Cape Cod Trip 2020

Last month we met up with all three of the kids for our annual family vacay at the Cape House! 

(FYI - long post with lots of pics!!)

Despite gallbladder surgery (missG) and COVID restrictions, we all made it to North Falmouth for the whole week and then some. If you have kids, you know how hard it is to get all of them together once they are all grown up. Plus,  COVID has been wreaking havoc on everyone's travel plans. We were thrilled to have all three, plus one fiancé and one boyfriend! 

We spend a lot of time hanging out at the house and on the beach together, but each year we make a point to do some new things. This year we weren't sure what that was going to look like, but in the end we had just a great of a time as usual.

We took a day trip up to Provincetown. It seemed like a good idea since tourism is down and the traffic would be lighter than ever. We were right. On the other hand, Provincetown was hopping with many more people than we expected. The Monument was closed and there was a mandatory mask zone, but we still enjoyed walking around. We explored MacMillan Pier and missD decided to join the locals and jumped off when we weren't looking! We had a drink at Ross's Grill at Whaler's Wharf - great views and nice seating indoors or outdoors. Then grabbed some food at The Canteen - basically takeaway food that you eat at picnic tables behind the shop.

Another day we went for a bike ride on the Shining Sea Bikeway to Woods Hole and back. This has become a yearly tradition and I love it. It's about a 20 mile round trip ride. In Wood's Hole, we stopped for food at Wood's Hole Market. There was something for everyone, from smoothies to sandwiches to pizza to chips and salsa! The best part was the super secret deck seating with a view upstairs. We're practically locals, haha!

When we were down to just the five of us, we decided to go play mini-golf. Cataumet Light Mini Golf was open with social distancing - easy enough on a hot and sunny day. The kids are super competitive, but we had a lot of fun. missD got the lowest score but mrC got three hole-in-ones!! We celebrated with acai bowls from Absolutely Juiced in Mashpee. 

Of course the acai bowl gets its own pic

We make a point to walk to the beach for as many sunsets as possible, although at the request of one, we limit group pictures to one night. It was sooooo windy the night we chose, but someone in the parking lot was nice enough to leave their headlights on so we could get the sky behind us without being dark figures. 

Just like last year, when we left the Cape we headed to our second favorite place ---> Newport, Rhode Island. This year, everyone was able to come for at least one day.

Our first adventure in Newport was taking a harbor tour on the Rum Runner II. Full disclosure, we were expecting a sailboat, but booked the wrong thing. However, we were not disappointed in the least with the East Passage Express tour. Great views, great information, great guides. I highly recommend looking them up at Bannister's Wharf. We had lunch at The Lobster Bar (a favorite) and dinner for the first time at Bar and Board Bistro. Our table for dinner was outside on what was formerly a parking lot because we were a large party (COVID rules), but it was nice.

We squeezed in one more group activity before half the group had to head home for that thing called work! But first, we had a big break-FAST at Belle's Cafe at the Newport Shipyard. After years of saying we were going to do it, we finally went to Norman Bird Sanctuary for a hike. There are quite a few trails so you can mix and match to do long or short hikes. My friend Nancy had just posted about doing the Hanging Rock Trail and it looked fun, so that's what we choose.

It was time to visit family in Springfield. We stopped in Hopkinton on the way in and out of town to see mrC's aunt who was in hospice (so glad we did that). In Springfield we spent most of our visits chatting with mrC's dad through the house windows, but when we started taking sibling pics on the last day, he wanted to come out. I am so glad that he did! I'm also really glad that my sister-in-law made her famous gluten-free blueberry muffins and brought some to share.

Our next stop was Portsmouth, New Hampshire to see missD and S's new condo and meet the future in-laws! The condo was beautiful and totally suits their personalities. I loved their neighborhood and that it is walking distance into downtown and the waterfront. 

While the kids were working from home, mrC and I walked. First we had acai bowls with missD at Fresh Press and then walked to Prescott Park, Pierce Island and Four Tree Island. We walked A LOT, haha! That evening, we crossed over the state line into Kittery, Maine to see the wedding venue at Pepperrell Cove (gorgeous) and meet S's parents for dinner at Frisbee's Wharf. Can you tell we like outdoor dining with a view?

