challenge

Food & Deprivation

I’m about to turn thirty and my official challenge of getting in the best shape of my life will be on full force. I’m completely confident I can do all my physical challenges (provided I don’t get hurt), but eating well is a little harder for me. I get three birthday meals and this is what I have selected:

1) Ham and Mac and Cheese
2) Fried Dough
3) French Fries (there will be other food there, but I really would be happy if there were only French fries)

And this doesn’t even mention the desserts that come after each meal. I know eating healthy isn’t about deprivation, but that’s what has always worked for me since I’m just not great at the whole moderation thing in anything I do. It is easier for me not to eat dessert for a month than to have a little dessert every day. I’m better at saying “no” than “a little.”

So any tips because by this time next week, I’ll be thirty and the challenge is on.

Food & DeprivationMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:57-04:00

Wednesday Challenge: Pilates

Many of our classes are on a break this week, but that doesn’t have to be an excuse to skip your pilates workout. Start or end each day this week with 10-minutes of pilates. Do your favorite exercises so that you’ll want to do it again the next day.

Need a good reason not to skip pilates? Here’s some recent research:

Pilates helped improved balance and autonomy in women age 60-78.

People who take pilates classes report having better sleep and a better mood

Wednesday Challenge: PilatesMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:02-04:00

The Best Workout Ever

I enjoy working out. I find it fun, but I need variety to keep me motivated so I’ve tried my hand at a lot of different activities. Here are just some: running, hiking, pilates, Tae Bo, yoga, walking, kayaking, golf, volley ball, soft ball, boot camp, jump rope, hula hooping, swimming, biking, ellipticals, challenge courses, rock climbing, stairs, hills, pole dancing, and weights.

I’m sure I’ve done other things, but those just easily come to mind without having to think very hard. Some I enjoy more than others, sometimes I fall in and out of love with some of them. And some are harder than others, but, lately, I have been discovering the most challenging workout of all: KIDS!

A couple weekends ago I baby sat for a one-year-old. She cried for about an hour and a half, but I was able to get her to calm down by entertaining her with physical activity. She would tire of everything after at most 15 minutes so I kept having to change it up. She seemed to most enjoy me […]

The Best Workout EverMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:02-04:00

My First 5K

So, yes, I ran a marathon before I ran a 5K, but that was almost five years ago now and I haven’t done another race since. So last Sunday I signed up with some of our instructors, friends, and clients to participate in the West Hartford Mitten Run.

It was so much fun. The best thing about running in a race is having the streets blocked off so that you can run through them. I find that I feel really important for the 30-minutes I am running on roads that no one can drive on–and I love it.

A 5K is a lot more fun and a lot less intense than a marathon, and I would definitely do it again. It was a blast to have people with glowing red noses and Christmas music playing. Everyone seemed happy and in the holiday spirit, although we were all pretty cold. My typical run nowadays is about 3 miles (almost a 5K) and I can say with certainty that running with 1,800 other people and music is a lot more […]

My First 5KMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:03-04:00

Wednesday Challenge: Maggie’s Goals

In 2011 I’m going to be 30! It’s not old, but it’s a whole new decade, and I’m excited about it. I’m not having a hard time; I still feel young (most of the time), and the only thing I’m going to miss is hearing how young people think I am. Now, when people ask my age and I respond with “20-anything,” they always say, “Oh, you’re so young.” I think I may hear that a little less.

I was trying to decide what I wanted to do to celebrate being thirty, and I decided I wanted to challenge myself. My goal is to be in the best shape of my life this year. Matt thinks this is going to be a challenge since I was pretty fit in my youth, but I’m going to try. I haven’t worked everything out. For example, I’m not sure what I’m going to base the status of my shape on–weight, BMI, etc.

I would say that I was in the best shape of my life between eighteen and twenty. But at […]

Wednesday Challenge: Maggie’s GoalsMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:03-04:00