Highlights of the Past Weeks

Today, I set out a promise to myself to be more devoted in my blog and update it as soon as I've got something interesting in hand. It's been weeks.. and hell did I realize.. it's been almost 2 months since I failed to update it. Poor blog. :'(


Anyhoo, allow me to give you a recap of the interesting things that happened from the past weeks.. err.. months. Well, I can say that I am proud of myself for being more active though I've been a tad bit careless with my diet. My advocacy for being slim has shifted to being more FIT and FAB while having FUN! LOL.


Our plans for starting out with a Yoga class finally happened and we tried the Ashtanga Yoga which involves synchronizing the breath with progressive series of postures. 


I can say that the Yoga instructor was patient enough to guide us all throughout the class. I love the ambiance and the view from the yoga rooms though my main concern was that the shower rooms are located near the swimming pools which are supposedly for the hotel guests only. We just sneaked out and pretended that we just finished swimming.

We were able to also celebrate my son's birthday at a private pool nearby and though it was a last minute reservation, we were able to score a really nice and affordable place.

The living room

A view from the pool

From L-R: Feline, Me, Carla, Neeca, Dawn, Cherry, Apol and Aly

Keifer, Feline and Faith having fun in the rain.

Munch time! :)

Also last June (if my memory serves it right), I had a 10k run at the UP Campus which took me for about an hour and 15mins to finish. Well, I know it's something I don't have to be proud of but at least a 5-minute improvement from the last was a good start. And considering the fact that I was too lazy to go for a good run before the actual "run". Hehe.

We were actually 30 minutes late but still managed to take a picture before running. Haha.

And finally after an hour or so... 

Then we head out to Banapple (which is a place known for their delish cakes) for some BIG breakfast.

Well definitely not me.. =P

We also spent the last weekend of June at Malvar Batangas with my hubby's family. His mom got a discount to one of the new hotels there so we've all decided to just spend some quiet family time and just catch up.

As you can see it, it seems like we're the only living guest in the hotel so it feels like we've exclusively rented the place. =P

Just as I thought we were the only guest, there was a birthday celebration held at the function area.

And yes you're not mistaken.. he did not forget to bring his dear PS3.

 We woke up with some really great sunshine! :)

This is the first time I heard JR's sister play the piano. As you can see, Keifer's her number one fan. :)

 A stop over at a nearby restaurant for lunch..

Well that pretty much covers the details of the past weeks I failed to update. Well there is one thing actually but I plan to create a well-deserved separate post about it. 

Last June 24, I joined e 5-week fitness boot camp that gives you a chance to experience all sorts of (well, most I guess) physical activities. From yoga to pilates, boxing, cross fit, trx, circuit training, running, etc. I'm on my fourth week now and it has been one of the greatest things that happened to me this year. It taught me how to push myself beyond my limits and enjoy exercising as a physical activity. I got to meet a lot of people who inspires me more to be fitter and healthier. I promise to share a separate post so I could share each particular learning I had from the very first day. :)

Talk soon! ;)
Einah

"One More Night" Maroon 5's new song

Don't you just find A.L. really hot on this video? Well I do.. though he'd look way HOTTER sans the shirt on. LOL. =D 

A dose of Saturday morning sunshine

Disclaimer: I came unprepared and I totally looked picture unworthy. I grabbed the first thing that caught my eye in the closet and decided to wear it. Totally uncool. :(

I had only about 3 hrs. of sleep since I was awoken by hubby telling me we need to do an ocular visit for Keifer's birthday. Can you just imagine! It was scorching hot outside and I didn't get to shower and put any powder nor perfume on, the only accessory I have are my sunglasses that only worsen my after-bed look. :(


Well, the little kiddo has been bugging us on spending his birthday at a resort nearby. Since June is fast approaching and summer trips hasn't ended yet, we wanted to ensure we can score a nice place enough for around 20-30 people. We're not actually planning anything fancy. We're just looking forward to spending time with the fam and just enjoying the summer before the rainy season starts. And I'm really crossing my fingers that the sun would be generous enough to shed us some sunshine.


A TRIP TO MOMARCO RESORT (Pililia Rizal)


The resort is ALMOST 2 hours away from home and I was privileged enough to steal some sleep while we're on the road. 

Away from the city and nestled behind the lovely mountains lies this new and (not so) discovered place.


Upon entering the resort, the first thing that you'll see would be a "mini" zoo. It was really small and had a few common animals. See that cage at the back??? That is the place baby!

