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Solstice in Times Square: Athleta Mind Over Madness Yoga

There are those moments when I am still in disbelief that I live in New York City and have the opportunity to experience, it in all it’s wonder on a daily basis.

Last night was one of those moments.

 

Thanks to Nature’s Made vitamins, I was able to experience an hour and a half yoga class, led by the hilarious and inspiring Dana Flynn, in a group of thousands of other New Yorkers hoping to find their center in Times Square.

IMG_3050 Much to my surprise, the media pass which they procured for us included second row mats which meant we were able to be front and center for the action during last night’s Solstice in Times Square: Athleta Mind over Madness Yoga event.

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Maybe it was the heat, or the fact that I was practicing yoga in Times Square with thousands of other people, but I really got into the event last night. When she asked us to dance with happiness and find our center, I was right there. Even though this often meant that my swaying hips were being broadcast to the entire group via the Toshiba Vision Screens in Times Square!

IMG_3060 While I’m sure there are some people out there who wish this class had been more challenging or more like a typical studio 1.5 hour class, I loved every single minute of the experience. Dana Flynn, the co-founder of the event and co-founder of Laughing Lotus Yoga Center in NYC, did a wonderful job inspiring us as we moved through twists, wheels, and sun salutation series. She introduced me to some new moves I’ve never tried and there was even an awesome moment when the whole group did tree pose, while pushing against the hands of the people next to us. I can’t wait to see some of the photographs captured by the professionals as I can only imagine!

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Who would have thought I could find some balance and calm in the middle of Times Square, an area of the city I normally avoid like the plague. But last night, surrounded by my sister-in-law and my best friend, I did.

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Through chants, breaths, singing, dancing, and a little bit of booty shaking I smiled my way towards a happy and utter calm that I haven’t felt in ages.

IMG_3061 Thank you again to Athleta and all the sponsors for helping make this event possible!

Question: What is your favorite yoga pose that helps you find your calm?

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Sunday & Monday Fun Day

Yesterday we woke up at 4:45am in order to make an 8:40 flight back to New York City. Having some time to breathe and relax was important to us this weekend as was making it down to Georgia to see some of my closest college friends.

We were back in New York by 11:30 and were greeted by the best gift ever- no taxi line!

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By 3pm we were on the rooftop of our friends Tribeca apartment building enjoying beers, laughs, delicious food, and sunshine!

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We contributed to the afternoon by bringing Emily’s delicious soba noodle salad, chips, salsa, and two summer beers!

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The views from their rooftop were amazing especially as the sun started to set and the clouds cooled off the afternoon heat.

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As the afternoon heat turned into a cool, clear evening we enjoyed burgers and more beers while enjoying the night scene.

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An evening of beers and homemade cocktails made waking up to meet my friend Genna for my first hot flow yoga class at Prana Power Yoga. I’m going to do a separate post which will get more into the differences between a regular yoga class, but let’s just say that it was an hour filled with sweat and faster flow than I’m accustomed to these days.  The studio is located right above Union Square and offers an average of six classes per day ranging from 6:30 in the morning to 8 at night!

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After class we met Bo in Union Square for some Farmer’s Market shopping. It’s been ages since we’ve had a stocked fridge complete with produce and fresh cheese!

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After stocking the fridge Bo and I headed out for a run along the East River to soak up the day’s beautiful sunshine and blue sky.   IMG_2619   IMG_2622  

The heat and sun cut our run down to a 5k versus the original four miles we’d planned. Regardless, I’m still proud of us pushing through the heat and of myself for squeezing in two great workouts on this one Memorial Day Monday.

Our afternoon and evening plans include relaxing with a movie at home and a healthy homemade dinner complete with marinated lemon and garlic chicken, zucchini carpaccio, Caprese salad, and nice cold Pinot Grigio.

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Until tomorrow, make sure to check out these two great workout opportunities!

1. Today kicks off Runner’s World Summer Running Streak. I’m super excited about giving this opportunity a chance! All you have to do is run at least one mile per day, every day, starting today Memorial Day (Monday, 5/28) and ending on Independence Day (Wednesday, 7/4). That’s 38 consecutive days of running. It’ll be tough but I feel like I can always squeeze in at least a mile!

2. On June 9th I’m going to be busting out a sandy and sunny workout with the amazing Jackie Warner thanks to Well+Good NYC and Evian! Want to join? Luckily they are giving away 6 VIP passes! Enter here to win!

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Ashley D /

Recovering After A Race

After Saturday’s rough half marathon, I’ve spent this week focusing on recovering. That can mean different things for everyone but for me, based on the plan and directions Gia provided for me, it revolves around a few key areas:

  • Protein
  • Rest
  • Selective workouts
  • Yoga

Protein is very important for muscle recovery by helping rebuild muscle fibers. Runners put their body through a great deal of impact every time their foot strikes the asphalt. Therefore, it is important to increase your protein intake the week before a race and after a race.  Below are a few of my favorite ways to sneak protein into my day.

  • 1/2 to 1 serving of protein powder mixed into my morning oatmeal
  • handful of almonds with my morning or afternoon fruit
  • add an extra protein into my salads (edamame, hard boiled egg, shrimp, chicken, nuts, cheese, quinoa)
  • top my veggie burger with an egg
  • eggs for dinner
  • chocolate milk after my morning or evening workout

Yes mom, I'll pour it in a glass next time.

Rest was the last thing on my mind last week. It was a very busy work week and blogging week due to multiple events. Therefore, I didn’t get to bed until 11 most nights last week, meaning that my body was only resting for six hours. This week I’ve made a concerted effort to be laying in bed by 9pm. This allows me an hour to read The Hunger Games and still get 7.5 hours sleep. In addition, I’ve cut out alcohol this week which seems to be helping me sleep more soundly.

Selective workouts are important to ensure that my muscles are able to truly recover and repair. I often push my body more than it deserves. Over the years I’ve realized that my body really needs one absolute rest day each week. However, until Sunday, my body had been going non-stop in yoga, spin, weight workouts, and running for 16 days straight. Oops! Therefore, in addition to last Sunday, I’m giving it another complete rest day one day this week. In addition, pushing my body during workouts that aren’t going to help me reach my end goal, has a tendancy to set me back in the more important, running workouts. Last week during two evening blog events, I pushed my body in the Refine Method class and The Daily Burn workout.
Even though I said I’d take it down a notch and follow in the back, that isn’t my nature. Therefore, by Thursday, my entire body was screaming. This week I’m giving my body some time by doing two focused runs (4.5 mile tempo and 4 mile at goal pace), 2 at home yoga workouts, and one personal training session which was primarily agility work.
Yoga is important during recovery because it can help lengthen the muscles, release tension, and relax the body. This week I’ve discovered a few new free YouTube yoga workouts which have helped me squeeze some relaxing yoga practice into my day, both morning and night. None of these are strenuous but instead slow, flowing, and focused on the key areas for runners: hips, hamstrings, and calves. Here are a few of the short videos I’ve done this week:

It’s also important to realize that regardless of how successful your race is, you’re still pushing your body. Even though Saturday’s race wasn’t the PR I’d hoped for, my legs and body felt the affects due to the hills, distance, and stress. It’s amazing how much better I feel after four days of focusing on these few things.  Oh and don’t worry, for those of you who have been asking, I will address Saturday’s “bonk” in tomorrow’s Friday Face Time.

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