Jessica Smith and Friends 2022

[Pam61]

Hi Ladies,

We had a real nice hike today, but I got lost. My auto navigation could not find the location so I still don't know what happened. I should have used Google Maps. Maybe I got the address wrong???

Finally feeling better today, after this week long cold. Even though cold has been mild I've been in a bit of a slump with zero energy. Either lack of sleep, sick cat, or the approaching Holidays have got me a bit down. We would normally be going back to AZ for Christmas, but feel this will be the last month we will have our cat around so opted not to travel this year. I'm going to be devastated when the decision has to be made and will miss her so much!

Donna, crossing my fingers for you that you stay healthy!

[donnamp]

Hi,

Yesterday I did get a dog walk in and then I did do Ellen's Serene Strength after work.

Today, so far:

Jessica Valent - Double, Double - this was a longer workout - the first half is done w/out weights, second half - similar exercises - done w/ weights.

It is raining today so probably no walk....but maybe I'll do an indoor walking workout instead.

I don't feel any sicker, but my throat is scratchy - but I don't think it is serious since it isn't getting worse. Probably just the dry indoor air.

Pam - i had that cold in the beginning of November and it did the same thing to me, it certainly wasn't the sickest I ever felt but it was very draining and seemed to just linger forever. I feel for you on your cat, that was the way it was w/ Bailey, my Lab. it is just dreadful.

waves Sherry and wishiwasinhawaii!

Hope everyone has a good day!

Donna

[donnamp]

Hi!

I didn't get an outdoor walk in yesterday due to the icky weather, but I did do Ellen's Pilates Strong in the evening for some extra movement.

Today, so far:

Jessica Valent - Cardio Kickboxing Workout - this is the first time I tried one of Jessica's "cardio" workouts and it wasn't bad! It did give me a little bit of a cardio effect while working some body weight strength and balance.

Jessica Valent- Pilates for Posture - this was the workout she has scheduled for tomorrow, but it worked well as an add on today.

Hope everyone has a good day!

Donna

[Pam61]

Another really nice hike today, though it was windy. I had a neck warmer, so that helped, but forgot my gloves. It's that time of year.

I'm participating in the VF Holiday Gift Exchange this year and it's always fun trying to plan and prepare something for someone here that I know very little about.

We're also having a holiday party Dec 15th for our hiking group, so I need to get on the ball with that. Everyone will bring food, many will be wearing Ugly Christmas Sweaters and we're doing a Yankee Swap. At our Halloween party there were way, way too many desserts, so I'm thinking a non-dessert food of some such. I wish I had a stash of great recipes that I could pull out for events like this...but nope!

Up again too early this morning. Story of my life.

[Leonana]

I’m coming down with a cold, so haven’t been working out this week. I started having a scratchy throat Tuesday night, but didn’t feel too bad yesterday and today. I thought it might be bad allergies. However, it’s getting worse this evening, and I’m feeling run down. One of the other assistants has a really bad cold and has been out all week. I’ll have to wear a mask tomorrow if I make it into work.

Donna, I hope your cold doesn’t get any worse.

Pam, your party sounds fun. Maybe some sausage cheese balls? I love those. Also that Mexican liquid cheese dip with tortilla chips.

[donnamp]

Hi!

Yesterday I did get a dog walk in at "lunch" and then I did Ellen's Focused Flow after work. This is one of her new ones - just 20 min. I guess I am doing her challenge after all! Her short workouts make good evening add ons. It kind of helps close the work day and is healthier than my pre-pandemic long driving commute. I hope we don't go back to the office ever....but I can see the possibility of a few days a week. UGH.

Anyway...

Today was:

Ellen - Barre Cardio
Jessica Valent - 20 Min Full Body Pilates for Travel. I was going to do her Gentle Pilates workout which is scheduled for tomorrow - but I didn't have time for 30 minutes. This one was 20 min so worked out better!

I listened to her December podcast and I really enjoyed it - she talks about how our bodies change and how they are supposed to change over our lives. I feel that, particularly, as women, we are "told" that we should strive to keep our youthful bodies - and as a result we are always chasing an unattainable goal. I don't know if men feel this kind of pressure - but I know it is ingrained in women that aging, or gaining weight, or simply just having a different body at age 40 or 50 or 60 is a bad thing. Anyway, it was an interesting perspective. Particularly since post pandemic my body has changed. I was underweight from stress going into the pandemic, but I have since gained at least 10 lbs and I am in no way overweight but the way my body has gained weight at 55 is different than they way it gained weight at 25. And, I'm kinda good with it - you know, I don't want to torture myself with diet or exercise to pursue an ideal that may not be realistic or attainable. Things just change with your body over time and change is inevitable. I really enjoyed hearing that message!

Anyway..I digress!

Sherry - I hope you feel better soon. I guess working in a school it is inevitable to catch a cold. I caught my cold from my DD who brings it home with her from school.

Pam - sounds like a nice hike! I am bad about knowing what to bring for those things - maybe a dip and some pita chips? Or a cheese board?

Hope everyone has a good Friday!!

Donna

[Pam61]

Hi Ladies,

With December being such a busy month, I decided to do a rotation with Kelly's 30 Minutes to Fitness and add short yoga sessions, when needed.

Sherry, sorry you've caught a cold! I was feeling pretty run down last week but am almost back to normal. Being in such close contact with these women on the hikes someone is always sick and I probably got it from one of them. Hope it doesn't last too long for you!

Donna, I'm considered "overweight" on the charts. I don't feel like I am (in my mind) as I was always thin growing up. But, I'm very pear shaped and the fat just collects in my hips, thighs, and now belly. I don't worry about it, at my age. I could look better with diet and portion control, though.

For the party, I was thinking chips and dip. That would be simple. DH loves that Summer Sausage at Hickory Farms! They were having black Friday sales so I should have gotten a couple of their gift sets. Darn it!

Have a good weekend, ladies!

[donnamp]

Hi!

Today's workout was:

Jessica Valent - Contemporary Meets Classical Pilates Workout

This one was on the more advanced side. I did modify some things and there were other things in this workout (roll overs!) that are just not happening for me. I skipped those and did my own thing. With my modifications this one worked for me.

Short dog walk

My DD had a horse show today so my workout time was short and now I'm pretty tired - and I didn't even ride the horse, LOL!

Hope everyone has a good day!!

Donna

[Pam61]

Hi Ladies,

Today has been crazy windy and rainy. I didn't work out yet because our heat pump went out yesterday, so we had no heat from mid afternoon onwards. We slept last night with a space heater in our bedroom (and an extra blanket) but the rest of the house was cold. We had the fireplaces on in the LR and MBR last night while watching TV and before we went to bed. But, didn't want to have them running all night long. Today we moved the space heater out and are taking it to the most used room, currently living room. We'll have to get out to get another space heater this weekend, but have a Christmas party to attend tonight! We also have only cold water so hope the heat company can get the part in the next few days!

[Leonana]

Still nursing my cold. I’m trying to rest today, but so far I’ve done four loads of laundry and did a pick up order at Target. I’m starting to rely more and more on pickup.

Donna, I hope your dd did well in the horse show.

Pam, sorry to hear about your heat pump. I hope it all gets fixed soon. I remember our heat pump went out two years ago in December. We had to wait a month before buying a new one. We also used space heaters, but we were still cold, even in Phoenix. And our electric bill was so much higher, the space heaters use a lot of electricity.