You'll get to see this cute little parrot...

And a playground for the kids...

And I guess for the grown-ups too?? LOL.

Mama treated us for some ice cream which is totally weather appropriate. :)

After our little resort tour, we decided to jump to the next town to have lunch at this restaurant. 

I've read blogs and heard that people from the city are driving down here to see what the rave was all about. 

IMHO, I was a bit disappointed. It was overrated and doesn't really portray the FLOATING restaurant kind of thing. Well, except for the lovely view of the Laguna Lake.

And the trees surrounding the place.

Honestly, the place looks way better in photos...

Their service was quite slow but I can say that it somehow gives justice to the fact that the sea foods were fresh, or tasted fresh.

That coconut juice is the bomb man!!! :)

I don't know how they cooked the shrimp but Keifer almost finished the entire serving plate and had to go back for a round 2. 

That dish down there... was delish! :)

We were home at around 2 PM and I decided to take an afternoon nap to fuel up for a run with hubby.


We started running past 5 PM and we were able to witness the sun to set. 


I'm not a romantic person but there is always something so lovely-dovey about sunsets. Do you agree with me? :) 

Our 3.55 miles (5.72 km) run took us more than an hour since JR's toes were not in a good condition earlier. It's been doing this strange thing everytime we go for a long run and I wanted to keep my pace with him just in case something terrible happens (Thank God nothing did!). I guess I need to drag him more often to do shorter runs every morning. 

Well tomorrow's gonna be a long day and we've got tons of things to do. We've been planning all week to do a general cleaning, which unfortunately or should I say "fortunately" did not happen because of Keifer's urgent request. I need to sleep now and re-fuel for another exciting Sunday. :)

Good night!

XOXO

Einah

Wednesday Lunch Date

Hello there! Yesterday, I had the privilege to go out for a decent lunch with my colleagues since our meeting was moved at a later time. As you guys know, I've been packing my own lunch lately to avoid eating anything that I consider "sinful". So yesterday was not that day due to 3 reasons - 1.) I woke up late and time did not permit me to do so 2.) We're running out of resources and our grocery shopping is still due this Saturday and 3.) I'm not in the mood for some cereals+almond milk+banana nor peanut butter+banana sandwich type of lunch. 


We were supposed to eat at Cravings where they offer a salad buffet and soup for 300php. Pretty cheap if you need to satisfy a starvation. But knowing how fickle-minded girls are, we had a last minute change of plans. We opted to eat at a Thai Restaurant for no apparent reason - well I guess because it's the very first restaurant that caught our eyes upon entering Eastwood mall.  We opted to eat at My Thai Kitchen, just a little restaurant with a couple of customers (probably because it was too early for lunch that time). The place is not so fancy and it's just the right place that would offer you a taste of Thai cuisine just when you needed it. Their cheap price gives justice to a limited menu.

I ordered for Vegetarian Pad Thai and Pal See Sahai since they were the only dish free of any meat.

Nothing's really surprising with Pak See Sahai. It looks simple and taste just that. Stir fried tofu, bell peppers, onions and garlic - nothing special. :(

But I totally enjoyed the Vegetarian Pad Thai! It's delish and now falls under my comfort food list. I even tried saving half of it for dinner and it taste just as good as it had been when it was served to us during lunch time. Yum! :)

 Danzy, a devotee of of Pho Hoa's Pomelo Shrimp Salad, ordered  Yam So Oo (Pomelo Shrimp Salad) and Tod Man Pia (Thai fish cakes). She said she loved the fish cakes but finds the salad a bit odd because of the coconut milk. According to her, she'd still go for the salad in Pho Hoa.

Anne, being the only rice-eater amongst us, chose to have Khau Kluk Gapi. Thai's ever famous bagoong rice with sweet pork, egg and green mangoes. I don't think she enjoyed it as much as we did with our food. I didn't hear her make any good or bad comments so I came up with the conclusion that it wasn't that mind blowing either. I also saw her saving half of her dish for an afternoon snack.

If you'd ask me if I'd go back? I definitely would... just for their Pad Thai probably. :)

Anyway, I'm pretty excited for next week for I'll be enrolling for a Yoga Class with my dear friend.  But of course, the first thing that we did was to look for a class where both our crazy schedules would fit and find a place accessible to work. We actually plan to do it before work and get all pumped up! LOL!


After days for Yoga class hunting, we both agreed to take the Yoga challenge here....

