Our First Family Christmas in Hong Kong (plus Weekly Wrap)

We were so happy that it wouldn't just be the two of us for Christmas again this year. Having two out of three kids here with us in Hong Kong is just about the best gift ever ---> if only oldestC could have more time off work.

Planning for Christmas in tropical Hong Kong was obviously different than we are used to (like having a tiny tree), but it was fun being able to do things that we probably wouldn't do back home.

We kicked off the festivities with a Christmas Eve hike on the Lookout Loop trail. We thought middleC might be feeling tired on his first morning in Hong Kong, but he looked as if he hadn't traveled 10 time zones at all. And littleC was finally getting over her bad case of jet lag. Lucky for us it was a popular morning to hike and a nice man helped us with a Santa hat photo on the top.

Later, since the weather was just spectacular, the kids took our iSUP boards out for a paddle. The water was cold, but a calm bay was too much to resist. mrC and I took our turn too, and it was really, really nice to be out on the boards in December.

We loved having the kids with us for Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. It was super crowded (that will happen when you normally have four mass times), but we found seats and enjoyed the joyful service.

After opening presents on Christmas morning, we had a big breakfast with pumpkin pancakes ---> I saved the Trader Joe's mix just for this occasion. Wrong season, but totally delicious! We FaceTimed with our family back in the US and enjoyed a lazy afternoon. For dinner, we went with some friends and their kids to Cucina. This restaurant was the perfect place for Christmas dinner. They put party hats on the table (more like New Year's Eve style, but what the heck, it was Christmas!) that added a fun and festive vibe to the evening. Nothing could beat the amazing views of Victoria Harbour though.

mrC and I were thrilled to give the kids a surprise gift to Disneyland Hong Kong! Neither had been to Disneyland before (and often teased their dad about it) and since we live so close to the park, it just seemed like a great time to get them there. Finally! I have to admit, I'm not a big Disney theme park person, but we had a TON of fun. If you're ever in HK, you should definitely go. (We did wait until two days after Christmas though, because the day after Christmas is a public holiday in Hong Kong.)

That's how we celebrated our first family Christmas in Hong Kong!

Here's my Weekly Wrap and I'm linking up with Tricia and Holly:

Monday - Christmas Day!

Tuesday - Took the kids on the tram up to Victoria Peak to catch the views over Hong Kong (evidence below).

Wednesday - Big day at Disneyland.

Thursday - Dragon's Back hike (post coming soon)

Friday - Bodypump and beach time, again!

Saturday - Tiger's Head hike (post coming soon)

Sunday - Church, shopping markets and Pier 3 Bar New Year's Eve Party to watch the fireworks over Victoria Harbour ---> it was cold but super fun!

At the Peak!

For fun, I'm sharing this Never Have I Ever from Run to the Finish! (directions: you get 1 point for each thing you have done)

What was your score? Mine was 11

Happy New Year! 

We're All About Fitmas Here in Hong Kong!

With two of the kids now visiting us in Hong Kong, it's been hard to find time to blog. We've celebrated Christmas and have been filling the days with all the typical tourist stops and tons of fitness activities too.

Before her brother arrived on Christmas Eve eve, we took littleC on a couple of hikes. We started her off on the short but intense Discovery Bay Lookout Loop. She did amazing considering that she and I had actually gone to Bodypump class in the morning, so we were hiking on tired legs. On top of that she was suffering from a bad case of jet lag.

Still we made our way up the 733 steps to enjoy the amazing views of DB. It is so much nicer hiking in the cooler temps this winter. It's basically perfect.

The next day we hiked with one of my DB friends on the South Lantau Country Trail to Mui Wo. This hike was much longer but way easier than the day before. We had fun hunting for waterfalls (we only found a few small trickles) and soaking in the views of the China Sea. In Mui Wo, we met up with another friend and her family for a fun lunch at The Kitchen.

We were back for more Bodypump on Friday morning ---> it's a lot more fun to be there with littleC to chat with between tracks. And I love have someone to walk to and from class with.

We met up with some friends on Friday night and littleC had her first late night in Hong Kong hanging out in Lan Kwai Fong with some other expats. We took her to the Ladie's Market in Mong Kok on Saturday for some shopping. The vendors were a little late getting opened up, but we found some good deals.

I'll end this post with one of my new favorite photos. I think you'll understand why.

I hope to post again soon, but in case I'm late, HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

#TOL and #TBT - Thanksgiving Day Fitness

Happy Thanksgiving from Hong Kong!

I'm on my own again this year (mrC is on a trip - occupational hazard in his line of work), but I keep myself busy with other friends who are also not traveling and use fitness as a VERY BIG distraction.

I pulled a doubler workout today. First I was up early to get in a run. My weather app said it was 58 degrees, which sounded like perfect running temperature to me, so I threw on a pair of shorts and a tank. When I stepped outside I almost turned around and went back in for more clothes.

Thinking out loud - I think my body has adjusted to the tropical climate because 58 degrees was COLD!

