of a workout as I'm not really swimming correctly and my head is always above water. I would like to improve my swimming speed so I can get more swimming into a 20 minute workout :) So excited, I even picked up a one piece Nike swimming suit for the lessons! Woot Woot!

Moving

This morning, I received some pretty disappointing news about my moving plans. Normally I would get very upset, freak out and be really pissed off but this yoga is def helping me cope and deal with issues that come up in my every day life. In fact, Kay and some of my friends have noticed how calm and relaxed I've become. Since I have started up yoga and adding an extra cost to my already stretched budget, I realize you cannot put a price on your sanity and well being. This is def worth the $99 plus taxes that get deducted off my credit card monthly! But back to my issue, I've found out that HonHon's parents are in town next week for at least a week and now I need to postpone my moving. I also need to move items back to where they were so it's not too obvious that I am about to move in! This means, I am now doing three times the moving cos I had already cleaned and cleared out a couple of closets and cupboards for myself and moved items to store but now I am need to put those items back to where I found them until his parents have left. HonHon has suggested that I try to live with as minimal as I can and go back and forth to my storage for items that I need as I need them. IMO, this would be a waste of time, money and gas! I am a little bit disappointed but I understand as he is not quite ready to tell them we are moving in. Now I must come up with a new plan and rethink my moving as I am going to lose an entire week of moving and my friend can only help me with my moving during this month as he is off to Europe for a month long vacation! Breathe, relax and rethink..... to be continued..... (thank goodness for yoga tonite!)

Lululemon

At lunch, I went over to Lululemon to purchase a larger yoga mat carrying bag as my smaller one does not fit all my yoga essentials! I have spent a bit over my budget this month on yoga items but I think it'll be worth it as I plan on taking this up for the long term. At least a year of Bikram yoga and maybe I will look into other types of yoga. Over this past week, my purchases have included 2 pairs of yoga shorts from One Tooth on Robson street ($30 each compared to Lulu's price at $45 - 60 each) and now this huge yoga bag for another $60. I would also like to purchase another Hot Class Tank from Lulu but it is sold out online and none available in the store. I find after trying a couple of different tanks that this is the best one to be in while in the hot yoga class altho I notice many of the women in the class tend to wear bra tops or something similar. I am way to shy to wear just a bra top and I need a bit more coverage so I am really glad that I found this tank, I think it's def the best and most comfortable tank top to be in. As soon as it is available, I'm def going to order another one!

Bikram's Yoga

First Bikram yoga class and gosh was it ever tough! 90 minutes in a room set at a temperature of 40C plus a room full of sweaty people is not my idea of a workout but gawd, was it ever DAMN HARD. Even tho, it's stretching and low impact, it really makes a hard impact to your body. I didn't realize how stiff my body is and it's going to take many many classes to give my body more flexibility and probably years of practice to even to do all 26 intermediate poses. The goal for tonite was not to leave the room in the middle of the class, not to faint or to throw up and if I could manage more than 20 poses, it was great accomplishment. I did manage to try 24 poses and I had to lie down for 2 of the poses cos I felt a bit dizzy. After the class, my entire body felt like I hiked the Grouse Grind, it's an amazing feeling!!! I am looking forward to more yoga classes this week and I hope that I can make thru it! If I can, I will def look at signing on for long term commitment.

Hot Yoga Gear!

My lululemon online order came in this morning, I ordered a hot class tank from lululemon's website the other day and luckily got it in black as this colour is no longer available. Since one is not enough, on my lunch break, I went over to Lulu on Robson to see what else they had and ended up buying a scoop neck tank in black too! I was thinking about picking up shorts but I'm not too comfortable with the idea of wearing short shorts so I'm just going to stick with my capri pants instead. I am very excited about this upcoming week with Tomina and I hope we will enjoy and continue to stick with it!

Bikram's Yoga

Today, Tomina and I signed up for Bikram's yoga! We are very excited about this and I think this will be much more productive than the Monday night hip hop pussycat dance classes! The bonus is we will stay far away from all the crepes that we have been eating after our Monday night dance class. So excited, can't wait, now I just gotta find some hot yoga gear for the upcoming classes.

Pussycat Doll Hip Hop Classes

OMG, I am too stiff and too old to dance like a pussycat doll! Tomina and I had signed up for 7 classes every Monday at the Urban Dance Co on Granville Street. The instructor is nice and very talented but I felt like the class was too crowded and the dance moves were being taught to quickly for a real beginner to understand. Some of the ladies have done the class before so they had no problems with the moves while some of us tumbled all over the place. Oh well, it's good exercise and it's fun doing this with Tomina :) We only have 6 more classes to go and I don't think I'll sign up for the next set! Yikes! I don't think my body can bend and wiggle in the places that I am suppose to! Hahaha....

