I LOVE BOXING!

(me and my wraps)

I just got home from kickboxing (can you tell) and it was AWESOME as usual! I think I prefer kickboxing classes to just boxing... only because I enjoy kicking the bag a lot! I can't wait for my boxing gloves to get in the mail on Wednesday. Anyways, I'm addicted and I've already noticed a difference in my waistline. It's really quite amazing. Everyone should try it! If you live in the PHX area, I go to Jab Fitness in Tempe and it's a great boxing gym to try. They have wraps and gloves you can use so you don't have to buy your own before you try it. I LOOOOOOOOVE it. I was getting so tired of just going to gym and this has been a great outlet. 

Since school is out and I don't start again till 31 May, hopefully I can bloog regularly again. I've been missing it loads and although things are still kinda busy with work and my new workout schedule, I am going to try harder. :) 

Annoying news/good news: Reese and I are still waiting on the possible move to Chile (annoying). It looks like he is going to meet the owner of the company he works for down there the second week of August. This works out great because if that all goes through and no dates are changed, Reese and I can both go down to pick up his brother, Wyatt, from Peru. So hold thumbs! 

Bad news/bad news. Reeses transmission is shot. POO MAN! I don't know much about cars, but I do know that the transmission is a major part and expensive if broken. So thats pretty stinky. BUT if I were to look on the good side, the whole time Reese has had his car he hasn't ever had a single issue with it. So I'm grateful for that. 

That's about all I have to say for now! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend- I know we did! 

Cheers!

Boxing + Healthy Eating

I have started boxing. It is so much fun. I don't think I could ever get into boxing with another person. I want to keep the few brain cells I have left... but hitting a bag is quite fun. And you burn loads of calories doing it. I am trying to slim down, and I have decided to document it on this blog. School is almost over which means I get a two week break before summer school starts, and I will start the documenting then! Between boxing, kickboxing, resistance training, bikram, and my new diet hopefully things will go back to where they belong. Literally. Plus Athropologie has some to-die-for costumes. And, it's going to be 100 (F) degrees next week which means its almost warm enough to swim! 

Let the slim-down begin!

*back to homework for now

Favourite Work-out

I get bored pretty quickly when it comes to work-outs! I can go a week or two doing the same thing and then I get discouraged because I don't feel like it's effective anymore! I up the weights and reps, but I think I start to get lazy. So, I have started cutting out work-outs from a magazine and putting it in a notebook. Every Sunday night, I look through the notebook and pick though the different work outs to create my own! I write them on a small piece of paper so I can have something to remind me for the first few work-outs. I learnt from Rachel, my mom's personal trainer, that its good to rotate through 3 different work-outs and to do 3 sets of each. I'm not big on just focusing on legs one day, arms the next... I like to do a full body work out every time! And thanks to this new system I have a favourite! Granted, I have only been doing it for a few days now, but I actually get excited to go sweat. 

Here's how it goes:

1. Elliptical: 10 minute warm up on the elliptical with the resistance on a 10

2. Modified Prowler Sprints: I start with a modified version of prowler sprints. I don't go to a fancy gym, so they don't have this actual piece of equipment, but I modify by using a 45-pound flat free weight. I push it about 80 metres up and down. I like these because they get my heart rate up and work my entire body!

3. Twist Tucks: I LOVE these! You get into a full push-up position with your shins resting on a medicine ball. Then you bend your knee's and bring them towards your chest, first to the left -roll back- then repeat and bring the ball to your right. I also like to bring the ball straight forward. You have to keep your upper body as still as  possible. I do 12-15 reps each time depending on how balanced I am feeling. 

4. Lunges on a step: I love this because, again, I feel that its a good full body exercise that keeps my heart rate up! I start with the 8-lb dumbbells up by my shoulders. I step up on the bench/step with my left foot, bringing the weights over-head, and bring my right foot up near my left knee. Then as I put my right foot back on the ground, i bring the weights back down to my side and bring my left foot behind me into a lunge. I do 8-10 sets on each leg. 

5. Plank: I like doing the plank for 30-60 seconds after the above exercise because I needed a filler in between those and the prowler sprints. I enjoy doing the plank the traditional way and on a medicine ball. I usually just switch back and forth. 

6. After doing 3 sets of each exercise I have been finishing my work-outs with interval training on the treadmill. I don't go crazy, but I usually sprint at around a 7.0-7.5 for 30 seconds to a minute, then walk/jog for 30 seconds to a minute. I also always have the treadmill elevated at 3.0 or higher. I have been trying to do this for 20 minutes and hopefully I will be able to up my time as I get fitter. 

