I am a firm believer that New Years Resolutions are a cop out.  You can change your life at any point in the year, no need to wait for the ball to drop.  However, I do think that there is no harm and pushing the reset button, especially when lots of other  people are going to be doing the same thing.  Safety in numbers. I don’t have one specific thing I want to change, but in general I would like to have a healthier, more active, organized 2012.  I want to save money, eat healthier, be neater, stay very active, and commit myself professionally.

motto on the wall of tranquil space

I am proud to say that over my 6 day break from work I have actually done a very good job with pretty much all of my goals, except saving money.  I reorganized my closets, ate oodles of whole foods, tried new exercise methods, and found some studying materials for the GRE.  Heres a peak of what I did over break to lead a rounder, happier, more focused life:

Restaurant in Tysons

I went to Season 52 with my good friends Anne Carlyle and her cousin Jane.  This restaurant is so yummy and, better yet, everything on the menu is seasonally inspired and under 475 calories.  We all shared a tomato flatbread and then got our own salads.

the flatbread tastes like a little cracker with tons of fresh toppings

ahi tuna salad

The next morning when I was in DC I worked out in Anne Carlyle’s gym.  I normally hateeee treadmills, they make me feel like a gerbil, but for some reason I was able to crank out a quick 4 miler and then do some bodyrocking which I have recently become obsessed with.  I was then was treated to a healthy breakfast from the hostess herself, of pumpkin oatmeal and greek yogurt spinach smoothies, which we love! Remember this post?

cinnamon and brown sugar

spinach, blueberries, strawberries, greek yogurt, and spinach- cheers to health

After watching hefty amounts of E! and nibbling away at our breakfasts we attended a Vinyasa yoga class at Tranquil Space Yoga.  I have a love hate relationship with yoga.  I love the idea of it, I love the way I feel after a class, but during it I am very bored and think it is monotonous.  Yoga is for people who aren’t fidgety and don’t constantly have an internal dialogue playing in their head.  I have such a hard time not thinking, clearing my head, and avoiding messing with every little itch or hair that has fallen in my eyes.  I think any yogi I would talk to says that is why I should practice more. After the marathon I have been pretty inflexible, so I am going to make stretching out a bigger priority to prevent injury for any races in the future.  I love how open and calming the experience is, and how all different kinds of people with weird little bodies all bend together.

lululemon party

For lunch we went to Sweet Greens, ever been?  I haven’t found one of these in RVA but it is a really nice salad bar with so many different options I had a terrible time choosing.  I ended up getting the Chick-P which was wonderful after my two workouts of the day.

so many veggies!

My healthy detox in DC made me feel so great I kept it going when I got back to RVA.  I bought a groupon for Local Barre and went to a class with my friend Corey, because we are dying to have ballerina bodies.  The class is very a non impact body weight work out that blends ballet with pilates.  It takes lots of concentration but makes me feel graceful and pretty!

ballerinas in the making

Even though I was super sore, on New Years Eve the Spring Marathon Training Group had an 11 mile run, what better way to ring in the New Year than a long workout! I am so glad I did it and the weather was AMAZING, Katherine and I were just shocked as we had brought mittens and hats but it was 65 degrees!  I think it is a sign from nature (and the psychic remember) that 2012 will be a great year!  The next day, even though I was a wee bit rough feeling from the night before, I went on a”fun ride” bike ride through the fan.

fellow rider friends at the carilion

We rode around for 3 hours on this beautiful day, stopping to play whiffle ball and inspect different things.  Everywhere we went the whole town was in a good mood, wishing us a Happy New Year!

we biked through Hollywood Cemetary

it was a bow tie ride...i didn't get the memo

we won

HAPPY NEW YEAR!