What we ate. Over the two weeks, we had a nice mix of meals. At the Cape House, we have a fully stocked kitchen. This year, we rotated cooking duty among all of us for dinners and it was GREAT. The menus included baked salmon with asparagus, coconut cod tacos, GF spaghetti, BBQ chicken and squash, beef burgers, taco salad and GF pizza. 

Even though we were walking quite a bit, I couldn't go two weeks without doing some structured workouts. The FASTer Way program makes it so easy with options in the app like banded workouts, travel workouts, or I could just do the regular at home workout for the day. Working out at the Cape House was super easy because I had so many space options inside and outside and my strength bands work so well in place of weights. 

It is always hard to say good-bye after such an incredible visit, but we always look forward to the next time we will get together. 

Extra big thanks to missD for picking us up and dropping us off at the airport and chauffeuring us around for almost two weeks. The view from the backseat of the Jeep is pretty fun!

 

Already looking forward to next year!

Does your family vacation together or make an annual trip together?

When and How to Change Your Workout Routine

Hey everyone! Happy Tuesday! I just did one of my favorite FASTer Way to Fat Loss® workouts and it got me thinking about people who are not happy with their fitness or nutrition routines but don’t know what to do.

Navigating the world of nutrition and fitness is a lot like looking for your soul mate. If it’s long term success that you are after, you need to be compatible, feel stimulated and get something in return. 

Raise your hand if you have been stuck in a nutrition or fitness relationship and you weren’t happy because you lined up for the one that made you turn your lifestyle upside down and become something you’re not. Or maybe you got caught up in the one that made promises it couldn’t keep if you gave up a major food group. Maybe you ghosted your family and friends and started spending way too much time in the gym. 

You are not alone.

There are a few tell-tale signs that you need to break up with your nutrition and fitness routine.

1. You’re bored – whether you’ve pulled a 180 and overhauled your lifestyle into something you are not OR you have been following the same food and exercise plan for months, it is hard to stay committed to anything that you are not excited about. When you’re bored, you lose motivation. And if the plan doesn’t fit YOUR lifestyle, you will probably fall off the bandwagon.

2. You’re tired and/or getting injured – if you are depriving yourself of certain foods, it could cause other major problems…cut carbs and you have no energy, get irritable and may blow you thyroid out of service, cut fat and you increase cravings and develop skin issues. On the other hand, if you’re spending more time in the gym than with family and friends, you could be overtraining which leads to exhaustion, continuous soreness and even injuries. Food and exercise should make you feel good.

3. You’re not getting the results that you want – if your body isn’t changing or your progress has stalled it could be because you are not fueling your body properly or because you are training the same way day in and day out. A nutrition and fitness routine is important for your body, but not if it is keeping you from getting the results that you want. 

So, if you are bored, tired or not seeing the results that you want, it is time to change your routine. Do something different that will shake things up -> Try a new program like the FASTer Way to Fat Loss® - if you haven’t tried the premier online nutrition and fitness program, it is time to sign up! My next round of FASTer Way to Fat Loss® starts December 31 with prep week where I will get you all set up with the tools and strategies to THRIVE through the 6-week program and reach your goals. 

I hope you will join me in the FASTer Way to Fat Loss® program. You won’t be bored, you will be energized and you will see amazing results. To register, click here.

Thank you for reading! Let me know that you did by leaving me a comment or a question!

5 Essential Stretches for Happy Legs

After having a meniscectomy on my left knee (after two ACLs a lifetime ago), I rehabbed and returned to running and other fitness activities a little happy camper. About a year later, that same knee became very unhappy and for the longest time, I didn't know why. I could hike, run, yoga...and then out of the blue my knee would hurt. It got so bad that I stopped running.

It took many visits with my chiropractor and an osteopath to figure out what I should have known all along: Stretching is essential for happy legs (and knees)!

The muscles in my left leg are weaker because of my knee injury and therefore work harder. Working harder causes the muscles to tighten putting a strain on my joints ---> in my case my knee feels this directly. If I take the time to stretch the muscles, the tightness is reduced and the strain removed.

