Yoga for the Holidays

Hello friends! I am sorry for the confusion yesterday and the lack of an actual post. This weekend we were at my uncle's wedding in Miami and I came home on Sunday with a terrible bug. Thankfully, the hubs came home from his film shoot Monday night and promptly took me to the doctor Tuesday morning- you know, since being ill means I am automatically turned into a baby who is capable of doing nothing for herself. Now, I have been on antibiotics for for a day and already feeling better! But, that does mean yesterday was a haze of not caring about anything other than sleep, water, tissues, and food.

Today though, we have two fantastic yoga sequences that I did last week and absolutely loved. The first was completed after a short run and the second was done before bed after the wedding Saturday night. I absolutely loved the sequence before bed. It was the perfect way to finish off the day. After the wedding, my cousin, grandma, and I went back to the hotel and found ourselves tired but not tired enough to fall asleep. To help this, Alicia and I did the evening yoga sequence that was only about 20-minutes long but did the trick. Afterwards we were refreshed and ready for bed. Neither of us remember falling asleep, but we do not remember being awake for long. It was a very good night's rest.

Yoga for Core 30-Minutes

Yoga for Core 20-Minutes

The next morning neither of us wanted to get out of bed, so Alicia asked if there was a good online yoga sequence we could do while still in bed. I found this one by Tara Stiles. It is 4-minutes long and tricks you so good at the end. I would suggest not watching it ahead and doing it tomorrow morning. Tell me what you think of her trickiness!

Bikram Yoga Flow Online

We cannot (or will not) heat our homes to 105 degrees, but that does not mean that we cannot do the Bikram yoga sequence in the comfort of our own homes. If you are considering trying Bikram or Hot Yoga (which I completely recommend) but do not want to get to the class without any idea about what you are getting yourself into, do this first. This is a full Bikram class video. Unfortunately, it is just the audio instruction, but you can find a full list of the poses here.

I have found Bikram to be much easier in the heat, you just have to let your mind get over the fact that the body is hot. After the first few standing poses things become easier as the body looses up and is able to easily flow from one pose to the next. Sure, the heat may be a bit intimidating, but that is where this handy video comes in. If you are not quite ready for the heat or are traveling but want to get your Bikram flow in, you have this instead.

It's not as good as the real thing and I would highly recommend finding a great Hot Yoga Studio in your area, but for those who do not have or do not want that option, this will do the trick just fine. And, I end this week's posts with ^that ^ massive run on sentence. Yay for a day in Greece and throwing grammar to the wind!

Oh, and if you just want a hot yoga power flow at home, this one is pretty great too!

Who do You Love?

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Happy Friday! Today and tomorrow, both the hubs family and mine are celebrating the life of his grandma, Mary Lu. Mary Lu passed away earlier this week at the age of 101. She would have been 102 in just about one month. What an incredible lady and a fantastic example of what a peaceful life and a few vitamins can do! Although we are sad that she is no longer with us, we are just so happy for the amazing life she has lived.

At 101 years, she lived through the Great Depression, two World Wars, the end of segregation, and more inventions than I care to list. Wow! She also lived to see her two sons become seriously incredible people who raised some seriously incredible people who then also raised some seriously incredible people. And, just last year, she got to see her first great-granddaughter get married. What might be even more incredible than all of this is the love she had for her family and the love her family had for her.

I can still remember the first time I met her. She was visiting from California and I went over to the hubs house (then just a boyfriend) at the age of 17. I wore jewelry I thought she would like (we have always had similar taste in jewelry) and was so nervous. From the moment I met her, she calmed my nerves and made me feel welcomed. Since then, we have had so many conversations and times together that I will never forget.

Mary Lu was definitely not just a grandma, great-grandma, or mother for those in her family, she was that for everyone she met. One of our good friends recently explained her as a lady that was so sweet, but with a bit of spice. How perfect. Her independence was vital to her and up until her last few days, she was walking, making her own meals, and helping anyone she could. And, chances were pretty high that if you helped her, she would thank you and tell you her age. Hehe, that was the best! Most people would gasp or just look seriously surprised. Once time, there was a store clerk who asked to see her ID. Seriously, who would not enjoy that?

I know this is not the most exciting post in the world, but thank you for sticking with it to now. Grandparents are one of those parts of life that we are just so gifted to have, and talking about how blessed I am to have mine is something that could go on all day. Instead though, here are some pretty great things about grandparents!

Have you seen this? Such cool grandparents

Are your grandparents on Facebook? My Grandma is. She is also on Instagram so she can see/show pictures of the grandkids.

Stories that show how sweet grandparents are

Texts from grandparents.

My Three All Time Favorite YouTube Workouts

It is no secret that I love working out at home, or that I use YouTube to facilitate that love. YouTube has been a workout go-to of mine since long before P+K started. This makes it even more surprising to me when I meet someone who does not know YouTube does workouts... Let alone good ones. Yes, YouTube offers hours of ridiculous cat video entertainment, but it can also do some good.

Over the years I have tried, literally, hundreds of YouTube workouts; here are three that keep me coming back. These workout vids get me gym-going, personal training kinds of results without having to wash my face or worry about traffic, packed out machines, or giving up my hermit-like home love.

Oh, I should also say that the original thought was to put these in order from favorite to third favorite. But really, we are lucky I was able to decide on my top three in the first place. All of these are as good as the other, but may be used for a different end goal.

Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred

Ali K Hot Yoga Warm-Up

Cassey Ho Legs on Fire