Swimming

Kay and I headed out to HonHon's place for a 30 minute swim. We (well I mostly) are trying to get as much cardio in as we can cos the weather has been pretty cold and it's hard running the dark. I have been meaning to find a route on the street with street lights so I could get my 4 km in but it's hard when it's been raining 20 days straight and it's been so cold. After our swim, we get to sit in the hot tub for 10 minutes that is so much nicer than running and then trying to finish up the rest of my workout before jumping into the hot shower! Altho I think I was def burning more calories running and my strength training, it's hard to get outside when it's so crummy out there. This upcoming week the pool will be closed for 5 days due to maintenance so I am trying to get as much in as I can before taking the week off. Maybe I'll try to run this upcoming week....

Running the Park

Wow, I am impressed! I just found out that I run 4 km in 30 minutes! Erin has a site where it can calculate the distance (very accurately!) and I usually run about 10 rounds which is 4km and I used to run 13 which means I was at one time doing 5 km!!

Grouse Grind

52 mins

This week, I started a new workout routine which includes strength training after my running days (usually Mon/Wed/Fri). I decided I needed to build more muscle cos I feel like I'm plateauing with my weight / inch loss. I am not really seeing any more results and I figure I might be burning up muscle while I'm doing all my intensive cardio. If I build more muscle and don't overdo the cardio, I am hoping this new routine will tone and shape me up nicely. I remember last winter/spring, I had started swimming and that workout really toned my body and I really enjoy the new muscles :) I plan on taking up swimming again once the Grouse Grind is over (probably first week of October). Plus if I build more muscle, this will boost up my metabolism which is great cos then I can sneak a couple of cupcakes in my diet every month! =) Hoping to see results in the next two weeks, will keep it posted!

Pants Fit =)

OMG, I finally fit into those pants I've been working so hard to get into!! I can't believe it :) All the Grouse Grinds and keeping track of how much I eat by measuring out my meals is really working and helping. Now if only I could have been more focused before Jes's wedding, I would have been able to have fit into the BJ dress but it's ok cos I do love the pink BCBG dress much more. After work, I decided if I could get into those pants, I should try on the R&Rs denim that Jes / KM bought me last year and have not worn them since March. Guess what, I manage to get into them and button them! But I could lose one more pound to be comfy in them, I am so excited and pleased with these results. I'm def. gonna treat myself to a mini cupcake tomorrow to celebrate!

Super Sunday

Wow, what a day! First off, it was another super hot day in Vancity, sweltering melting hot! (Rumor has it, weather record breaking beginning on Monday, oh no!) I helped Rhoda clean the top floor of her house cos she has a bunch of out of town guests arriving this week for Jess's wedding. I can't believe she's getting married in a matter of days!! It is so exciting! Gosh, the top floor of the house was so hot but we managed with all the windows opened and the huge fan (thank you auntie for pulling that one out!) blowing in our face. After re-organizing all their stuff, Rhoda finished off the rest while I helped Jes with her chandelier project. She arrived home after we had started the 2nd room and was measuring out her jewels for her chandelier with the help of her mom. Originally, she received a quote on a custom chandelier for her wedding receptions and it was going to cost $2500!! To save some money, she had another company (in the US) to custom make the frame and ordered the jewels from Asia in bulk which ended up only costing her $650!! It was a lot of work which consisted of measuring and cutting the jewels off the roll, by the end of the night we had finished her 6 rolls of jewels. She didn't have her glue gun to glue them onto the frame but when she does, it's going to look gorgeous! After a long day and night, I headed home around 10pm and when I got home, my mom told my brother (he came by for a visit) and I something unexpected but expected (grams let the secret out of the bag to me a couple of weeks ago). My mom had an emergency a couple of months ago and it seems that it's not over yet. She went for a follow up and it seems that she has a few health issues, one is shingles (which she is taking meds for and will subdue it), a kidney stone in her left kidney that needs to be removed, a tumor or water bubble in her right kidney (going for more testing) and a "seed" in her intestine which the doctors are not quite sure what it is (also going for more testing). It's pretty scary but it does not seem life threatening which is a great relief. My mom was a bit disappointed that my grams couldn't keep the secret but my poor grams was sooo worried about my mom these past couple of weeks of course she had to tell someone! I'm sure my mom will be fine, we are all keeping a close eye on her.

Grouse Grind

59 M 25 S

Grouse Grind

59 Mins 15 Secs

I love hitting the Grouse Grind in weather like today!! The rain keeps people off the trail and it cools you down as you hike up intensely trying to beat your previous time on the GG. I shaved 5 minutes off my last time and that is awesome! I took 30 second breaks at the 1/4 and 1/2 mark to drink water and catch my breath but blazed through the 3/4 mark. It was pretty slippery on the trail and I was soaking wet and so dirty once I reached the top. I should have worn a water resistant jacket cos my jacket did not dry by the time the boys came up. I had to wait 55 minutes for those boys, luckily I brought a fruit snack and some nuts. But I was sitting there for so long and started to get chills so I had to order a hot chocolate! Oh well, I will eat a salad when I get home =)

Cardio Bootcamp

I think I need to do some intense cardio bootcamp a few days a week. I have been feeling like sh*t these past few days and I cannot shake this negative vibe I've been feeling. I ran a couple of times over the weekend but it didn't seem to help that much altho it did relieve some tensioin. I am thinking about joining either one of these boot camps:

Cardio Core Boot Camp

Precision Boot Camp Vancouver