Sydney: Bike the Bridge, Hyde Park Loop and Fortune of War

This was by far my favorite day in Australia. Hanging out with mrC, riding bikes and just moving at our own pace felt really, really good.

We walked back down to The Rocks to a cute little outdoor eatery that we saw the day before for brunch. DARE, Delicious And Responsible Eating, serves everything gluten free. We took full advantage and ordered gluten free toast and banana pancakes with our eggs. Everything was delicious.

We earned that BIG meal after the full body workout we did at the hotel. A little warmup on the treadmill followed by arm and leg circuits then a cool down. My new Lorna Jane tank spoke for me.

After eating we walked around the corner to rent our bikes for the day from Sydney Bike Tours. In the past we have gone on guided bike tours, but this time we went on our own. The bike rental comes with helmets and maps, but we used the bike store app to download the maps onto our smartphone. They gave us a phone holder to attach to the bike and let us use a locker to store our extra belongings while we were biking.

Our first route took us over the Sydney Harbour Bridge. To me, this was kind of like walking across the Brooklyn Bridge. The dedicated bike lane is on the west side of the bridge, so we could not see the Opera House, but we could see Goat Island. 

On the north side of the harbour, the bike route went by Luna Park, Australia's oldest theme park. It was closed for "filming" but open to walk around.

We rode the path around Lavender Bay past the marina to the secret gardens. We did not spot the home of the Prime Minister, but part of the bike trail was closed for construction. We had to carry our bikes up the stairs to bypass the construction. By the way, my Athleta pants were amazingly comfortable. I love that I felt sporty without having to wear tights.

Back across the bridge we stopped for a gluten free brownie that we got to-go from DARE on Observatory Hill. It was a well-earned treat after riding about 9km.

After our snack stop we continued our biking adventure picking up part of another route. We made our way down Macquarie Street to Hyde Park. Archibald Fountain was a popular photo spot.

We paused at the reflection pool at the Anzac War Memorial at the south end of the park. 

Then we made our way up College Street stopping to visit St. Mary's Cathedral. It was so big and so beautiful. 

We returned our bikes and walked to Fortune of War, the oldest pub in Sydney.

We hung out at the bar learning more about The Rocks neighborhood and tasting some of the local delicacies like crocodile skewers. They tasted like a fatty piece of chicken.

Afterwards we walked back to the hotel.

Coming up next our last day in Australia took us to the mountains.

Previous posts:

Melbourne: Exploring the City
Melbourne: Great Ocean Road Adventure
Melbourne: Puffing Billy, Wine and Wildlife

Sydney: Harbour Tour & Opera House

An Island, Some Good Finds, and a Bike Ride

Things that are making me happy.

Discovery Bay: We finally made it to this popular part of Lantau Island in Hong Kong and right away noticed how peaceful it is. There are no private cars here and only a limited number of golf carts. Public transport consists of handful of buses that loop through the villages (residence areas) and shopping areas.

D'Decks - two story shopping and restaurant area on the water.

DB Plaza - an open community area great for taking a break while shopping.

Tai Pak Beach - setting up for Dragon Boat Festival

DB North Piazza - another open community area on the north end of Discovery Bay with more shopping and restaurants.

DB Love Lock Promenade -  romantic place to walk or sit and hang a lock with your love.

Some great finds: 

A namesake road.

What I'm wearing: tank and shorts

A place to get acai bowls.

Flavored rice cakes. I've been searching for these for months!

Comfy sports bras. 

Fun foods lately:

After six weeks of no alcohol I had to have a daiquiri.

The best flourless cake.

Green smoothie healthy pop. (spinach, avocado, and banana)

A bike ride that beat the rain with my BFF on National Best Friends Day (or maybe a day late. I'm not sure).

What's making you happy right now?

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Fitness Accountability and a Bike Ride

I started the 30 Day Pilates Body Challenge today.

The challenge actually started on March 1, so I had a couple of workouts to do before time zones start messing with things. By that I mean, when I wake up on day 3, it is still day 2 in the US and I don't have the day 3 email yet. I work out in the morning. Yada yada yada...you get the idea.

So today, I reached out to my BFF in the US to sweet talk her into joining the challenge too. She will be my workout buddy (aka accountability partner). My other accountability partner is YOU, my blog friends. I promise to share something from each daily workout to help me stick with the program.

Day 1 - legs
I honestly had a flashback to Booty Barre. In less than 10 minutes my legs were shaking and burning. Ah, I miss that.

Day 2 - arms

Ok, I have done triceps dips on the floor, but never while raising one leg into table top. Wowzer, that is hard and my arms are going to feel that later.

After my little Pilates workout I grabbed a quick breakfast. I am so excited that we found GF Cheerios at our favorite international store. These are perfect on days like today when I have a bike ride date with mrC.

We finally rode all the way to the Mangrove Ecological Park located on the Shenzhen Bikeway. 

