hashtag 30 by 30.

so i was walking home from a workout class last week and managed to get caught up in thinking about my mortality. totally normal, right?

i guess it's started this summer. i started realizing how much faster time has started to go by (minus winter) and it kind of freaked me out. because let's be honest, this is really how i've really been prepping for 30:

so, i did some math and realized that i have just about 35 weeks until i hit the big three-o. i then did the incredibly trite thing of making a list of 30 things/activities i want to do to make the most of the last 6+ months of my twenties. my hashtag 30x30.

thus i am sharing the list below with a complimentary gif to add a little zest to your day. 

1. lose 30 pounds

2. learn 30 new gluten-free recipes 

3. workout at least 3 times a week every week until my next birthday

4. try a different kind of workout at least once a month

5. get back online dating and actually try (calm yourself, mother).

6. make a video of the nyc highlights for my grandpa who has never visited here.

7. visit new nyc neighborhoods that I never venture to

but probably not brooklyn.

8. re-read catcher in the rye

9. learn to do at least 5 real push-ups

10. take a random personal day to just do something that makes me happy

11. write real mail to relatives/friends that will appreciate it.

12. actually hang up artwork i own and make my apartment look more grownup

13. try and enjoy downward dog position.

14. save an extra $30 a month to use to splurge on my bday

15. complete a 30 day squat challenge

16. take a cooking/wine tasting/pairing course just for the fun of it

17. do a random act of kindness when people really need it

18. be irresponsible on a school night and enjoy every minute of it.

19. try surfing because it looks cool (spoiler alert - already doing this on saturday!)

20. give away/toss at least 30 items of clothing

21. spend at least an hour a week cleaning/decluttering my apartment

22. treat myself to a spa treatment just because

23. find a signature cocktail

24. spend way too much money on a cocktail just for the view

25. learn how to cook with dates (the fruit, not men, mother)

not going to lie, my fave gif so far.

26. see all the oscar nominated movies for 2015

27. watch the wire and see if it lives up to the hype

if only i knew what this meant.

28. learn how to put on liquid liner

29. get a tarot card/palm reading

30. blog about my adventures

not quite, other queen b. not quite.

i feel like i have a good balance of measurable general life improvements with some frivolous fun that should make the next 7 months one hell of a ride. i can't wait to tell you all about it.

spinning my water wheels: aqua cycling.

so after breaking up with my gym last month, i have found a new lover. his name is classpass & he's the perfect fit for indecisive me. pay once a month for 10 classes at boutique fitness studios they have relationships with. the catch? you can only go to each studio a max of 3 times in a month and popular studios book up in advance, so it forces you to try new things all the time. i've realized this is kind of perfect for my fitness profile, because i get bored doing the same thing all the time.

after joining last week, i quickly booked up my month with my 10 classes at brand-new studios and workouts i've never even thought about before: trampoline dance cardio, bungee blasts, bollywood dance and other various activities. but my inaugural class last night definitely takes the cake for a new take on a workout staple: aqua cycling.

seriously though, it's spinning on a bike that's in a pool. and yes, you wear a swimsuit. and now i will tell you all about it. because that's the point of a blog. duh.

the studio is called aqua nyc, located in trendy TriBeCa because of course it is. the facility is beautiful, with a welcome lounge on the top floor, a dressing room down a flight of stairs and the pool with about 12-15 bikes in it is located in the basement.

i checked in and rented my jellies - JELLIES! - and headed downstairs to change. i had technical difficulties with my lap swimming bathing suit (i know, i'm special) so i ended up wearing bike shorts and a sports bra, which worked out fine. everyone else was in about the same. one of the great things about the class is that it was women only, so there's no worrying about what you look like in your bathing suit, which i truly appreciate. it's so hard to focus on trying to look skinny while also trying to get a good workout in.

i walked downstairs and met the very nice - and ripped - instructor who helped me set up my bike. i hopped in the pool and resisted my instinct to pee (i've never met a pool i haven't peed in. sorry mom, dad, kris, friends and guests of every hotel i've ever stayed at. i'm gross, deal with it.) and walked over to my bike to set up. these bikes are different from what you see at soul-cycle; they have no resistance gauges and have a cool thing on the bottom that pushes the water around. it's pretty cool.

