What a "Super" Moon Day!

As I'm sure you know, yesterday was the supermoon. And oh, WHAT a supermoon it was!

Here's what happened to me:

1. I know I wasn't "supposed" to practice yoga, but I did a short one (no drop backs) and It Was Wonderful! + 100 points

2. Went to the gym to run but couldn't shake the leaden feeling in my legs. - 30 points

3. Bought new skinny jeans that I actually fit into! + 20 points

4. Without a car, had to walk everywhere in the rain and had wet feet for part of the day. - 5 points

5. Tried to blog about my day, but my computer kept switching between Battery Mode/AC Mode in a frantic, epileptic episode. (And today, it is fine...There's Moon Days for ya!) - 80 points

6. Had delicious cake and watched stupid movies on TV. + 20 points

The score?

About a +50, which is absolutely mathematically correct (I majored in English; accurate math would only happen by chance on this blog).

But honestly, it wasn't too bad a moon day, as moon days go.

How was the supermoon for you?

A Long Australian Weekend: The Queen's Birthday!

Down here, under the equator, the Queen's Birthday is celebrated the second Monday of June. That means it's a long weekend for us working folk!

Steven and I had planned to go to the Blue Mountains to do some sight seeing and tourist-ing, but Lazy, Cheap, and Car-less struck us hard. So, we stayed home.

We did all my favourite things:

Run:

Stretch (ouch):

Eat Japanese Tofu Donburi:

Eat Chimney Cakes from Kurtosh:

Eat pies from Pie Face:

Yes, there was a lot more eating than exercising, and that's the way we like it!

Now, I'm downloading Nike Training Club app so that Steven and I have something to play with the next time we hit the gym. From what I can tell, it looks like a good idea, but the initial download also took like 20 web-minutes (which is really like 3 real minutes), so I've already lost half my interest. There are bonus workouts named after (or created by) famous athletes, like the Kara Goucher Pro Running Stretches that you have to download individually.

By the way, the Kara Goucher Pro Running Stretches workout is EXTREMELY basic. It covers the major areas I always do after a run: low lunge (hip flexor), triangle (outer hip, glute, inner thigh), and IT band (twist with straight leg - she does it supine while I usually do revolved triangle). But it's missing a whole lot of other stuff, like your feet, ankles, calves, quads, piriformis, spine.... yep, the entire spine.... I don't think they did one twist....

Maybe I'll do my own post-run yoga/stretch routine to show you guys... What say you, Interwebs?

Anyway, I'll write a bigger update on what Steven and I think of the Nike Training Club app soon!

Oh JEEZ what HAPPENED last night?!

No. No, I didn't get trashed and have to be rescued from the bathroom (where I passed out), carried out of the club, eventually collapsed on the dirty sidewalk in a pile of disgust and humiliation while my friends called a cab.

That never happened to me.

ANYWAY, those days are OVER and I'm trying to figure out this healthy living stuff, right? Because it makes me feel better, more capable, stronger, and generally like a ninja kicking ass at life. So this week I cut sugary treats and desserts out of my diet. 

The results had been GREAT (especially since I have had NO knee pain, not even a bit)!

Then, last night happened....

Steven and I had tickets to see the Australian Ballet perform Vanguard. After work, we got takeaway Thai food from a restaurant down the road. We had to chow down pretty quickly before we rushed to the Sydney Opera House for the ballet.

It was a stunning performance and I loved every minute of it!

It made me want to do this:

But when I woke up this morning, I felt more or less like a truck hit me.

During my morning Ashtanga practice, my concentration was off, my hamstrings were stiff as ice, and my arms felt wobbly nearly throughout. By the time I got to Marichiyasana C, I was FINALLY feeling more like my regular self, but not as flexible or strong. (Drop backs were hellish)

It's hard to pick out what made such a big difference in my practice this morning, as a whole lot of factors were at play last night.

1) I ate take-out Thai, which probably had lots of added sugar, salt, and oil.
2) I spent much of my Friday work day sitting at my desk.
3) I wore a dress to the ballet, so I had to sit like a lady for the 3 hours of the show.
4) I had a glass of wine during intermission.