Here's a link to their website: http://yogamanila.com/

Aside from the affordable rate they have for walk-ins - 500 PHP, the place is located inside a Class A mall so we're both expecting that the yoga and shower rooms are clean and spacious. Unfortunately I can't find a photo of their rooms so I'm crossing my fingers that they'll all meet my/our expectations. My friend and I agreed to take the 7:30 - 9:00 AM class since our work starts at around 11am. At least we still have 2 hours to fix ourselves and get our ass to work.

But of course, preparations are not complete without some Yoga mat....

This is the cheapest Yoga mat I came across with and it's only for 399 PHP. Got one for myself and one for Bless (my soon to be Yoga companion). Do you still need to ask what color I picked? Harhar. :D

I plan to invest on some good quality ones if I find myself liking it. I just don't want to purchase an expensive mat and and end up not using them. So cheers to a good start and preparation! :) I'm pretty excited and I can't wait to add another physical activity on my list. :)

1.) Running

2.) Hiking

3.) Boxing

4.) Yoga

So I guess that's all for today. 

Oh wait! I almost forgot about the pretty bouquet of flowers I got last Monday for a post-mother's day treat.

Don't they just look PRETTY? :) Giving flowers is not really my hubby's thing so I have to give the guy some credit for this. Thanks hun! I know you're secretly reading my blog. Haha.

I guess that's it for today. Got to sleep now coz' it's pretty late and I need to train for an upcoming run. Updates will be given on my next blogs. See yah! :)

XOXO

Einah

I Run for Integrity 10k - May 2012

My cuhrazee busy schedule left me with a frozen and outdated blog. And yes.. I'm guilty and felt like I have a lot to blab about. It would probably take me the entire night to tell you about the juicy bits so it would just be better to focus on the highlight of it all. 

I've been training like crazy for a couple of weeks and have been dragging myself to my boxing class to improve my strength, muscle tone and endurance. I run every other day and do at-home exercises in between if I'm not out boxing. Poor hubby thinks I'm losing my mind with all this healthy-living thingy! LOL! Well... believe you me, being physically active and following a strict vegetarian diet are on top of my goals the coming days.. and years perhaps. Open our fridge and see it for yourself! LOL.

 A peek of where I usually run every morning.

Aside from the 10k run I've been training for - self-trained that is, we're also planning to go on our 2nd hiking trip next week and these are the all reasons of my excitement and preparation. I now have a list of the things I needed (or wanted??) to buy (??) and do if I plan to make them as a part of my regular physical activity. After delving into the world of running and mountaineering, I think that the said list, or gears, respectfully deserves a separate post on this blog. :)

For the meantime, I'd like to share my accomplishment for today and the fruit of all my labor from the past week/s.

A 10k run usually takes me an hour and 50 minutes to finish so seeing a 30 minute difference from the last was already a fulfillment for me.

 "Running is never easy, no matter how much you do it, but that’s part of what makes it great. It’s always good to challenge yourself." quoted from Fannetasticfood blog

For a post-run treat, I decided to grab a large cup of Acai Supercharger to give me a boost of energy. From the word itself - SUPERCHARGER!! :)


Studies show that acai (pronounced ah-say-yee) are natural energy drinks that are rich in Vitamin C, D and E, fiber,  and antioxidants. Since the drink also contains a fair amount of soy milk, blueberries, strawberries and raspberries; it would aid in muscle repair after a strenuous activity and gives you enough intake of iron and calcium on a day's requirement. I think I forgot to mention that the drink has a whooping 420 calories!!! Hell yeah! I actually tried to save half of it for lunch to minimize the guilt. As if it would make any difference! LOL. 

And this is what I guiltlessly munch on for breakfast after shedding off 904 calories after running. Though I honestly got hungry right after 2 hours, which is totally not normal for me. Good thing I was able to still save half of my drink until I reached home.

Blueberry pancakes (with bluebarry syrup) and brewed coffee... with acai drink on the side. 

It's been a fun (but challenging) day and I'm really happy that all my effort are not gone to waste. I felt empowered and motivated to do better the next time! A couple of training might someday make me a third placer.. Heck!!! Or even a first placer! Hahahaha! Who knows man?! Might as well dream BIG right? LOL.

The body and foot massage we had earlier might keep me snuggled up in my bed for a couple of hours and I might have to skip my usual Monday run. I might have to resume on Tuesday and train myself for our upcoming hike. 

Here's a teaser of where we'll be hiking on Sunday afternoon.

More photos and writings next week. :)

XOXO
Einah