Yoga = Epic Fail, tempered by GRE success!

So...as made apparent by the title of this blog, I did NOT in fact make it to yoga as I had intended. Instead I spent my evening napping, catching up on laundry that had been laying undone throughout the power outage last week, and read the second book of the series "Game of Thrones." I felt NO guilt whatsoever though, because I got my GRE scores in the mail today! I scored very high in the verbal section and I couldn't be happier :)

What is the morale of this story? You are not setting yourself up for success if you pressure yourself into exercise AND being productive is a flexible concept which can many times include reading fantasy fiction, doing laundry and jumping up and down with joy :)

the 6month membership guilt

In October I purchased a 6month yoga membership that set me back half of a ticket to exotic locales... and like most people (in my limited experience) I was all enthusiasm and consistency for the first few months. Then came the holidays, travel and work/applications... and yoga fell easily, and guilt-lessly off of my 'to-do' list. Now, well after the vacation and long after any sort of reasonable excuse has expired in the fridge, I am feeling the 'expensively-purchased-workout-membership' guilt. Today, if all goes according to plan, will be my first day back to the 104 degree, 60% humidity yoga studio where I sweat out both my dignity and my toxins. Wish me luck.

More to life than physical fitness...

Part of smelling the roses in life, for me, is also fulfilling myself intellectually. So! I have conquered another mountaintop for myself... applying to graduate school! I have applied to Portland State University for their PCMI/ MA-TESOL program, Gonzaga (same program), and University of Oregon for their Teaching and Teacher Curriculum program. I am both nervous and excited for the next month or so, waiting to hear back from the schools I have applied to. But I feel so relieved, exhilarated and accomplished... having applied in the first place :)

* this photo was taken of my sister-in-law and I, after a successful meeting with the admissions board member for my grad program at Gonzaga :) we celebrated my success and being done with application stress at Geno's before I left again for the west side of the mountains :)

What Next?

I successfully finished my first Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic this summer in about 17hrs... now what? Since September I have been living in Federal Way and regularly attending a yoga studio, where I splurged on a six-month unlimited membership. Since then I have attended many Hatha sessions, in 102 degree heat and 40% humidity. As a result I have increased both my endurance, flexibility, strength and general overall health exponentially. I unintentionally proved this to myself when, on Thanksgiving day, after having gone weeks without running, I randomly decided to run six miles... and did so without a hitch. It was probably one of the best runs I've done in a while; no pain, not super tired, and energized the whole way with a strong finish. I'm about to turn twenty-five and I feel fantastic!!! SO!!!! NOW WHAT??? I need a goal, I am much to competitive to simply continue to yoga-it-up and have no ultimate goal or motivation. I have never been one of those women who could simply exercise to lose weight...boring. What are some things on my physical fitness bucket-list that I haven't crossed off yet?:
*1/2 marathon
*marathon
*duathlon
*triathlon
*backpack the Wonderland trail
*rock climb
...
It is time to start thinking again about what it is I want to accomplish physically this coming year! Hazzah!

Here at Last!

Tomorrow morning, at 7am, I begin my first Seattle to Portland bike ride!! I have been thinking about this race for a long time, training for nearly as long (not proficiently, but with lots of heart!), I have been given a bike made by my dear Uncle Troy and now I am about to achieve my goal!!! I am nervous-excited, the perfect ratio; enough to keep me on my toes, but not enough to psyche myself out. I have a fantastic support team, Al and Lele, who will be taking care of me, and my mama is going to be at the finish line!! I also have a good friend, Seth, who is riding as well. All in all this is going to be an amazing experience that I will remember forever and I want to be very present throughout. I don't want to wish for things to "hurry up" I just want things to happen, to experience every mile, and finish strong!! Wish me luck!

looking back and forth

This last summer, August 2010, I went on an amazing camping trip with some old guy friends from college: Matt, Jeff and their friend Michael. It was amazing!! We hiked almost everyday, and did the full Enchantment Loop (up and over Asgaard pass!!! beautifully epic).

As a result of the high I experienced conquering those many miles in the beauteous outdoors; I have been, since that trip, looking towards the next big adventure!! And it shall be the Wonderland Trail on Ranier of course! I am in the process of planning it with my friend Al, and we have to submit an application for a pass soon... so much planning, but sooo worth it. These kind of adventures stay with you for a lifetime. :)

Maggie, my fancy bicycle :)

So, I have named my dear cycle "Maggie." The thought process behind this choice of name is simple, if you know how I received the bike...

one day, I was wishing that I had a bicycle to ride the Seattle to Portland bike race with and I happened to mention this dream to my Uncle Troy. My Uncle Troy, being the awesome cycling uncle that he is, offered to make me a bike!! Not only did he give me a frame, and put everything together (clips, etc.) but he also gave me a very cool jersey (which I have received multiple compliments about) and cycling shoes as well! And so, I was able to make my dream happen thanks to the generosity of my awesome Uncle Troy (and thanks to Aunt Debbie for the socks!).

I felt the need to honor the origins of my awesome bike in some way, and I name everything (my snow shoes are named Charlie (left foot) and Lola (right foot)) so I dubbed my bike Maggie, after my Aunt and Uncle's dog :)

I have since gone on three rides with Maggie and it is so much fun! There is nothing like cycling, you are moving so quickly, I feel like a human bullet!! The scenery is beautiful around the Seattle area, and I have a feeling that by the time StP rolls around I will have seen all of it.

My most recent ride was across the I-90 bridge (fear not, there is a separated bike area) which was terrifying!!!

It was terribly windy and you could see the water below you through the spaces in the railing... oye, I was focusing so hard on not going towards the rails while simultaneously avoiding oncoming bike traffic, that I almost didn't notice the frost bite in my hands (almost)... definitely an experience. After the bridge I rode the Mercer Island loop; so far this is the longest ride I have gone on (until this coming Sunday of course).

StP Update: last night I purchased my ticket at 12:06pm!!! (7min after they opened for public sale) My intention was to avoid missing out on a ticket, apparently I was over-excited about the lack of availability because others I know purchased their tickets late today... in any case I am hoping to have a cool number. And I can't help but be excited!!! July 9th & 10th here I come!!!