I know I've said it before, but it really does bear repeating: food is the single largest effector of change in your body. I'm surrounded by people preaching on about how you must fuel your body for your activities, and you can't expect to build muscle and strength without proper food. This week, I guess the message is FINALLY hitting home.

I'm no longer a young, limber 22 year old who can eat whatever she wants with no consequences, especially if I want to enjoy my yoga practice and run injury-free for the rest of my life.

I'm not too sure where I'm going with all of this--after all, I've already cut out meat and sugary treats. When I figure it out, I'll be sure to let you know.

Sorry for being such a downer on your Saturday morning!

Here is a picture of my dog to cheer you up:

Works every time!

Cutting out Sugar

I might have a bit of a problem with sugar.

I used to take down a donut a day in Toronto....

Cupcakes couldn't cross my path without being destroyed...

And oh no, I didn't forget you juicy delicious fresh mango pastry....

Ohh baby, Tim Tams...

Where am I going with this again?

RIGHT.

I decided to cut myself off.

Almost every night after dinner, I'd find myself rummaging through the pantry for a sweet something, or walking over to our local Kurtosh (BEST PLACE IN THE WORLD!) for dessert.

It got to the point where I couldn't just stop at one cookie or a piece of chocolate. I had an entire bar, a package, a slab (of cake.. mmmm). I just didn't have the heart to stop myself. I thought, "I'm active and healthy generally, this can't hurt me, nothing can hurt me, CUPCAKES AND I ARE GOING TO BE TOGETHER FOREVER AND EVER WAHHHARHARHARHARHAR!"

Totally not an exaggeration of my feelings for cupcakes.

In the end, I just don't want to be controlled by my food. I want to be able to enjoy some sugar sometimes, not a shipping-container-load of sugar after every meal. Plus, those pesky little things like diabetes and obesity.

So I started on Monday, and so far the results have been great.

Because I'm not shoveling cookies in my face after dinner, I finish eating a lot earlier than before. As a result, I wake up feeling less sluggish and cookie-hungover. My morning Ashtanga practices are much stronger, and my flexibility is better.

However, I'm not cutting sugar completely out of my life (even though it's probably a good idea.).

Sugar is one of the best ways to replenish stores of glycogen in your body, especially after an activity like running (or doing Ashtanga for an hour and a half), so I'm still having fruit juice, fruit, smoothies, and the occasional Starbucks latte.

I don't think I'll be able to cut out sugar completely. After all, the forces of travel and limited kitchen appliances are at play here in Sydney. But I'm very happy with the start I've made, and I think it will be easy to maintain until I decide to take it further (or re-unite with the love of my life).

Have a great Thursday everyone!

How I'm managing to (sort of) not run

Autumn in Sydney packs some serious beauty. The eucalyptus is starting to turn reddish, and the morning and nights are chilly, but midday is still sunny and gorgeous.

I successfully took a week off running to help my knee heal, and it seemed to help a lot. Combined with a lot of yoga, I felt pretty good by Tuesday, so I went for a short run.

I took it really, REALLY slow...

It felt so good to romp among the trees, along the water, and under the sun.

I was meaning to go for another (longer) run today, but my knee has been acting up again, so it will have to be postponed. Worse of all, it's GORGEOUS outside, and I have tons of energy. Maybe I'll do pushups until my arms fall off instead.

In other news, Steven's co-workers gave him some books for me to look at.

I haven't really studied the walks yet, but there are lots of popular ones that are in my "Sydney Harbour Walks" book, too.

I really want to do a long, 4-hour-ish walk, but it may have to wait until late May or June as I'll probably be busy with work.

Until then, I'll be closely monitoring my knee before I hit the pavement again.

A Day at Manly Beach!

I GOT MY SURF ON TODAY!

Steven and I went here:

It was a beautiful, hot Saturday in Sydney, so we got on a ferry and 30 minutes later, we arrived.

Without delay, I headed straight over to this little tent and hired myself a board. An hour for $15 to do what I love possibly most in the world? Hell yah!

It's been almost 3 years since I've been on a board! I haven't lost the skill of navigating over white water or the pop up, but I've lost a LOT of strength. If the waves were bigger today, I think I would have been in big trouble.

This totally brought me back to my days in Taiwan, where I was skimboarding and wave riding with my friends every weekend or more. I can't wait to go back and visit later this year!

