WINTER FITNESS TIPS

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Welcome to the second post in my winter fitness series! As I mentioned before, usually winter and fitness never come out of my mouth in the same sentence…Winter usually is for baggy clothing, over consumption of chocolate and carbs and hibernation BUT this year, I'm making some changes…yeeeehaw.

Ok, so if you're like me, you may need a bit of inspiration and something practical to hold on to. I'm a type A planner freak so I'm all about getting all my ducks in a row BEFORE my workouts. Sometimes that can bite me in the butt as I will put off working out because I haven't planned out what fitness routine I want to do (my lazy excuse).  So here are a few tips that are working for me (side note- I am not a professional trainer, nutritionist, anything fitness related…)

1. Have everything ready BEFORE you go to bed. 

This is one that I HAVE to do. Even if I'm working out on a day off and it only takes five minutes for me to gather my stuff, if it's not ready the night before, I'm most likely going to put off my workout or waste a good hour as I contemplate everything I need to gather before my run (this actually happened on Sunday, I was supposed to go for a run but instead did a measly at home workout because I wasted too much time thinking in bed lols). Put your runners by the front door. Have your pants, sports bra, tank, hat, jacket, (etc) all ready to go. I usually will hang my running clothes over the heater (slipping on warm running pants at 7:30am makes a world of difference). Make sure your ipod/iphone is charged and your headphones are good to go. Also make sure you know what you're going to do which leads me to tip #2...

2. Make a plan.

Maybe this won't apply to everyone, but I need a plan. Whether it's as simple as, I'll go to the gym Monday and Wednesday or I'm running 5km tomorrow or even, I'm running to the breakwater and back. I'm preaching to myself here, I need a plan, I need one. If I don't plan out what days I'm working out on AND open my schedule for it, most likely I won't get around to it. Laziness is a strong opponent and he will win if i'm not properly prepared, ha. In February I start my half marathon training plan and I'm actually looking forward to it (I  told you I thrive on planning). I'm doing the plan through run keeper which motivates me even more and leads me to tip #3...

3. Get some apps to help you.

There are SO many amazing apps to help you but here are my favourite.

Run Keeper- Tracks your run (or walk or other workouts if you manually enter it) and lets you know your pace, calories burned, distance, etc. I have found this one HUGE for motivating me to run faster and longer. 

Nike Training Club- If you're afraid of the gym, this one is great to do! If you have dumbbells, you can do most workouts. They have a ton of workouts which you can customize to what you want to achieve (get lean, get toned, get strong) and they have 15 minute workouts which focus on a specific area. I love to pair these up with cardio at the gym. The great thing about this one is it doesn't lock you to the gym. In the summer you can do it at a local park!

Blogilates- I've been doing Casey's videos on youtube over the past few years and she is amazing! She's so energetic and encouraging that it's actually fun to do. She created an app which organizes the videos so well.

My Fitness Pal- This one is a calorie counter. I know for some people, this does not work. But again, I'll reiterate that I'm sharing what has worked for me. Normally I've been an all or nothing girl when it comes to dieting. I've gone off sweets for a month and then went on sweet overload for two months. This app has helped me find balance. I actually learned that I can eat in moderation. And the great part is this links up with run keeper, so if I went for a long run, those calories would be added to my daily total and I would make sure I'm eating enough for the day. This one also helps me be accountable to what I put in my body…when you know you have to put it in, you're more likely not going to devour the entire bowl of icing.

I hope these tips have been helpful to you. I'm only an amateur athlete so please, comment below what works for you and keeps you on track!!

xo,

s.s.♥.

BUY MY WEDDING DRESS

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If you're a newlywed gal, you've most likely been faced with the choice to sell your wedding dress or keep it. Perhaps you have a major big closet to store it in. Perhaps you like to try it on from time to time (no judgement…). Perhaps you think your daughter will wear it one day. If you can relate to those three things, then you should keep your dress. But me…well I don't have a large storage closet (my dress takes up a third of it), I haven't tried it on since I wore it that beautiful day and I wouldn't bet on my future daughters wearing my dress (poufy princess dresses aren't everyone's cup of tea). 

I know I'm biased but I ADORED my dress. There are not many times where you can get away with dressing like a freaking disney princess. The moment I put it on, I knew it was mine. It was magical and it wasn't out of my price range (here's a tip all you dress hunting brides to be…don't try dresses on that are out of your price range)! It was super comfortable and even though it was quite large, I was able to go in a rowboat, climb a tree fort and jump rope (oh those crazy things those wedding photographers make you do…jk we had the best photographers and you should hire them..love you ameris!)

The time has come for someone else to experience the magic (and for my storage to grow..ha). I had the best day of my life in this dress, now it's time for someone else to. So if you're looking or know someone who is looking, you can find it on usedvic here! (And no judgement if you pull a Liz Lemon and buy it with no man in sight…it is an exceptional deal...)

all photos by AMERIS

Ah, I'll never get sick of reliving that day. 

stay gold,

s.s.♥.

TOMATO BASIL SOUP WITH ROASTED GARLIC

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Our church is in the final week of the 21 Day Challenge. This is the fourth time we've embarked on this journey and it has been amazing. Our pastor challenged us to join the challenge by fasting and praying for God to move in 2014. I absolutely love this because it's all about drawing near to God. In the past I've done the Daniel Fast (eating fruits, vegetables and whole grains only), full fasts (juice and water only) and partial fasts (i.e. no sweets).