i started pedaling and there's no other way to describe the feeling other than: weird. it took a little time for my body to get used to the cadence and feel slightly stable. the faster you pedal, the more resistance you create, so i wanted to try and get a solid motion going before class started.

just like in a regular spin class, there are the three main positions:
first: sitting in the saddle, back straight
second: out of the saddle, body straight up and down
third: out of the saddle, ass over seat and hunched, in a climbing type position.

aqua has what i have taken to calling the elusive fourth position, which is where you are out of the saddle, but behind the bike, submerged to your neck and still pedaling. i LOVED this position, because it reminded me of being a kid in florida making up games in the pool we had in my backyard. (this is not bragging, most normal homes in florida have pools. it's like the law or something.)

the instructor did a good job of incorporating other strength moves to keep the whole body going, doing swimming moves with our arms and engaging our core. at one point we were behind the bike in position four and doing the breaststroke. i'm fairly surprised my bike didn't fall backward on me.

the class is just 45 minutes, but i definitely could tell i got a workout. and despite the fact that i spent half the class thinking this is so weird, i'm most likely going to go back. due to my volleyball past, i have a bad everything: knees, hips, back, you name it. this is a great workout for when your body needs to get moving but can't handle the pounding of the pavement. if you can get past the weirdness (which is going to take me a time or two, for sure) and just go with the flow (of the water, get it?), you'll be cool.

plus, i can guarantee you that this is one pool i did not pee in. so you've got that going for you.

it's time to call it quits

no, no no, i'm not quitting my intermittent blogging. don't you worry your pretty little face over that. i will continue to randomly update you on my quest to be a better betsy for a while to come.

what i AM quitting is my monthly membership at the gym. in fact, i already did. today. not that they made it easy.

now, i'm sure you're all thinking, "wait, i thought half of the point of this was for her to get fit and rock at life." which is fairly accurate. it's also accurate to say that the other half of the blog is dedicated to photos of buddy. 

hello, handsome

back to the larger issue at hand: quitting the gym, yet still being focused on a healthier life. it's actually not going to be that big of a change for me.

i've been consistently working out for the past few months - spare my birthweek - but i've probably only stepped foot in my gym about twice. i've noticed that i really enjoy classes that aren't offered at my gym and have started going to them at least once a week. on top of that, the weather is finally changing around, allowing me to spend time outdoors to make the most of it, including in active ways.

dancing is a workout too, guys.

yes, specialty classes are expensive. but the workouts are better than any class i've ever been to at my "regular gym." so my theory was, i'm already paying for these extra classes, might as well take the money i'm spending on a membership i rarely use and put it towards those classes. plus, i get about a million daily deals emails, and there's usually some sort of package of workout classes available at a discount, so i can expand my horizons while getting an awesome workout.

the biggest takeaway i have from this hellacious winter (and spring, given that it SNOWED last night) is that i truly enjoy being outdoors when i can. not only do i live within walking distance to central park - the premier outdoor workout landscape - but i also live along a beautiful outdoor walking/running/fitness path that i have not taken nearly enough advantage of over the past few years.

taken on a commute home on a spring day. hashtag gorgeous

i own simple things like a yoga mat, hand weights, a jump rope and a resistance band, so i could take the things i've learned in these crazy classes and do them outside. and get my vitamin d requirement, which is especially important since i found out i'm severely deficient in it. (too much sunscreen and zero red meat will do that to a girl).

so bring on the bad tan lines and the neon workout clothes to blend in at these special gyms. needless to say, it's not me, large gym system in nyc, it's you. and we're never, ever, ever, getting back together.*

*well, maybe we will when it gets cold again. taylor's always wrong about everything.

pump, pump the jams, pump it up, a little louder

 first and foremost, please take in all that the amazingness is from the above.

second, what's up party people! i know that i said i would be back more often, but then i wasn't. and that made me a tease.

guess what? deal with it.

