Friday love

Pre-workout eats: Cinnamon Chex-Banana Nut Cheerios mix with 1% milk and banana

Workout: ~60 minutes All-Levels Yoga (one class last night, one at 9 a.m. today)

I had nothing but love as I walked out of yoga last night. I had an enjoyable hour in the studio, the instructor was fantastic and there were a few challenging poses but nothing that made me want to leave. All in all, it was a fantastic class.

Except for that time I went toot-toot and, with three other students, it was obvious it was me.

But let's get back to the class. All Levels Yoga was pretty close to the class I thought it would be. We started with a gentle warm-up and moved into sun salutations, warriors, back work, ab work (boo!) and hip openers. There was a gentle flow as we moved through the poses - we were working but not sweating. There were poses for the more advanced (crow) and modifications for the beginners (cobra instead of up dog).

My favorite part of the class, though, was the instructor. I'm not sure what it was about her but I was enamored. She was young, cute and had a soothing (but not overly so) voice. When she came around to adjust down dogs, she put her hands on your back and with firm but gentle pressure moved them down to the sacrum. The placing of the eye pillow had a similar motion. It was fantastic.

And now that I've show love (maybe too much) for last night's yoga, here's some Friday love!

Food. The weeks leading up to and including Christmas were rough. Cookies, Cookie Dough Dip, Peppermint Bark Gelato, Hot Fudge Pudding Cake, Cinnamon Rolls … Lord. Have. Mercy. It was like sugar overload. Anxious to get back to my normal ways, I’ve been trying to cut back on the sugar. It hasn’t been easy, especially with treats scattering the office and cookies still in the freezer. Determined to make an improvement, though, I decided to start my efforts where I could best control things: at home. I allowed Mark to have the rest of “my” ice cream and my nightly treat for the past two days has been fresh pineapple with coconut cream. So good. All I did was chunk up a fresh pineapple, which have been $1 lately at Kroger, and add a drop or two of coconut extract to some light Cool Whip. It’s sweet but guilt-free. Love. It.

Fitness. This love isn’t about what I’ve been doing. Oh, no. It’s been about what I’ve been missing. When I embarked on my 10-day yoga challenge, I knew that there were parts of my fitness routine that would have to take a back seat. I would give up a day of running per week and I’d hold off on the strength training. Strength training seemed like a good place to start. I figured with all the downward-facing dogs and chaturangas that bicep curls and overhead presses wouldn’t be necessary. And maybe they aren’t … but I miss them. I picked up a new-to-me Jackie Warner DVD at the library and look forward to testing it out sometime next week.

Life. I’ll be honest. After removing my iPod from my workout necessities and opting to listen to audio books in the car (current selection “Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"), I’ve been completely out of it in terms of music. I have no idea who’s hot and who’s not, no inkling as to what artist I should be listening to. Now that my Pandora station is off Christmas music, I was able to find something new. Or new to me. “Almost Lover” from A Fine Frenzy.

Give it up for a hot redhead!

What are you fine folks up to this weekend? Exciting plans for the New Year?