If you are like me and struggling to solve a pain issue and are not stretching enough, please try these 5 Essential Stretches for Happy Legs.

Here's how they look after a warmup walk to the plaza in my neighborhood.

Quad stretch - Standing upright I pull my leg behind me with the same side hand. While pulling my foot toward my butt and keeping my knee pointed down, I focus on keeping my hips forward. It is not my goal to touch my foot to my butt, but to feel the stretch on the front of my leg.

Hamstring stretch - Standing with the leg to be stretched a little ahead of me, I keep that leg straight while bending the other knee slowly. At the same time I lean forward at the hip keeping my chest up. While in the stretch I focus on keeping my hips back ---> when I make this adjustment, I instantly feel the difference in the stretch. This stretch can also be done with the leg elevated or better yet, laying down.

Glute stretch - While standing upright, I raise one leg and pull it toward my chest with both hands. While keeping my body still and hips forward, I pull my leg across my body until I feel the stretch. I try not to allow my upper body to twist.

Hip & glute stretch (aka standing pigeon pose) - I place my ankle just above the opposite knee and then sit back slowly. I try to sink as low as I can, keep my hips square and top knee flat to increase the stretch.

Calf stretches - There are two sets of calf muscles to stretch. The first stretch is most common. While standing I step one leg back and bend forward with the other. I keep the back leg straight and the foot on the ground for the entire stretch.

The second stretch is similar. I bring the same leg in a little closer and bend the knee to feel a little different stretch.

What I'm wearing: top, capris, shoes

These are the stretches that are working for me and helped get me back in my running shoes. I do them after every workout and sometimes in the middle of a workout.

PS -Always warm up your muscles before performing any type of stretching.

PPS - I am not a doctor. I am only sharing what has worked for me personally.

Holiday Fitness and other Randomness

I love this time of year! Everyone is so festive and there are lights and decorations all around. We even manage to put up a tree here in Hong Kong. It's that whole what you can way of decorating!

The week leading up to the big day is always filled with hustle and bustle, so I signed up for the 12 Days of "Fit-mas" presented by Fit Mom Strong Mom (which totally looked like a great program) and then promptly failed to participate. It was a combo of being busy with other activities, being tired, being lazy...you've heard me say all this before.

I was ACTIVE though. Here's a quick look at last week's highlights:

Monday - Mountain Monday - Lookout Point Loop hike in my new North Face Litewave Explore hiking shoes. I've worn them a couple of times now and they do the trick, but on longer hikes I might need a gel insert.

Tuesday - Hong Kong Trail hike with my friends from SWIC (recap here). One of my favorite parts of hiking is looking back to see where we started. In the photo below, our starting point was back by the large apartment buildings and we weren't even halfway yet.

Wednesday - We took a Christmas lights walk around the neighborhood after dinner.

Thursday - IMI treatment for my pesky heel ---> but the osteopath is working wonders and thinks yoga is in my future. That led me to sign up for the 31 Day Yoga Revolution hosted by Yoga with Adriene. I love, love, love her challenges. It starts January 1. You can join here.

Friday - Bodypump. I really need to learn my body's weight limits. I was really sore from this class.

Saturday - Christmas Eve sprint workout at the fitness center. After Mass and dinner in Central we enjoyed as much of Winterfest as we could.

Sunday - Took my new bike on 2 mile Christmas Day ride to the grocery. It's a really nice bike! Then I made some more protein bars because I already ate the first batch!

Today - Another Mountain Monday hike on Lookout Point Loop. Tonight we are meeting mrC's friend, who is in Hong Kong for work, for dinner.

Have you ever signed up for something and then completely dropped the ball?
Do you go Christmas light peeping?
Any holiday workouts for you?

SurfSet Fitness Hong Kong: Balance

If you have read this blog before or know me IRL, then you probably know that one of my favorite fitness activities is SurfSet. I've been going to classes off and on for over three years. I say off and on because I used to go every Saturday before we moved to China and now I haven't been since last fall.

That all changed when I found SurfSet Fitness Hong Kong while scrolling through my Groupon app (they have a great deal if anyone in Hong Kong is reading this). Today I'm super excited to talk about my first class at SurfSet Fitness Hong Kong!

