A Little Yoga, Biking, and Family Fun

Being the first one up has its perks. I can sneak out to the yard and create my own little yoga space. with just an ordinary beach towel.

I was feeling a little stiff today, so I found a Yoga with Adrienne video to play on my iPad. Her videos are some of my favorites because she makes it so easy to follow the flow.

The girls and mrC went on a three mile run. I wanted to join them so badly (stupid knee), but instead I jumped on the bike. I love my Priority bike. I feel 100% like it just shouts I'M A PERSON ON VACATION! 

Then I enjoyed a post workout smoothie.

We spent the afternoon staying cozy inside waiting and hoping for the gray, rainy clouds to pass because we had a family beach photo session scheduled. Everything worked out perfectly and we had so much fun with Stacey from Stacey Hedman | Photography. I can't wait to see the photos!

Afterwards we headed to downtown Falmouth for some dinner and walking around. 

Red sky at night, sailer's delight.

The weather is already looking fabulous for our adventures today!

Things I love About Monday

Do you love being given gifts first thing in the morning? Me too! Today mrC and I received our birthday gifts from the kids. In addition to some dry shampoo and lip gloss, I love my bracelet from Kiel James Patrick.

After running some errands with the girls, mrC, oldestC and I went on a bike ride. We had to get out and enjoy the blue sky. I love being active together.

We explored the area of New Silver Beach. I love riding through Cape neighborhoods and looking at all the beautiful homes. They have some prime swimming areas with great views.

We rode all the way to the end of Bay Shore Drive and enjoyed the view of Wild Harbor. I love capturing moments like this.

After dinner we walked to our beach, Old Silver Beach, to catch the sunset. It was a little cloudy, but there were still amazing colors in the sky. I love this part of being at the Cape.

Always multitasking, littleC gave me a quick lesson on using SnapChat. I love my time with the kids.

What did you love about your Monday?

Funny Things During a Workout, Carb Cycling Round 2 and GIVEAWAY ALERTS!

I've got some really great giveaway alerts for you at the end of this post that you don't want to miss out on!

But first, I woke up SUPER early this morning (5 AM!) and since I couldn't fall back to sleep I made some coffee to take out on the back deck. It was a nice until it started raining.

mrC did not have the same problem. I had to wake him up for church. We had big plans to walk there (it's only about .25 mile from the house), but the rain... Side note: I love, love my new skirt. 

After church we decided to do an indoor workout for carb cycling feast day.  I like Jillian Michaels workout videos because she takes you through a dynamic warm up and static cool down.

I'm always looking for new ways to modify cardio exercises to keep my knee happy. JM showed me that squat punches is a great option.

Three funny things commonly happen when I workout with mrC:

1) he closes his eyes during intervals  - I look over during lunges and it looks like he's sleeping!

2) he high fives after each circuit - he's a happy guy ;)

3) when he bangs into something (like today he sort of punched the drop ceiling), he never reacts - I nearly jump out of my skin at the noise, look over, and he's just jumping away. It's like he's trying to say, wasn't me. Haha.

Speaking of carb cycling, today was also the last day of round 2 which means we took measurements. Full disclosure, I was not as faithful to the eating plan as I was during round 1. I could blame all the travel, but it really came down to the fact that I let myself cheat and cheat and cheat.

THE RESULTS: My weight stayed the same but I gained (eek) 4.75 inches!

+.50 bust
+.25 hips
0 waist
+1.5 thighs
+1.5 calves
+1.5 biceps

mrC says gaining in some places (like my biceps) is a good thing. I agree, although half heartedly, because I really wanted to lose another 4 pounds and slim down my hips and thighs.

FINAL THOUGHTS: You get out what you put in. I have signed up for a 30 Day Shred and I'm making a promise to myself to stick to the plan.

The sun came out after lunchtime, so we walked to the beach to enjoy a little sun, sand and waves.  I highly recommend a beach day if you are feeling bummed.

Before I sign off, I want to share links to GIVEAWAYS going on now. There have been so many lately that I couldn't keep them to myself.

Win a Bib to the Falmouth Road Race from Carrots n Cake 

Live Free and Run Giveaway: TWO entries to a ZOOMA Run Event (for you and a friend)

Win a pair of compression socks from The Fit Fork

Lean, Clean, and Brie is hosting a Bob's Red Mill Giveaway

Win IdealFit Protein Powder from The Bikini Experiment

Sprints and Sprinting to the Cape!

Yesterday I flipped low calorie day with low carb day to make sure we did not miss our sprint workout before heading to the Cape. mrC and I were at the gym at 6:15 to do the final sprint workout of carb cycling round two.

Sprinting for 15 minutes using the 20:20 ratio equals 23 intervals! It's all fun and games when you start, but the last three (extra) are tough.

I spent the rest of the day getting ready for our trip: laundry, prepping kid "care packages" and organizing my suitcase. My SIL's dog has become my little shadow, especially when I'm enjoying some low carb day turkey breast slices.

Our landlord contacted us the night before to let us know the house was ready and invited us to go a day early. We thought, HECK YEA! We can't get there fast enough! When mrC got back from work, we loaded everything into the car and sprinted off.

We enjoyed an easy traffic-free drive. After a quick stop for some dinner, we arrived around 9PM. Waking up in the Cape House (instead of being in the Saturday morning mad dash) was fantabulous.

Here are a few pics to show you why :)

The kids arrive tomorrow (can't wait!), but this little guy must have decided I needed some company.

Happy Saturday!

Backyard Workout and Random Fun Stuff

My body is still working its way through my 12 time zones journey. Today I slept until 7:30 (which never happens!), but I finally felt refreshed when I woke up.

I grabbed some weights, my iPad, and a towel and hit the backyard for my workout.

Today I was feeling spunky, so I choose a Jillian Michael's workout video. It's called an ab workout, but it is really for your whole body. Even she says so. The hardest exercise is a side plank knee twist move. It works the obliques and the inner thighs. My inner thighs need A LOT of work.

My favorite exercise today was a reverse lunge. Normally lunges and squats are uncomfortable for my bad knee, but today they felt ok. I think that doing the workout on grass may have helped.

To cool off after the workout I jumped into the pool again. I've been searching for a new tankini to replace the one I've had for four summers now and yesterday I found one at Dick's Sporting Goods when we were picking up a bike rack for the rental car. It's from Calia by Carrie Underwood and it's super cute. The description fit me perfectly: "Keep it casual and classic this swim season with this flattering design. The CALIA™ by Carrie Underwood Solid Strappy Tankini Top has all of the swim-ready features you need without sacrificing style"

All good workouts should be rewarded, so I helped myself to one of my SIL's gluten free muffins before enjoying some scrambled eggs prepared by mrC.

Other fun moments from the day...

I voted absentee in the primary!

I picked up some gifts at Giftology while mrC was at Verizon.

And then I booked my tickets to Orlando and Cincinnati! I can't wait to see my parents and more of my family.