*All pictures found via google images*

And thats my new work-out! Everyone should try it! xx

New Year: 2011

So far 2011 has been alright. After the crazy NYE party sleeping in was much needed! It didn't really feel like a new year. I hadn't really thought of what I wanted to work on for 2011 and thats OK because I  usually land up forgetting them by the end of January.

Anyways, when I managed to make it to church on time the first Sunday of the year I decided that would be a good resolution. I don't wake up late, I actually wake up with more than enough time for church. I just have a terrible habit of faffing around and loose track of time. So I would always make Reese and I late. So that is resolution number one of 2011: CHURCH ON TIME. So far, so good!

I know this is such a typical new years resolution for everyone, but it's to eat healthier and exercise more. I am not going to go on any dumb diet or say that I will never eat another carb again. Dumb and impossible. Unless you're just gonna eat lettuce, pretty much everything has carbs in it. I am trying to eat healthier carbs like quinoa and other whole grains and phasing out rice and pasta. I also am trying to eat less red meat and more white meat. So instead of mince meat, I'll use minced turkey instead. And yes, so far I haven't had even an ounce of condensed milk since the new year. Not that I am trying to cut out sugar... I'm just trying to cut out tooth-decaying sugars and eat more healthy sugars like fruit. And I think to say that I am going to go to gym 6 days a week every week would just be setting myself up for failure. So I am trying to go at least 4 times a week and work out for at least an hour each time. So resolution number two: HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE. Disclaimer: This does not mean I am going to stop eating coldstone or baking deliciously unhealthy foods in my beautiful christmas present from Mom and Dad Semanek, the kitchen aid mixer. I'm just going to eat the more unhealthier food in moderation. 

My third and final personal resolution (for blogger) is to finish my associates by the end of the year. Thanks to a two year break after high school, and a two year break after my first year of college.... I have yet to finish my associates. That is my hope for this school year. Of course, I want to finish with my bachelors- but I'm taking it one year at a time. No more two year breaks though! So resolution number three: FINISH ASSOCIATES.

Granted, I do have some other personal resolutions... but they're not as interesting as these. I asked Reese if he had any and I think the response was something like "I'm going to try not be as awesome to give other people the chance to be great". What a narna! 

Remember how desperately bored I was near the end of last year, before Reese and I went to Chile? Well thats gone out the window. Not that I am going to be too busy. I am currently looking for a nanny position. I do have a job, but its at a call center and I am not too sure I want to do that long term. I do so much better with little people than crabby old people. So no more desperate housewife. 2011 welcomes normal, busy, and not-a-waste-of-time Courtney!

Some things Reese and I are looking forward too in the next couple days/months is:

A. New cellphones

And B. Our own home 

Ok, so I could only dream of having it look like the above picture! But I am so excited to go condo shopping over the next few weekends... but we'll probably just land up renting. So I am excited to waste a couple Saturday's looking at condo's that we're not going to buy. 

Happy 2011 Everybody!

Exploring Santiago: Day 8

Wednesday was a really relaxed day. Since we had walked over half a marathon the day before I was quite happy to lay around and do nothing. It helped that it was the big Virgin Mary holy holiday too. Everything was closed and the streets were pretty empty.

This is how Reese and I spent most of the day:

(Thank you, self-timer)

I know, I know. Lazy bums! But seriously... there was nothing else to do and the last thing I was going to do was climb back up San Cristobal Hill to swat bee's in the hot sun. When Reese and I went to go find somewhere to eat lunch even that was a struggle. There wasn't even an icecream shop open in sight! (Then you know everything is closed in Santiago) Finally, after 30-45 minutes of walking around, we found a bar open. Figures right? A bar doesn't exactly scream come to church. Anyways, the food was surprisingly good. Again I can't actually be too surprised since so far everything we have eaten here in Santiago has been divine. Wait- except for Tuesday night's dessert. We got creme brulee and it tasted like salmon. Not even joking or exaggerating. It tasted like they made the creme brulee and then before they put it in the oven or whatever, they put some salmon flavoured drops in it. Gross hey? But other than that everything has been quite tasty. Reese got a Chilean hotdog and I got spaghetti. And as usual the complimentary bread, butter, and salsa. I have left no carb, sugar, calorie, starch, oil, veggie, or fruit untouched (except for beans and olives- gross). You can tell in my face. My cheeks are melting over onto my lips. It's really attractive. 