Shenzhen is an interesting city with large districts that feel like they could be cities on their own. We left Shekou behind us, rode toward Futian and that's Lohou in the distance.

One of my favorite parts was the Coconut Grove, a perfect spot to escape the sun, have lunch and/or take a nap.

Because biking and selfies always go together, right?

Who/what is your fitness accountability?
Do you bike ride?

Sweaty Saturday

Back in January I posted about having a non-running back-up plan. Little did I know that yoga would become a big part of that plan. I've been doing Instagram yoga for years (the I don't really know what I'm doing, but I'll make myself look like that picture kind), but had only taken a few classes before moving to China.

As much as I would love to be back to running, I am loving my morning yoga. It's not the same as going out for a run, but it is invigorating. And, I love seeing my progress. Taking classes has definitely helped, but I've felt the most change since I started doing the daily yoga camp videos.

After yoga, some coffee and breakfast (prepared by mrC), we took a walk to see the Shekou School Maker Faire hosted by the Shenzhen American International School. If you are not familiar, a Maker Faire is a showcase of invention, creativity, and resourcefulness in a DIY way. If you have chance, visit an event. It's pretty amazing.

On the way there I showed mrC a yoga studio that I have been trying to find for months. We walk past a billboard advertisement for this place all the time, but could never figure out the address. They let you try a class for free, so I signed up for one next week.

It was such a pretty day that after the Maker Faire, we decided to get our bikes out. We headed to the Shenzhen Bikeway hoping to reach the Futian Mangrove Ecological Park. It was very crowded so instead we turned around after 5 miles and headed back to the apartment. We'll try again on a week day.

Between yesterday's leg workout and today's 10 mile bike ride, my butt was feeling sore. Doing this version of a pigeon pose helped with that. I think it might be my favorite.

Ever been to a Maker Faire?
Favorite way to do pigeon pose? (Supine, seated, or prone)

Monday Movers & Shakers {not really}

After the fireworks party (aka Lunar New Year's Eve) that literally went on all night long, we were slow movers today, but we did move.

To save time running errands, mrC and I hopped on the bikes and rode off to pay the rent and buy me a ferry ticket to the airport for Wednesday. I have a serious adventure coming up! Stay tuned!

After lunch we headed back out for a walk to the park. I took mrC on the same loop around the lake that I did the other day. It feels good to stick to my goal of taking more walks. The park was much more crowded with people enjoying their holiday off work and the views were as stunning as always. I love how you can see Nanshan Mountain in the distance. Yep, I climb that!

Our evening with friends was a blast and we even shook things up a little with some fireworks in their garden. Fireworks are a big part of the Chinese New Year celebration. I learned this from a friend: "The practice of setting off fireworks comes from an ancient myth about a monster named Nian, the same word for year. He came once a year and attacked and killed villagers and their livestock as the New Lunar year arrived. An old man supposedly figured out that Nian was afraid of loud noises, lights and the color red. So, each year, houses are decorated with red, and fireworks are set off to scare away the evil spirits." From what I heard last night, I think they were successful at scaring Nian away.

How are you moving and shaking things up today?

How to Practice Better Running Breathing

I'm pretty sure that running and biking a 10K on Tuesday inspired mrC.

Yesterday, he put on his running shoes and joined me for my #runstreak one miler. 

Before our run, I came across an online article about proper running breathing (here) and it got me thinking. There are times when I run that it feels effortless and other times when I can't seem to do anything except gasp for air. 

Here's the article in a nutshell:

1. Runs are made better when using breathing patterns and patterns can help prevent injury

2. Deep breathing is a powerful tool that delivers much needed oxygen to muscles during a run

3. Breathing is made better through nose and mouth simultaneously

4. Core strength impacts breathing

On my last two runs, I tried it and it's not as easy as it sounds. 

Run #1:

It was a short run and I ran with mrC, so it was hard to maintain a rhythmic pattern. I tried to follow the 2:2 inhale/exhale ratio, but that must work for faster runners. I modified to 4:4 and started to get the hang of it near the end of our mile. I also tried to keep my exhale on my left foot (my weaker leg), but learned my right foot has control issues.

Run #2:

This run was solo and my breathing practice went much better. I still found myself breaking the pattern anytime my mind wandered, but it was easier. The longer run gave me a lot more time to focus on exhaling on my left too. Overall, the 3.5 miles felt easier than my 5K on Tuesday.

I'm optimistic that with more practice it will get easier and my runs will get better.

In other fun news, after wanting to throw-down my bike and stomp it like a pro-wrestler after Tuesday's combined run/bike 10K, mrC offered to take it for a little tune up. Instead he came back with a new bike! Today I took my new luxury bike on a ride around town.

Last night we went to see Chris Botti perform at the the Shenzhen Concert Hall. It was a wonderful show. Not only was the music great, but we were impressed with Chris Botti's interaction with the audience. 

Do you practice rhythmic breathing when you run?

What was the last concert you went to?