Monday 26 December 2011

Review - Legacy indoor cycling

Located in east Danforth village at Coxwell (informally Little Ethiopia), Legacy indoor cycling studio is a newer spinning facility, and one of only a few on the east side of town. Schwinn certified instructors teaching on top of the line Schwinn bikes, the studio offers dynamic classes that change every time. As a runner, spinning is an awesome form of cross-training, targeting the quads more than the hamstrings, and allowing for high intensity interval cardio training with no impact.

The pros:
Awesome sound system with good variety of tunes.
High energy teacher (who happened to be the owner). Not necessarily for everyone's style but definitely good as a motivator for spinning.
Good equipment and set up, and the space is equipped for TRX, personal training, and yoga.
They offer a one-day Schwinn certification, which I'll be doing in February. Whoot!

The cons:
Bathroom/change room, or lack there of.
Few mirrors for the spinning bit. Not that that's necessary but I guess I'd gotten used to using them for form.
If you're there to do weights or other type of workout during a spin class, you've got a spin class in your face.

Summary:
I got a five-class pass on Groupon and am so glad I got it. It made me realize how much I missed spinning and how good spinning in a dedicated spin studio can be. If you get a chance to try it (and TRX, which I can't wait to try!), do it, and let me know, as I'll join you!

I'm dreaming of a green Christmas


I was sick with a chest cold returning from my trip to BC. I guess that's what you get for surfing in the north Pacific ocean in November. I opted to take sick days to recover and in my boredom, did some work in terms of research in my quest to have as green a Christmas as possible. This was one of 10 items on a household contract for my "BE GREEN" yoga project and turned into a major component of the project.
Many different tips and tricks can be found on the internet and many of them were original but not necessarily new to the household. The biggest question for me was the Christmas tree. Real or not real. I have a 4 foot fake tree which is on its last year and is a fire hazard. It was bought cheaply years ago and I found that the off gassing when the lights are on for a while was probably not a good idea.
Here were the arguments I found for what’s greener:
-Most Christmas trees are raised on established farms and for the sole purpose of being harvested for Christmas. Deforestation is not an issue but it could be shipped from a long distance, and could require pesticides and fuelled vehicles to maintain. They could also end up taking space in a landfill. If going real, tips include choosing something locally and organically grown cutting down on CO2 emissions and helping prevent the environmental degradation wrought by pesticides on big conventional operations.
-Most artificial trees are made in China from oil-derived and pollution releasing PVC. Some contain lead, the dyes used are toxic, and will last for centuries in landfills. Advocates of artificial trees point out that a one-time purchase for reuse can save gas for annual trips to buy a real tree, especially if the tree is kept in the family for many years.
On balance, and based on where I live (close to a number of what could be considered “local” farms), I decided to go with real. I don’t know if the farm I chose was organic but I made sure the tree came from a farm close to the city and walked to pick up the tree and bring it home. The idea is to convert it to mulch or compost when done. I have yet to decide on how to dispose of the fake tree. Without lights, it would be fine in another household or could be donated for a shelter or church that needs a window display.
(I did find in the research that the most clear-cut “green” answer is the following: Buying a living, plantable "bulb" tree. Inside, the tree can wear ornaments and garland, and after Christmas it can be transplanted outdoors.)




Other green efforts relating to Christmas have been:
-I did not use any wrapping paper on any gift this year. Everything was wrapped using other gifts (scarves, vases, canvas bags), craft goods from previous years, or left unwrapped.
-Bought gifts were limited and all bought gifts transported home on public transportation. Wherever possible, the gifts were locally made or supporting local artists or homemade by me. I made little bags of homemade granola this year. After making them, I realized I should have used tins or jars but in the end, because the bags have a reseal on them, I hope they will be reused. I also limited the number of people I felt I needed to gift to, opting to give people my “face” and time instead.
-No cards, no waste.
-I did not purchased new decorations for the house and reused what I had or made other things to decorate the home.
-I prepared a lot of different items for different potlucks and try to make things that are wholesome, shareable, and don’t create too much waste, if any. In addition, in preparation for a get-together at my house, I have asked some guests to bring small plates or wine glasses (whatever I am short on) and will use real cloth napkins or napkins that are compostable.
-I started a few “green Christmas” statuses on Facebook that got a lot of great (sometimes controversial) dialogue going about steps to take and some people, myself included, got a lot of good ideas out of that.

I also took the time at home to start going through that extra 10% of stuff that I was looking to get rid of. In addition to maybe 5-6 bags that have left the household in recent months, I loaded up another four bags during my day off. One is a bag of clothing and shoes and winter wear to be donated to a shelter. Others are “goods” like movies, cds, dvds, and those will be brought to a charity to sell for self-generated revenue. I also packaged about 15 bags of toiletries (toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoos, conditioners, soaps, lotions etc) from samples I’d accumulated from hotels and donated them to a woman’s shelter. Not only does it feel amazing to de-clutter, but you’re ensuring that things find another home, one that needs it more than you do.

This is definitely something that I can keep doing and would love to hear your ideas on how to be even greener! Please feel free to share below and let me know what you do in your day to day to be green.

Inspired by Tofino






I never did do a write up on my first Tofino experience. That's December for you. It sneaks up on you and then you have very little time for yourself, and the time you do find is to ensure you're breathing deep breaths and staying grounded, not to write blog entries :).