For those of you who don't know, and might care to learn, it was surfing that got me into yoga. It opened me up to the possibility that yoga might be something I would be interested in. After my first yoga class, I realized that surfing and yoga are one and the same. The physical challenges might draw you in at first, but it won't keep you there for 3 hour sessions every weekend for 3 years.

It was refreshing to come back to where it all started.

I wish I could surf every day of my life. Forever.<3

After my super quickie surf, Steven and I walked over to one of the quieter beaches near the main strip and rented a kayak.

I did all the work while he took pictures and pointed to where he wanted to go.

Nah, that's not true, but my arms are going to be sooo sore tomorrow!

Happy weekend everyone! Namaste!

Pepper burns, milk hands, run scars

Last night was one of the more eventful nights in our humble household in North Sydney.

It started off really well.

I had a good day at work. I found some beautiful mushrooms at the local grocer's near work, and I came home to make this beautiful, healthful and delicious meal:

A giant mushroom cap was our "burger". Steven and I split the burger bun, because we're not so much into the carbs, and we topped it with cheese, thinly sliced red onions, lettuce, and avocados.

I made green bean fries on the side.

I also decided to make that beautiful red tomato salsa, bottom right. We had fresh baby tomatoes, so I wanted to do them in a way that brought out their sweetness.

Just for kicks, I cut up a little chili pepper to add some heat.

Halfway through dinner, my left hand is tingling and I don't know why. I do the dishes, return to the table, and before I know it, I've got full out burning in my left hand.

It felt like I was being pierced with flaming hot machetes, and that my hand would at any moment fall off.

Google told me to try a bunch of things: ketchup, milk, lime, hand lotion, soap.

Milk hands worked for a bit, but the burning came back.

I think I really sealed my fate by washing my hands in warm water after making dinner. The water probably opened my pores, let in all those capsacin devils, and they drilled deep down in the layers of my epidermis like microscopic hedge-hogs from hell.

Eventually, I got too tired to try any more goop on my poor macerated hand and fell asleep.

About 3 AM, I woke to no pain, and thought, "Huh. Guess it went away." And went back to sleep.

The next morning was hard.

Running low on sleep, my eyes burning from contact with my hands and my contact lenses, I had zero focus and barely got through the sun salutations that start off every Ashtanga practice.

Eventually, I crawled back into bed and slept in.

It was just one of those days.

Luckily, today is a Wednesday. That means Bay Run. I was looking forward to this all day long.

This is how we get pumped up for 7K of awesomeness: Harlem shake (or epileptic fit)?

I put in a really decent run, especially with all the hills I've been training on in my 'hood.

Plus, we had this guy join our group today. Great energy, but the collapsing half-way is something he really needs to work on with his coach.

Incidentally, this also happened:

My second official running war wound!! (My first is a sports bra chafe that you don't need to see or know about.)

I tripped on a dark patch of pavement and fell!

I THINK I'M OFFICIALLY A RUNNER NOW!

Stats:
32:24 min
3.18 miles
10:11 min/mile

I didn't know Instagram was this much fun!

I really don't consider myself a technology noob, not when I'm comfortable switching Apple-Android-PC-Mac as often as I do (Steven is Mac, I'm PC).

Remember these awesome ads?

But by Golly, I didn't realize how much fun this Instagram business is!

LOOK AT THESE!

Have you ever seen such a glorious bowl of Cheerios?!! HAVE YOU??!

Do you see what I did in this one? I FRAMED IT!!! I FRAMED MY LUNCH!!

 It even makes me doing yoga at home in front of my laptop EXCITING and ROMANTIC and INTERESTINGLY-HUED!

Is Twitter this fun too?

Btw, you can follow me on Instagram now! My name may resemble something like Morethansevenpairs..... look me up!

My Melbourne yoga setup

I've been pretty diligent with my morning Ashtanga practice since I've started traveling around Australia. I've done yoga on a lot of carpets, kitchen floors, and quiet little corners.

In my expertise, carpet throws off balance and makes jumping forward and back really difficult. So, I try to avoid it.

But kitchen tile is incredibly hard, so I grab a sarong or towel to cushion my old bones.

The view of stove, vacuum, and table fades away by Surya Namaskar B.