anyway, i am back and on the path to enlightenment or whatever and i figured i would start with something super trivial and fun to make it super easy to draw you back into my web of lies and despair. and what's the best way to do that? by telling you about the awesome work out songs that i jam out to at the gym.

so i've been to the gym TWICE in a week - which sadly is a big deal for me these days as my life has been bonkers - and i realized that i'm not your normal cardio enthusiast. one reason is because i hate being at the gym. the second is that i find myself getting lost in the groove way too easily. i sing along silently (i think), have hand movements that come dangerously close to the people next to me and an ass shake that frankly, just won't quit. so what i'm saying is that i'm a fucking gem. and i also have some awesome music spinning to keep me motivated when i don't want to be there.

willow understands what i'm talking about.

since i am nothing if not a giver (lies!), i figured i'd share some of my go-tos to get the blood pumping. and note, this is just a few, as my gym playlist is over 80 songs long. just in case i decide that i want to stay longer. not that i ever do.

1. Beyonce.  obvi. so this is not as much of a song suggestion, but merely a genre in itself that makes you want to run walk faster because the beat is so damn good. plus, her body is slammin, so that's got to be a sign she's doing something right with the music, right?
spin this shit: crazy in love, run the world (girls), get me bodied

this is also what i say when asked why i don't go to the gym as much as i should.

2. angry music. i like to consider myself an upbeat person most of the time. but there is nothing more motivating for me than the idea that i'm getting back at someone who wrong me. just like my girl mindy kaling (she doesn't know she's my girl. yet.), i have revenge fantasies and they come to full life when i'm at the gym. and if i'm to believe pinterest, the best revenge is living well, so i better start jogging on that treadmill to make the haters pay.
spin this shit: you oughta know by alanis morrissette, since you've been gone by kelly clarkson, fighter by christina aguilera, survivor by destiny's child (more bey!), i don't need a man by the pussycat dolls (whatever, it's fine).

fat amy is my spirit animal.

3. guilty pleasures. there's nothing like your secret shame songs to get you going. the people around you may judge your choices, but damn you have a smile on your face as you up the incline.
spin this shit: spice up your life by the spice girls, we got the beat glee version, independent women by destiny's child (bey FOREVER), let's be bad from SMASH, whipped into shape from legally blonde the musical (if they can jumprope to this on stage, i can jog for this bad boy).




4. unexpected songs. when i think of the black keys, i think of laid back tunes that i can listen to all day. not of sports bras and gatorade. yet, some of their stuff is lovely on a workout playlist, especially if it helps you change your pace and make your body adjust. break up the monotony of the routine with some stuff that's different from the usual bumping bass to make things interesting.
spin this shit: gold on the ceiling by the black keys, lover of the light by mumford and sons, black sheep by gin wigmore, stone cold sober by paloma faith

built in squat workout!

5. your favorite songs. i mean, this is a duh, obvi. if you love a song, you'll want to move to it, sing to it, everything to it. plus, it should make you happy to hear it that you'll forget about the pain you're currently in from doing 40 squats in a row.
spin this shit: move along by all american rejects, dog days are over by florence + the machine, dammit by blink 182, mr. brightside by the killers, i hate myself for loving you by joan jett


finally, i will leave you with my two ALL TIME workout songs that are guaranteed to make you just fucking GO for a few minutes:

monkey wrench by the foo fighters. dave growl is my ugly sexy and he can really do no wrong in my eyes. at the end of this song when you hear about "one last thing before i quit," you can't quit. i once sprinted at an 8 (a huge deal guys) to this because i HAD to.




BoB (bombs over baghdad) by outkast. this song kicks you in the face from the start and never stops. it's particularly good for cycling or running or generally losing your breath because you want to try and keep up with them - which you can't - while trying to remember all the words - which you also can't do.  it's the song that doesn't give you any other choice than hustle.




and that, my friends, is it. i'm heading to the gym now with my playlist geared up for a tough night sweating it out, but if i missed one of your favorites, send it my way so that i can add it to my list.

also so that i can sing it loudly. off-key.

hot stuff baby this evening

as i mentioned in my last post, i made my triumphant return to hot yoga this week. and by triumphant, i mean awkward, sweaty and not very graceful return.