For personal reasons this year I'm doing a partial fast combined with a few days of full fasting. Already I've sensed a closeness to God that I haven't felt in awhile. Another thing that has helped me draw closer to God is fasting "the scroll". Oh you know the scroll...the "I don't know what to do in this moment so I'll just scroll through instagram, twitter, facebook...oh look thirty minutes have gone by.."  Yeah, I fasted from that and it's been so FREEING. I'm hardcore addicted to my phone so it's nice to break the addiction for a few weeks. I've already noticed two things 1. I'm way more productive 2. my iphone battery lasts almost the whole day! But one thing is for sure, I so miss looking at pretty pictures on instagram and being in the know of all the Christian celebrities I follow, ha. If you have questions on fasting, check out this website or leave a comment below!

So I made some soup for you! Actually that's a lie. James made some soup for you. He's made it the past two Sundays and it is delish. He modified the original recipe to make it vegan. (Just use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth all you Daniel fast peeps….ps…here is the original recipe which we've adapted)

happy wednesday!

xo,

s.s.♥.

WINTER FITNESS

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Winter + fitness usually don't end up in the same sentence for me. I haaaaate being cold. Absolutely, stinking hate it. I grew up being forced to play soccer (as probably all Italian-Canadian children do) from the age of 5 until 13. I switched to baseball as soon as I could. Running around at night and playing games in ice rain didn't really appeal to 13 year old me. 

I picked up running about 7 years ago. There have been times I've been hard core at it and also times where I've been extremely lazy about it. Spring and fall are when I'm usually on my game. In the summer, I'm usually too hot to really push running (did I mention I don't like being too hot either? Diva, I know) and winter, well in winter I like to hibernate and eat. 

This past year has been a bit different though. After coming back from India in late August, I realized I needed to make a change. I had had an emotional year (hello first year being married!) where I partook in much emotional eating and not enough exercising resulting in me gaining weight. I decided right then, that I was going to make some changes. I started running again and watching what I was eating and in a couple months I had lost 10lbs. Winter came and I pushed through. I'm so thankful we live in a city where it doesn't snow (except for the picture above, where I realized that running in -10 is the absolute worst idea ever). I admit, when it's pissing rain outside the last thing I want to do is run but to counteract my laziness, James and I got Y gym passes. 

It's been a dream of mine to run a half marathon and I'm going to do it in May at the Oak Bay Half! With this goal in mind, I know I can't afford to not run this winter. I have no excuses. So I'm vowing to keep up fitness through these winter months! Who is with me? 

stay gold (not cold),

s.s.♥.

DINING ROOM INSPIRATION

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image // style by emily henderson

James and I have been in our place since we got married in August 2012. I absolutely love our place. It did take a little while to find though, as all good gems seem to do. Before we got married, I lived in a basement suite with my sister for two years. It was a super cute place and affordable but I hated how we had hardly any natural lighting. After that, I vowed not to only live in a basement suite with ideal lighting (those places do not exist!)

In the final stages of wedding planning, James and I started looking for places. I searched and searched and searched. We went to a few places, nothing really stood out. Everything seemed overpriced and lacked character. I was getting a wee-bit (ok, majorly) stressed out but had to trust that God would provide. And He did. I found an ad that said "Cook St. Village, 1 bdrm, South facing, d/w, balcony."  There were no pictures, just a name and phone number. I called, got through and the next day, we saw our future suite. 

We live in the top floor of a character apartment building in Cook St. Village. Starbucks is literally a 1 minute walk away and we can see Beacon Hill Park from the balcony off our bedroom! I'm able to run along Dallas Road as much as I want. The suite is quite large for a 1 bedroom and includes a large dining room/ studio space for James....dream. And the natural light...ahhhh, it's south facing, so as long as there's light outside, at least one room is lit in our house. I'm in love and am not planning to move until we buy a house...one day...

Like all renters, we're faced with the dilemma to either paint the space and make it look amazing or do as minimally as possible and save up for a down payment. I'd like to think that we've met in the middle. Obviously I'm not going to live in a house where we don't make any effort. I like to have people over, so I want them to feel comfortable. But we've only painted one wall (our chalkboard dream wall behind our bed) and don't plan on painting anymore. 

I've tackled quite a few rooms but I'm at a standstill for our dining room. It used to house a small round table and my desk but we sold the table (because hello, i'd like to have the option of having more than 3 people over for dinner!) and moved my office space into the living room. The room now remains bare with a table (James found it for $30 at a garage sale) and two chairs.

As you can see, the lighting is great! But when it's not light outside, our only light fixture that's in the centre of the room (on the other side of the room is James' studio so the light fixture is between the studio and dining room, not ideally above the table) doesn't add much light at all. Because we don't want to install a new fixture, I'm on the hunt for lights or a lamp that will add a warm glow. I want to make the space cozy but not too cluttered. I'd also love to add some plants, a rug under the table, mismatched chairs (maybe tie in a matching colour), a dining bench, and some wall art!

I'm loving the pink chairs and dining bench in the image on the left. The plants and wall art add that perfect touch to the image on the right.

image // apartment 34

So I'm on the hunt to jazz up my dining space. We're hitting ikea up at the end of the month, so hopefully I'll find some treasures there! If you have any suggestions to make my space look pretty, please let me know!

xo,

s.s.♥.