I'm loving self-practice because I don't have to wait for adjustments (while at the same time, I miss them), and I can listen more carefully to my own breath and rhythm. I'm expecting my return to Mysore to be loud and busy as compared to self-practice.

There's no better way to usher in a new year than with a good, strong, knock-the-sense-back-into-you Ashtanga practice!

Happy New Year!

Being 26 on the 26th

This is the last day of 26! And a good riddance, too.

Onwards to my late-twenties and perhaps more maturity (but probably not).

Today, I slept in---meaning I woke up at 7:30 feeling refreshed and ready for my pre-birthday celebrations.

I put in a decent effort at the shala. I did Marichiyasana B and D for the first time since upping the running ante. I'm going to have to keep my running miles low in order to keep my Ashtanga awesomeness up, eh? Alas.

After Ashtanga, I raced home and grabbed the dog. She had an appointment to get shots into her Two-Bum.

Here, and here.

Sorry for the laundry basket and piles of wood in my house. It doesn't look pretty, no, but there's a reason, I swear! The reason might be "lazy" but that is besides the point.

What is the point, you ask?

Don't ask me, I'm only 26. I'm a kid.

"Sorry your bum-bum hurts, Dog. I'm sorry you don't understand why walking up and down the stairs hurts you or why you feel lethargic. I'm sorrryyyyy!"

For dinner, Jenbeans took me to Agra on Yonge and Sheppard.

Jumbo Tandoori Shrimp. Jen, Eric and Ferrari-Boy indulged in these.

Why am I calling him Ferrari-Boy instead of Strawberry Jam-Boy like he should be called?

Because he's afraid everyone will think he really likes strawberry jam and will buy him strawberry jam when they go to France (ahem...). He made sure to clarify that he likes it, but would rather be called Ferrari-Boy if it means people buy him stuff for his birthday or as souvenirs.

He makes a good point though.

BACK TO AGRA!

Okra! Delicious.

Palak Paneer. Good, but a little too oniony and not the greasy creamy stuff you usually get. Not that I'm complaining!

The butter chicken that I didn't have.

My plate!

Overall, Agra is good, but Banjara is still my favourite.

The sister did something silly and bought me stuff from Lululemon, even though I get a discount there since I'm a yoga teacher (sort of).

She got me arm sleeves for running and a light running zip-up.

AT FULL PRICE.

SISTER! You kill meeeeee....

But she shoved them in this tubey thing and wrote "To Sandy Beans". Which is awesome-sauce.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ALL THE CHAMPAGNE OCT-27-ERS OUT THERE!

Yoga Burnout?

I woke up yesterday and I didn't want to do yoga.

For me, that is weird.

WEIRD. 

I almost always want to do yoga--I love it as much as I love eating.

More and more often, I'm second guessing what I'm doing with my life. There is no job security with teaching yoga, no benefits, no ladders to climb or advance. You work to be a better and better teacher, but you don't really know if you're doing "life" right.

Luckily, I came downstairs and I saw this:

So I felt better about my life.

Yoga is really the only job that lets me spend tons of time with her, with my running, with my yoga, with all the people I love and all the activities I can't bear to live without.

And it gives me tons of time to do my second favourite thing in the whole wide world...

Eat:

Tonight, we went to one of my favorite vegetarian restaurants. 

Everything is vegetarian, even the sushi!

It's Buddhist vegetarian, which means everything is garlic and onion-free.

I don't get it either, so don't ask me.

After dinner, we went to Yogen Fruz, the classic "mall-frozen-yogurt-place".  I found one north of the city that's eat-in, so we had to visit, especially with the warm days of summer nearly behind us.

Bad news, they were closing when we walked in.

Good news, Randy, the nicest owner ever, said he'd make us froyo anyway.

FROYO FTW!

Bad news, he ran out of mochi balls.

This is Steven's sad face. Zero mochi balls.

My "no-mochi-ball" face was more like "falling-to-my-knees-screaming-WHYYY-DO-YOU-HATE-ME-WORLD" face.

Dramatic? ME? Nevah.

Yogen Fruz has superior yogurt. Hands down.

Real fruit.

No ice chunks.

And it doesn't melt into pools of sweetened water.

Now if only we had mochi balls.

Randy, make the mochi balls happen.