i used to be an avid hot yoga fan when i lived in florida. i went at least once a week to this cute little studio in delray beach where the vibe was do what you can and be happy with yourself. and against most odds, i did and i was. in fact, i actually got kind of good. i could do standing head to knee in a 105 degree room without falling over. which let me tell you, is a BIG FUCKING DEAL. plus, i found this like weird, inner spirituality whatever thing, which is so not normally my style. seriously. my religious views on Facebook? "clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose."

so when i moved to nyc almost 3.5 years ago, i was eager to find a studio so i could continue to find my weekly release. however, i found NOTHING i liked. i go to hot yoga to find peace while getting fit, but i like the option to swig water if i feel like i'm going to pass out. call me old fashioned. i got flat out yelled at in one class, which definitely did not help me harness my inner chi. it left a bad taste in my mouth and i hadn't returned since. but lately i've been missing it.

when i saw a gilt city deal for two months of unlimited hot yoga right before i was heading into 3 days of pure debauchery at governor's ball, i immediately went to the yelp reviews for the studio to see if it would be a little more "hippie-like" of a studio so that i could take full advantage. luckily all the reviews seemed positive and mentioned how it was a great place for beginners to get used to bikram, which is exactly what i needed. combined with the fact that it's only a couple blocks up the street from my office, there was no way i was turning this deal down.

on wednesday i packed up my yogi towel, mat and sweat-proof clothes into my boys don't like funny girls tote and headed to work to proceed to drink about a gallon and a half of water. because if there is one thing you must do before going to hot yoga, it's HYDRATE. seriously, you're going to sweat out half your body weight. get some water up in that bitch. i planned to go to the 8pm class since i had read that the 6pm post work class can get really busy, and i figured some space for my first time back on the mat would be a good idea.

i arrived early to check in and sign my life away (if you die, you can't sue the studio. fun fact) and got ready to sweat my metaphorical balls off. the staff was nice enough to tell me a good spot for an almost beginner like me that would be near a window, which is not as warm as the center of the room, and mentioned that they are not yoga nazis and encourage people to hydrate if they need to.

i set up my mat and got down to shavasana (yep, had to google how to spell it), which i forgot how much i loved. any exercise that encourages you to lay on a mat with your wrists up and toes pointed out is okay by me. after 15 minutes of relaxing, class got going. there were actually a lot of beginners in my class and the teacher made sure to welcome us all and let us know our goal today was to acclimate to the heat and not leave the room. as for poses, do what you can, but don't worry about not being the best. drink water if you need to. lay down if you're over heated. just listen to your body. basically, everything i wanted to hear. love.

i wish i could say that full on muscle memory took over and i killed the class, but that would be a bold face lie. i struggled with a lot of poses that used to be easy for me (i.e. standing head to knee and rabbit pose) and couldn't even get my foot into my hands like i used to for some other poses. but it wasn't a total failure. i can still do triangle pose with the best of them. and while i did need to drink water often, i only laid down once when the heat got to be a bit much, which i think is totally a success considering the first time i ever did bikram i spent half the class laying on the ground. and no - i'm not just talking about the 13 poses you do on the floor. another perk of this studio? they have a beautiful outdoor space that they open up for students after class to cool down and enjoy the fresh air.

all in all, i consider it a successful first venture back into the world of bikram. i'm getting ready to head to my next class soon and can't wait until i'm back to my former one-legged standing status.

sweating it out.

it's officially summer. how do i know? because i have my first set of awkward tan lines, acquired from a particularly lovely day on long beach, LI.

but that's not what i came here to tell you about.

no friends, i came here today to write to you about starting my couch to 5k program, which is going to help me complete my rad color run on july 21st.

ryan, i'm doing this for you.

last night i packed up my gym bag, which happens to display one of my favorite gilmore girls quotes:

if they did, then i'd be wifed up a million times by now.

and i was all resolute about getting back on that treadmill. because while i didn't get to last week due to busy times at the office. and when work is busy, you know what that means.

you know it, sweet brown.