After lunch we went back to the hotel and assumed the day's position:

(Yup, it's the only picture I took of the day)



We did manage to go to gym. But I have a hard time really working out properly since I don't feel like walking or running since we do that most days, so the treadmill is out. And one can only be on the eliptical so long. Reese has figured out how to use the stationary bike as a weight, but it's too heavy for me. So I stand there lifting the water bottle up and down untill I get bored.

The rest of the day was spent watching TV, reading, and playing online. Luckily it seemed that a few restaurants decided to open up for dinner, so we were able to eat. Not that I needed it. We could have gotten dessert from the restaurant, but deemed it unnecessary since we have successfully gotten dessert at least once (if not twice) a day since we've been in Santiago.

Hopefully day 9 will be a little more entertaining!

Exploring Santiago: Day 7

On Tuesday Reese had to work most of the morning, so we decided we would walk/run up San Cristobal Hill in the afternoon. On our way, we stopped by a place called Natural Salads for lunch.

Look how massive this salad was! And it was only about $5 USD. I was only able to eat about 1/4 of it.

The bowl of salad in comparison to my face. It was really big, but still really yummy!

 Reese tried this weird orange soda. It tasted similar to South African cream soda, just the orange version. If that makes any sense!

And he had a chicken wrap for lunch!

It was about a 2 mile walk from our hotel to the base of the hill. We walked through a residential neighbourhood which was cool because we had yet to see what the houses here in Santiago look like. Of course, they are really green with lots of big tree's and plants. Pretty much all of the houses have fences or walls. Before we came to Santiago I looked up crime, etc and it seemed like there was just a lot of petty stealing. Along with the vandalism of course... And this is a wealthy area. So I am just assuming thats the reason for the extra security.

 Love the beautiful colours!!!

Posing by my favourite lamp posts! They lined both sides of the street. 

I tried to trick Reese into looking for a picture... It didn't work so well!

More pictures of some of the houses:

Reese and I decided this was our favourite house! With some work it could be quite stunning.

It would have to be major work- considering the gaping hole in the wall next to the balcony. But we loved the style!

And we finally made it to the base!

The start of our climb:  

Scenery from the way up:

On the top of the hill there was an outside service area for mass. Turns out, Wednesday is a big holy holiday day here in Chile where they celebrate the Virgin Mary. So we got to see the set-up for Wednesday's big holiday.

Behind each of the flower beds was benches.

The large crucifix next to the open service area.

And the statue we walked up 3.5 miles to see, the Virgin Mary. You can see her from the city, so I expected her to be a lot bigger. Not so much... But it was still worth it!

The nativity scene set-up for Wednesday's holiday. We think they were all wooden statues...

Baby Jesus was missing... chances are he probably would have gotten stolen if they left him there overnight.

 More of the nativity, stage, and benches:

Reese doing his best Mary pose:

The whole set-up. As we walked up the stairs I noticed a TON of bee's buzzing around. It has to be because of all the flowers... I would not like to be sitting there swatting bee's for an hour.

Another picture of the crucifix:

Signs telling people where the confessionals are were all over the place!

Close up of Mary and more views of the city:

Underneath the statue was a little room. The door was locked, but there was just an alter of sorts inside with murals on the wall.

And of course, we paid our dues!

I didn't realize just how big Santiago was till we stood on top of the hill. Unfortunately, you can't walk around the top... You are just stuck on one side. So no shot of the Andes. And there was quite a bit of smog in the air, so you can't see the mountains in the distance.

Lots of prayers, and so much wax!!!

We followed the confessional signs to find they pointed to a little church! There was also an icecream shop on top of the hill. I can't say I am surprised. We passed about 6 of them on our way up!

Self-timer picture:

There were about 6 stray dogs on top of the hill and one of them followed us all the way down. I was annoyed. You could see the bugs on him and his shedding hair. Gross. Reese named him Marcos and asked if we could bring him back tto the hotel. Uh, no thanks. And the most interesting thing we saw on our way back down was a man with a belly button ring. I would have gotten a picture, but that probably wouldn't have been appropriate.

And to entertain us on part of the walk back to the hotel, this handsome man. Reese called it a "skullit".



All in all we walked close to 12 miles straight on Tuesday. Needless to say Reese and I were absolutely exhasted. We came back to the hotel, showered, and then ate at a pizzaria for dinner. It was straight back to the hotel after that to relax until bedtime!