ashleyd /

A Weekend in Three Cities

It was a whirlwind weekend but yesterday, around 5 pm, I found myself overlooking my favorite city in the world from the roof of our temporary housing.

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It’s hard to believe that between Friday and Sunday evening, we went from Geneva, Switzerland to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to New York, New York!

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We ended our time in Geneva with one final barbecue along the lake. We spent the evening, perched on the rocks, talking and enjoying lots of wine and food. Like many of our Geneva nights, the barbecue evolved into a night of sipping rose wine and dancing at Les Voiles.

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Needless to say, after only 2.5 hours of sleep, we were both utterly exhausted. I was so exhausted that I forgot to wash the conditioner out of my hair during my quick pre-airport shower. The early morning sunrise was far prettier than the way we felt as we loaded our suitcases into the cab and bid farewell to Geneva.

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These are our “how quickly can we fall asleep now that we’re safely on the plane” faces.

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Two flights and one layover later we landed at JFK Airport perfectly on-time with all our baggage. Within an hour of landing, we found ourselves en route to Philadelphia for our good friend’s engagement party. Bo deserves an award for letting me play this song on repeat the first ten or so minutes of our drive.   IMG_1493

While Bo drove, I managed to do a quick wardrobe change, swapping out my leggings and t-shirt for my new favorite Lilly Pulitzer dress. Paired with makeup and some hair spray I was able to go from jet-lagged to somewhat presentable.

IMG_1496The engagement party was the perfect way to reunite with some of our close friends and get to know the rest of the wedding party. Sean and Kelly were beaming the entire evening, so excited for the big day and to be surrounded by so many friends and family members.

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After the engagement party ended our group headed into Wayne, a small town along the Main Line. I lived in Wayne for two years, from 2007-2009, and always love returning the area. We took over the back booth at our favorite gastro pub, Teresa’s Next Door and laughed into the wee hours with everyone. By the time we called it a night, we’d been up for 26 hours!

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Unfortunately jet-lag didn’t let me sleep past 6:30 even though I was still so exhausted and wanted nothing more than twelve hours of deep sleep. I went for a walk, grabbed a coffee and spent the next few hours reading on our hotel’s front porch while the others slept until a normal hour. After breakfast and another coffee stop, we headed back to New York City, making it back to Time Square area in less than 2.5 hours!

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Once back in the city we spent our afternoon moving into our temporary housing, located in the heart of Times Square.  While the location isn’t necessarily ideal, the apartment is very nice and conveniently located just a few blocks from Bo’s office. We are so thankful to be once again together and have a furnished place to live while we search for an apartment.

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After making a last-minute trip out to Brooklyn to see an apartment that hit the market on Saturday we collapsed on the couch with dinner and a large, much- deserved glass of red wine. That, along with the first two episodes of Orange Is the New Black made for quite the relaxing evening.

What a weekend it was! Luckily there are only three more days in this week before we enjoy a relaxing weekend in the Hudson Valley with Bo’s family!

Your turn: If you’re familiar with New York, what is your favorite restaurant, bar or coffee shop I need to add to my “must visit” list now that I’m back in the city?

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The Weekly Sweats – Sweats & Eats

Happy Thursday!

This week’s post is going to be a little shorter than normal as I’m in the midst of counting boxes and helping the movers ensure they are each labeled correctly! It’s crazy to see our apartment empty!

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Once again, this accountability challenge really helped me stay on track this past week and even motivated me to eat healthier than planned while in London. While wine has definitely been more present in my diet than normal, I’m proud of the fact that I’m down another pound and feeling pretty good overall.

What Did I Add This Week?

Instead of squeezing as much in as possible while in London, both Margaret and  Charlie had the great suggestion that we relax more than normal. The time spent with them was quiet and included lots of long conversations, home cooked meals and sleep. Considering the amount of stress I had coming this week with the move, I can’t thank them enough for keeping me sane and ensuring I started the week rested and refreshed versus exhausted from nights out at London bars.

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SWEATS

  • Monday- I took this day as a rest day as I was exhausted after multiple delays on the redeye flight  from New York City.
  • Tuesday – I made sure to squeeze in one last lunchtime BodyPump class before the move! This class was a killer as the instructor asked us to challenge ourselves by adding more weight during tracks!
  • Wednesday – I only had 30 minutes for my morning run which meant that speed was the best way to use the time. I was drenched in sweat when I finished my 3 mile run in 25:45!
  • Thursday – My final CXWORX class was a tough one but I am so proud of the progress I’ve made over the past two months. I found this CxWorx video on YouTube which will be a perfect way to keep up my ab strength once back in NYC.
  • Friday – Early morning 3.72 mile run with Margaret through Victoria Park and Olympic park. 
  • Saturday – Charlie and I did ALL THE YOGA together on Saturday including 60 minutes of Yoga at the Shard followed by 60 minutes of restorative yoga with Jasyoga. A full recap of the relaxing and restorative Jasyoga class is coming soon!
  • Sunday – Nike Women’s London 10km race (6.2 miles in 53:05 minutes)

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EATS

I don’t have a full recap of last week’s meals though the biggest things that I feel helped me were SHARING and EATING IN. Due to the festivities, I ate dinner out five nights last week which can easily add unwanted calories and pounds. My girlfriends and I shared meals most nights versus ordering our own dishes. In addition, as I mentioned, Charlie and Margaret both proposed cooking in one night which worked out perfectly! Sometimes nothing sounds better than a huge salad with all the toppings included my new favorite, roasted broccoli!

