run right into you

Posted on January 5, 2014 by sorellaaglio

Hello everyone! I just got back from running my first mile of the year.

Confession: I hadn’t run since April of last year. Since I got hired at my new (now not-so-new) job, I hadn’t set foot to the pavement. I have recommitted to tons and tons of yoga, stretching and bending and breathing and relaxing, but for several reasons (read: excuses) I hadn’t been running, I realized in almost nine months.

This morning, I woke up early on the dot (is this how not being able to sleep in on the weekends starts!?) and figured that I should exercise somehow before diving in to my day – I am trying to learn how to slow down and take time for me before moving on to the household, the blog, etc. But I went to yoga on Friday and stupidly hurt my shoulders, so I didn’t want to push myself through too much yoga.

Jeff got me a new arm band when I got my new iPhone, and it was sitting in my side table still in the box. So I took it out, grabbed my headphones, sneakers, and changed and headed outside. It was the perfect temperature – about 65 – so I knew I had no excuses but to run.

I only ran a mile, because I wasn’t sure if I could even do that without stopping. In my stride, I had run a 10k, but that was more than a year ago. Normally, I could run about two miles without stopping, and my route was three miles, which meant one or two walking breaks.

But I ran my whole mile, you guys. One thing I have learned in running is that I am pretty good at setting my pace, knowing from the get-go how fast I should run in order to keep pace my whole run. So I ran the mile block around my house. And I ran the whole thing (even the leg of it that is uphill.) I didn’t die, I was out of breath but not wheezing, and my legs and feet and body really doesn’t feel any worse for the wear.

Here’s to many, many more miles this year. It always starts with one, right?

ever dreamed we even could be.

Posted on December 23, 2013 by sorellaaglio

Hello friends! I am writing to you from the sun porch of my parents’ house in Chicago. It is 19 degrees here, but the sun is shining and I have a big cup of coffee and a golden retriever at my side, and so I am a happy camper.

So my 25 days of yoga didn’t go as planned (does anything?) but I am happy to report that I am OK with that. So what happened? Well, I missed my first day because I was out too late for a holiday party – which I have mixed feelings about. I think that holidays should be fun, but obviously health should come first, so I think there needs to be a sense of balance in both things so that my exercise doesn’t fall aside when the busy season rolls around.

Then, as is frequent during this season, I got sick, and it was all over. I could barely breath, work, sleep, and pack for the Midwest, let alone also add in yoga, so I didn’t. I listened to my body, rested, slept, and headed to see my family.

I started up my yoga again yesterday, newly healthy from my bout with a terrible cold, and it felt good to be back – especially because this cold made me very achy. I hope to get yoga in a few more days while I am here on vacation, but I am not going to sweat it. I am going to set up another 25 day challenge, and while I might not complete that, either, that is OK. Doing your best is sometimes the best you can do.

These challenges we set up for ourselves are a representation of who we want to be at our very best, but often are unreachable, or unrealistic. I am learning from this challenge, and think I’ll take a “25 days of yoga in 30 days” approach next time around, which is how the challenge works at my yoga studio – and now, I see why. Some days, when you’re home from work sick and just focused on getting up to drink enough water, yoga isn’t logical. Or a run, or a walk, or Pilates, or whatever your exercise is.

I also learned during this challenge that some days during the 12 days in a row I did yoga, that some days an hour and a half of yoga was what my body craved – and some days, I needed a 30 minute restorative-focused, meditative sort of class. And that’s what I love about yoga – it can be whatever you need it to be!

How about you guys – how are you with setting challenges for yourself? Do you set yourself up for failure, or do you do whatever it takes (other priorities be damned!) to get it done?

Drinkers and jokers // all soul searchers

Posted on December 10, 2013 by sorellaaglio

Happy Tuesday, everyone! We’ve made it through Monday with flying colors, and for that I am happy. There is a week and a half until I head to Chicago to see all of my family, and any day that flies by to make that closer is a a good day in my book!

Today is my 9th day of my 25 days of yoga, and so far, so good. It helps that Jeff has joined the challenge, too, so when I have to hit the mat I have often had a friend to do so with – hitting the mat when a warm couch and lovely Christmas tree standing by can be hard, but flowing with loved ones makes it that much easier.

As we fly into a week of holiday dinners, parties, and general merriment, I am doing my best to pre-schedule the yoga to ensure it happens in a timely manner. I have been switching from longer classes that are an hour plus to shorter 25 minute classes depending on my schedule, and cycling through backbending, headstanding, core strength, foot balances, etc., to keep my body from getting overtired of the same old thing while continuing my practice.

It also helps if I have a class picked out before I get home, so I know what I’m headed into and can mentally prepare for whatever’s coming at me – be it lots of vinyasas, or a particularly hard class with warrior 3 into half-moon into triangle.

How are you all doing this holiday season? Are you keeping from getting burned out, and are you finding time to exercise?

Ciclavia 2013: Downtown LA

Posted on October 6, 2013 by sorellaaglio

This weekend, Jeff and I participated in Ciclavia, an event in LA dedicated to closing down roads and giving them over to bikers and pedestrians. We biked from Hollywood to Downtown LA, then all around from MacArthur Park to Chinatown to Grand Park to Mirachi Plaza.

We stopped at hubs along the way, snapping photos, eating delicious fare from the street trucks, and listening to some music in the park. All in all, we biked 16 miles around this lovely city, and really got to see what LA would be like if we dedicated just a LITTLE more space to pedestrians and bicycles.

It made me nostalgic for Boston and New York, and gave me hope that maybe someday more people will walk in LA without it being taboo. We even took the Metro home! Below, find some shots of our fun day out on the town!

More photos here.

I would never, ever let you go

Posted on May 29, 2013 by sorellaaglio

This past weekend I headed to the great state of Michigan to see another one of my besties married off. Brittany and I have been friends since we were 13, when I befriended her in hopes of getting one of her friends to date me (which totally worked.) Needless to say, that didn’t last, but our friendship persevered over the years through soccer teams, and classes that kicked our butts, and then through college 800 miles apart, and now living our lives wholly 2,000 miles door to door.

Every time I see her, she makes me giggle, smile, and usually cry because I am just so freaking happy to see her. I am so glad I made it to her big day, where I got to watch her marry her bff (besides me, of course ;)) and also catch up with friends from HS who I don’t get to see too often (my parents have since moved from my HS town, plus everyone is scattered like Hansel and Gretel’s breadcrumbs across this great nation.)

Britty, Brother Llama, I love you. I am so happy for you and Allen!