While my whole trip to BC was fantastic, and seeing my family being the highlight every time, Tofino opened my heart and made a very deep impression on me. From the get-go -- my drive up island to Nanaimo to meet up with Dana -- I was overwhelmed by the natural beauty around me. I'd truly forgotten it, or took it too much for granted when I was younger, but the lushness of the trees, and the massiveness of the rocky mountains were breathtaking.

Seeing Dana and getting to practice in Nanaimo as my thirty day challenge was wrapping up was also deeply moving. There are certain people you just really connect with and I'm so glad to have found a kindred spirit like hers in my adult life. There was something about practicing in the Nanaimo space, with the deer watching us, that was grounding too.

The drive to Tofino was twist turny and like no other drive I'd ever done up island. Going to the west side of the island changes the scenery, and the stop at Cathedral Grove, was breathtaking. We got to the resort for the yoga and surf retreat (put on by OmTown Yoga - http://www.omtown.ca/ - check 'em out, such good peeps) and it was two and a half days of fat rain, strong wind good sleep and gorgeous wave crashing scenery. Oh, and relaxing yoga classes, invigorating and adrenaline rush-ing surfing, educational workshops, and tasty wine and cheese too.

tea making workshop
 photo by echutter (c)
warming up surya namaskar styles
photo by echutter (c)
pop up, damn you!
photo by echutter (c)

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Tacofino in my Tofino write up. Especially since I stopped there twice in my three days there. Fish tacos. No more needs to be said.

On our way out and back to Nanaimo, gazing up through the tall trees, rainbow after rainbow could be seen. I'll soon be back.
Tacofino!


Monday 19 December 2011

January Running and Classes!

A long delay since my last post! I've got drafts for many entries and loads to update you on during the holidays!
For now, just wanting to share my January yoga and running schedules!

See you on the pavement or on the mat!

YOGA!

Moksha Yoga Danforth (Danforth and Chester)
Monday January 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30: 6:30am - 75 minute Moksha class
Sunday January 15 and 22: 1:30pm - 60 minute community class

Moksha Yoga Downtown (Bathurst and Wellington)
Tuesday January 3, 10, 17, 24, and 31: 9:45pm - 60 minute Moksha class

Moksha Yoga St Clair (at St Clair and Oakwood! New Studio!)
Monday January 1: 2:00pm (90 Moksha) and 4:00pm (60 Moksha)
Saturday January 7: 12:15pm (60 Moksha) and 2:00pm (90 Moksha)
Saturday January 21: 12:15pm (60 Moksha)

RUNNING!

Run Club - Lululemon Eaton Centre every Thursday nights at 6:30pm (approx 5km) and Saturday mornings at 8:45am (or meet at the North West corner of Queen and University at 9am). Various paces, various distances! Do it!

Running with Commerce Court Running Room with the 1/2 marathon then marathon clinic Sunday mornings at 8:30am! Distances gradually increase!

echutter (c) Partner work

Movement makes me float inside.

beautiful.
just stunning.
breathe.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcqvlJIjh9g&feature=player_embedded

Wednesday 7 December 2011

Reflections on my 30-day challenge

As November ended and the sweet month of December swept in, I ended my 30-day yoga challenge... by continuing my daily practice. Unfortunately, not something I'll be able to keep up when I'm back in Toronto, post-vacation, but something I'm gonna milk till I get back!

November is such a perfect month to do a 30-day challenge. Fall is officially among us, with cool days and shorter days beckoning you to the mat and the hot room. It is also a shorter month, one that usually falls really well with an automn detox (which I did earlier in the month of October), and there's usually less travelling for work (I find this to be generally the case, clearly not this year). I'd made myself some general terms of engagement for this 30-day challenge going into it http://hogtownbunny.blogspot.com/2011_10_01_archive.html) and decided to not be critical towards myself if things didn't go according to plan.

I practiced asanas a total of 33 times over the month, missing two days (where the lack of cloning made it impossible for me to be in more than one place and the impossibility of adding more hours in the day made it difficult to pretend I could) but making up those practices by banking classes. I was very aware of how my body felt after having missed one of those days and appreciated what the daily practice did for me. I practiced off the mat as much as I could, only encountering one incident where I was very unlike me and acted in a non-yoga way and caught it right away, felt remorse, and aimed to make things right (I was impatient with a hotel concierge who couldn't get me my checked bag in a timely manner when in a big rush to get back to a work function. Clearly still reliving the guilt and feeling inclined to write about it). I also meditated as much as I could and tried to find peace and compassion in myself to be able to cultivate more peace and compassion around myself.

Practicing at different studios all month had pros and cons too:
-it made me realize what studio is "home"to me and how much the sense of community builds when you can practice in one physical space with other people who have the same intention as you, month long (this was something I wish I could have been more of a part of).
-it made me so appreciative of different studios, yoga traditions and styles, and teachers to practice in different cities and different places, with different energy. I learned a lot from this.
-The feeling of being a wandering yoga-bond made me realize how little you need to do yoga. Just a small space, a mat, and your breath. And the opportunity to connect follows you there. Very cool to know just how big the yoga community is and how its benefits can translate to everyone.

Looking forward to my next challenge, which will likely be in March or June (have to plan it around training, races and recovery). Wanna join me for it?

Photo by echutter (c) - Tofino


Photo by echutter (c)