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ashleyd /

The Weekly Sweats – Sweats & Eats

Happy Wednesday gang!

Are you guys having a good week so far? This week the stress of the upcoming move has certainly built to the point that I am living and breathing by my to-do list. In less than ten days the keys to our flat will be turned over, the movers will be finished and I will bid farewell to Geneva. But, between now and then my time is being spent working through the list of things to do in hopes of ensuring that next week’s move goes as smooth as possible. I can’t believe two years ago today we signed the contract for our Geneva apartment!

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I’m so thankful that Bo will be in Geneva next Thursday and Friday to help with the move. Having someone to laugh and cry with when the moments get too stressful to handle will be a blessing. Or how about helping the movers decide what gets packed in which box and what is air shipped versus sea shipped.

I told my mom that I am so thankful this accountability challenge started when it did. Traveling and jet-lag can wreak havoc on healthy and wellness but this time, traveling was a no-brainer since I had a plan in place: eat healthy from the time I woke up until dinner and workout daily.

Due to my time in New York City, this week’s recap will look a bit more interesting than normal.

WHAT DID I ADD THIS WEEK?

As traveling tends to dehydrate me quite a bit, I started sipping a NUUN each day, beginning on Tuesday. I can’t get enough of the NUUN All Day grapefruit orange flavor!  Combining this with my daily supplements helped me stay energized and healthy while flying back and forth.

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SWEATS

  • Monday – I headed back to the park for a solo, relaxed 3 mile run before work. It was a refreshing way to clear my mind before the busy week. In keeping with the Monday night tradition, I enjoyed 60 minutes of gentle yoga with Kerrie and Mary. It’s crazy that next week will be my last time practicing at InnerCity Yoga!

  • Tuesday – During lunch I squeezed in a 45-minute Body Pump class that once again left my triceps and thighs quivering in pain. Last week I increased the weight for two of the tracks, and I was still feeling that decision 24 hours later!

  • Wednesday – Mary and I squeezed in an early morning 3 mile run before my flight. We ran at a conversational pace (9:46) which allowed us the perfect opportunity to catch up. We stopped briefly in the park for some strength moves including dips, push-ups, and planks!

  • Thursday – Thanks to jet-lag, waking up for a 4-mile pre-work run with Bo was a piece of cake. The heat and humidity helped ensure that I sweat everything out while we ran through Central Park. It was a gorgeous morning and perfect way to start the day with Bo after not seeing him for almost 12 days!

  • Friday –  Theodora and I sweat out all the week’s stress during a 60-minute hot yoga class at Y7 yoga. As you an tell from yesterday’s review, I’m in love with everything about this studio!

  • Saturday – I shed tears of joy while racing the Oakley Mini 10k in Central Park! The race, my strongest in months, has me tempted to sign up for ALL the races this Summer. Earlier today I signed up for the Bronx 10 miler and the NYRR R-U-N 5k! If you’re a New York local, you should join for the 5k as a few of us are planning a happy hour after the race!  

  • Sunday – After a leisurely morning together, Bo and I squeezed in one final workout together before my flight to Geneva. His favorite workout in NYC these days is FlyWheel so I happily joined him for Melissa Wolfe’s Fly 45 class.

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EATS

Breakfast: When I was in New York City I took advantage of the easy access to healthy smoothies, iced coffee, and green juice! Here’s a glance at my breakfasts throughout the week, including the days I was traveling.

  • Greek yogurt + 1/4 cup raw oats + cinnamon + chia seeds + 1/2 banana + 1/4 c blueberries

  • Greek yogurt + 1/4 cup KIND granola + 1/2 banana + 1/2 c raspberries and green juice + skim flat white coffee

  • Green smoothie including Almond Breeze, vegan protein powder, banana, almonds, kale, and cinnamon

  • Hard boiled egg + avocado toast + iced coffee from Le Pain Quotidien

  • Huevos Rancheros at Norma’s in the Parker Meridien post-race

  • Berry Powerful smoothie from Liquiteria + iced coffee

Lunch:  I didn’t have time to go to the farmer’s market this week, so my daily lunch was from the office salad bar. I made sure that I limited the amount of protein on my salad and tried to incorporate new vegetables and spices. I love adding a dash of curry powder, paprika and a few yellow raisins to the top of my salads. This flavor mix upgrades the salad from ho-hum boring to unique!

Snacks: I bought enough snacks at the grocery store on Saturday to use all week, including on my flight to New York. The apricots, nuts, apples, cherries and strawberries were easy to transport in Ziploc bags and Tupperware containers. I loved having the cherries mid-flight, paired with a few pieces of dark chocolate.

For those of you who joined the challenge how is it going?

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