In case you haven't heard of it, SurfSet is a 45 minute workout based on the movements of surfing. The comprehensive routine centered around the RSX board is designed to build core strength, burn fat, and create lean muscles. Other gear such as jump ropes and kettle bells can be incorporated into the routine as well. What you don't need are shoes. This workout is done completely barefoot.

So, about today. Getting to the class is no easy task. For me, coming from Discovery Bay, I have to take the 25 minute ferry to Central and then walk about 20 minutes to the metro for a 20-ish minute ride. A final 5 minute walk and I'm there. Phew! Clearly I REALLY wanted to go to this class. (and a BIG thank you to mrC for tagging along and helping me find my way!)

SurfSet Fitness Hong Kong offers all four signature programs.

Because you have to reserve a board in advance to join a class, I was closed out of my first choice (Blend) and instead took the Balance class.

Balance is yoga inspired and reminded me a lot of pilates. Pilates made a lot harder by the instability of the board. We started with a quick muscle warm-up on the board followed by some stretches. Next our instructor guided us through a few core exercises. What I loved is that we worked the abs and the glutes which are so often forgotten. We ended with yoga hold poses that made my muscles feel like they were screaming.

Even though I was looking for a fast-paced cardio workout, this low impact class was surprisingly challenging. Besides the core exercises, the movements from high to low and trying to hold a pose on the board called on every single stabilizer muscle that you don't think twice about on an average day. I got sweaty and I'm pretty sure I'm going to be sore.

I still miss the fast-paced, gasping-for-air feeling that you get from a Burn or Blend class, so I will definitely be trying to get into one of those classes soon.

Have you tried SurfSet? Which class is your favorite?

We Moved to Hong Kong (and I squeezed in some fitness too)!!

After a blissful extended stay in the US while mrC transitioned to a new job and a new airplane, we hit the ground running upon our return to China and we haven't really stopped! With the clock ticking on our Chinese resident visas, we had to find a new place to live in Hong Kong and MOVE!

We spent our final days in Shenzhen squeezing in as much time as we could with our favorite people and places.

I met up with the SWIC hiking group for one more Monday hike up Nanshan. This is probably the thing that I will miss the most. Every week, no matter how I was feeling, I could count on hanging out with this group and having a blast. The last time was no exception!

Then mrC and I climbed the mountain one last time together. Even though he never shied away from joining the SWIC ladies, we always enjoyed doing the climb on our own too. Moving is never easy, and exercise is a great way to let go of frustrations.

It took us just one day to find a new apartment in the Discovery Bay neighborhood of Hong Kong (we visited here back in June). The apartment that we chose was being renovated on the inside and the whole building had just undergone a makeover on the outside. It was unfurnished, but the owner offered to buy furniture if we paid a little more rent. This will make things a lot easier when it's time for us to return to the US.

We had to hire a company to help us move our belongings across the border and through customs.

We have spent the last two weeks moving in and getting settled in Hong Kong. There has been a lot of waiting for furniture deliveries (IKEA is the #1 place to shop here), workman arriving to put together furniture, and shopping for odds and ends --> we were thrilled to find out that there was a market at the plaza featuring locally made items.

We've also spent A LOT of time in Central setting up bank account, getting a new China tourist visa, seeing our new chiropractor, and becoming official Hong Kong residents.

We have also made time to walk around and get to know our new neighborhood which is located on the east side of Lantau Island. Discovery Bay stretches about 1.5ish miles from the DB North Plaza to D'Deck Plaza and is only accessible via a tunnel on the north end coming from Tung Chung/airport or a ferry from Central. There are about 14 developments (called villages) housing 10,000+ residents. We live in Parkridge Village almost dead center between the two plazas (marked in red below).

Some views from our walks around town:

Siena Park (aka Central Park)

D'Deck view of Tai Pak Beach

Super Moon gazing from Tai Pak Beach

Friendly off duty carriage ride horses

There's too much to share in one post, but I will share a preview of what I hope to talk about next time!

What's new and exciting in your world?
Ever been to Hong Kong?