Almost. I didn't want to waste time waiting for the elevator and going back up 20 floors and I figured I would warm up. Not surprisingly, I passed a lot of people at the bus stop bundled up in winter coats who probably thought I was crazily under-dressed. I actually felt pretty awesome during my run.

Thinking out loud - I don't know what made me lace up my Wave Horizon today instead of my Wave Sky. They're both stability shoes and at this point they have nearly the same amount of miles.

I ended up running a loop with a loop through the park (it's small) to finish with a Turkey Day 5K. Since I was out so early (about 6:30am) I didn't see many other runners except a group that works with the local semi-celebrity coach here in Discovery Bay. I caught up to them along the promenade, but when I went into the park, they must have headed up the hill.

Thinking out loud - I think the coach might have thought I was part of his group because when he ran by me he said, "don't let him get away!" referring to one his runners who picked up his pace. I just smiled and shrugged my shoulders. My pace, not yours, coach ;)

This run felt really good and I finished in 32:10. I'm not obsessed with my pace like I used to be, but it felt good to see it back in the ten minute range. I was also excited that I ran up the big hill at the end without stopping ---> that is seriously hard for me to do!

Thinking out loud - my body clearly likes running in the cooler weather. The last time I had a run that felt good like this, was when the temperatures dropped from the 80s to the 70s.

After a quick rinse, some coffee and a FaceTime session with mrC, I was out the door to catch the bus to my second workout of the day: GRIT Strength + Core class. It had been a long time since I did back-to-back workouts like this, but my workouts for the week had been nonexistent at this point.

The class is the perfect mix of cardio and strength with a little plyo thrown in. Today the upper body part focused a lot on the shoulders and I was ambitious with my weight choices. Thankfully, we got a break and focused on the lower body after that.

Thinking out loud - I admit that I was worried that I might be pushing my knee too hard for one day, but I knew that I could modify the exercises if I needed (and I hoped for the best). I do however, have to worry about whether I'll be able to lift my arms later.

Running this morning reminded me of all the Thanksgivings I started with some fitness. So here's a little Throwback Thursday for me you:

I have lined up with other runners to kickoff Thanksgiving Day with a race. I ran the Thanksgiving Day 10K in Cincinnati three times. I loved that race! I only stopped running it because I moved to New Hampshire.

When I wasn't able to join a run, I still got in a workout. In 2014 we had a HUGE snowstorm the day before Thanksgiving that knocked the power out for most of New Hampshire. The dog and I spent the holiday weekend in a hotel (mrC was on a trip) and I made use of the fitness center.

My first Thanksgiving as an expat was spent surrounded by SWIC friends on the hiking trails of Lamma Island. That was a great way to spend the day. They hiked in Hong Kong again today, but I wanted to run.

Do you workout on Thanksgiving?
Ever spent Thanksgiving away from home?

Today I'm Thinking Out Loud with Running with Spoons - join the link up or head over for some great reading.

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?

The 'After' Blues, Dragon Boat Festival and a Workout!

I've been suffering from the post event blues. 

You know this feeling (maybe?). The day after...your big race, the wedding, big holiday...you get the idea. After six weeks of following the carb cycling and intermittent fasting program, I was so excited about the results. I rode that high for a couple of days and enjoyed the break. Between the program ending, the rain, and the humidity, I fell into a bit of a funk until this weekend.

Dragon Boat Festival came on Thursday. This Chinese holiday's origin (so I'm told) has something to do with villagers rowing their boats up and down a river and tossing zongzi into the river to prevent fish from eating the corpse of a very popular poet.

The resulting traditions celebrated these days include: watching dragon boat races and eating zongzi. Since we didn't know of any local races (only the preparations we saw at Discovery Bay), we enjoyed having our first taste of zongzi.

Zongzi is a traditional Chinese food, made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings (ours were meat only) and wrapped in bamboo, reed, or other large flat leaves. They are cooked by steaming or boiling. Besides being pretty, they were very tasty.

We also enjoyed a full plate sharing meal with friends. This is by far the best way to try new foods in a foreign country. No guilt if you don't like a dish, just move on to the next.

During our meal we were entertained by lots of good music. The band members were very interactive with the customers, even dancing with them at times, and with people who just came in to watch and listen.

After a very rainy weekend, I finally got out for Mountain Monday. It was crazy humid (85 degrees but felt like 106!), but the view and breeze at the top are worth it.

The crazy fierce summer hikers.

I've been enjoying a lot of popsicles and smoothies. 

Today I did a lower body Tabata workout from Fitness Bender. The Tabata workout: 3 minute cardio warmup followed by two 14 minute rounds of 20 on 10 off. Each exercise was repeated 4 times.

There were 7 exercises: pulse lunges on each side (I modify with the stability ball to make pulsing easier on my knee), plank tucks and extensions, side lunges and jumps, flutter kick pulse squats, bridge kicks, and jack squats.

This workout got me nice and sweaty. I'm hoping my legs aren't too sore the next couple of days!

Do you ever get the post (fill in the blank) blues?