so i went to sleep with my AC blasting and buddy snuggled up in my side to wake up this morning with a cough that reminds me of a 70 year old woman who smokes 3 packs a day and a sore throat to accompany it. swell.

normally, i'd take this as a hint to grab some wonton soup, a vat of orange juice and lay on the couch for the rest of the week. instead, this time i'm going to try and sweat it out at the gym, and release the toxins or what have you.

i used to actually do this when i used to do hot yoga. yes, i did hot yoga on the regular for a while when i was still living in florida. i just haven't found a studio that i liked here in nyc so it kind of dropped off the mat. the mat, get it? like a yoga mat? i'm FUNNY.

back to the matter at hand: whenever i had a cold, i would sign up for a hot yoga class that day and literally feel the sweat cleansing me. so why couldn't some gym time do the same? i'm not going to go all crazy and try to run when my lungs feel like they are a quarter-tank full. plus, i think part of the reason that hot yoga worked was because i also really enjoyed the class. and let's be honest, i don't really enjoy running.

dead on, ann perkins.

what do i enjoy? shaking my shit. so thus, i am attempting to head to zumba to try and sweat and shake this bug out before it implants itself into my life this week. because governor's ball is this weekend and i need to be on my A game so that i can get my borderline-hippie experience that i've been dreaming about for years.

sunday showdown: not quite there...

so, here is my first "official" check in. and by official, i mean, the first time i rate my results. and in the sake of all honesty, i didn't do that well.

i managed to tidy up a bit, but nowhere near the amount that needs to be done. but isn't that part of the reason i'm blogging? because i have obvious shortcomings and i need to deal with them. 

but i'll get to them in a few, i want to walk you through a few fun things that happened since i last typed and you theoretically read it.

first, i took a class a 6:30 in the morning - yes, apparently they have a 6:30 in the morning too. weird, huh? - with an instructor whose name is trudog. yep, trudog. all one word, no e. and he introduced himself to me with a straight face. it was a cardio jam class that was kind of the perfect way to start the day, because he played some kickass music. janet, khia, macy. 
however, in class, i felt my shoulder muscle pop out during jumping jacks. and it hurt like a bitch. i kept going, because i apparently am a sadist, and finally today it's starting to feel normal.

second, on friday after work i went to a happy hour that turned into drinking all night and came home to find this: 

so not only had i not kept up my initial part of my cleaning goal, but buddy decided to make things worse. i'm pretty sure he was trying to teach me a lesson that being gone from 8am until 1am is NOT okay. my toilet paper was also completely unrolled too.

little bastard.

we made up though. he even helped me get dressed today. and by dressed, i mean he tried to eat my necklace and then was unimpressed that i wouldn't let him.

unfortunately, the excessive beer drinking made me have a slight taste of what my family so LOVINGLY calls the "bottle flu." and i was supposed to go to soul cycle at 10am with my girls, who are all pros at spinning. i am not a pro, and am pretty sure that i would've puked had i been on the bike. and i don't know if they'd let me come back after that. and i have TWO classes already paid for, so i really don't want to get barred for life. it'd be like bad fitness karma. i managed to get out of it, but am planning to reschedule because that is definitely something that needs to be blogged about. so, something for you all to look out for in the future.

i did recover, but spent most of the day hanging on my couch and dealing with a massive allergy attack. but it also meant falling asleep at 10pm, so really, it's for the best.

nyc is freaking gorgeous out right, so i spent the day outside with my besties, a set of parents and a lot of dogs. two hours of sunlight in 60 degrees means this: 

yep, that's how pale people roll. and i, my friends, am the palest.

i DID manage to sneak in 4 workouts and threw out 3 giant bags of trash, so while i am not completely clutter free, i am doing better than i was a week ago. i realized that cleaning is not something that should happen once a month or when company is coming over. dishes should be done daily, otherwise your cat will clean them for you. vacuum up the litter once a day, otherwise you will step on it as soon as you get out of the shower. hang your clothes up in the closet when they are clean or you'll forget these things.

the moral of the story? i should do NORMAL things on a daily basis and my life won't spin out of control. also, buddy is scared of the vacuum.

being a grown up is hard. apparently so is being a kitty.