be happy

Fitness Friday no. 16

| The Bee Life

So two weeks ago, I was feeling a bit discouraged with my fitness progress as I had quickly fallen into a slump, which seems to be the routine and pattern lately.  Not to mention some life changing events have gotten in the way, i.e. new job. New job, means new stresses, and new stresses (for me) means, no time, a messy house, eating junk food, not working out, breaking out, and being worried and sick to my stomach. Even just putting my 2-weeks in was stressful, and the weird limbo period you’re in while your still at your job, people seem to look at you different and treat you different. It was a weird thing! People who had been so friendly just the few days before they knew I was leaving. Strange, strange. Can anyone else relate?

The point I’m trying to make is, in those stressful, life changing moments, it’s hard to focus on ourselves and take care of ourselves, especially if we don’t realize we need it.  And everyday might not be a routine, more or less the routine becomes more of a roller-coaster. 14Here are my tips for those stressful/busy times and ways to take a moment for yourself, since it’s often really hard to just do that.

  1. Get a mani or pedi, or both! This is only an hour or so, of dedicated YOU time. It’s relaxing and a time to take care of yourself and it’s also something that can easily be pushed. So take the time and do it!
  2. Take a walk. Sometimes the most we can get in the day is a quick 15-30 minute walk, if that. So take the time in the middle of the day or right when you get home to go for a walk – having a dog is an extra excuse because you’re not just helping yourself, your getting your pooch some extra fitness time too!
  3. Let loose. In whatever way that means to you.  It might not necessarily be the healthiest, but it’s all about balance! So whether it be a night out with friends, sleeping in, head banging to your favorite song, staying up a little later than normal, or a day of partying (to celebrate the Cavs first NBA Championship) – it’s OK to let loose and have a little fun to distract from everything else going on in life.
  4. Just breathe. And remember that everything is going to work out. Change is scary, and if we were all OK with change then nothing would ever stay the same and nothing would be challenging for us.
  5. Sweat it out. Sometimes the best distraction is a kick ass workout or a long run, focusing in the moment on what’s trying to be accomplished and pushing your self physically through a challenge can be what your mind and body really need.

It’s all about balance. But first we need to realize that we need to take a moment and relax, breathe and take care of ourselves.

Cheers to Friday and a long weekend!

Weekend Recap – Family Wedding

| The Bee Life

This past weekend was full of family as we celebrated my cousin Tim’s wedding to his long time girlfriend, Morgan! So here is a quick recap of the weekends events.

Friday, we both took a half day in hopes that we could head out mid-afternoon and get down to Columbus early evening… but I had a little too much on my to-do list before that happened. Running around making stops, getting an oil change in, and then forgetting about our call with a wedding planner that I was expecting to have while we were already in the car, pushed back our leave time by about 2-hours, oops! We dropped Moz over to our neighbors, and then finally hit the road and got into Columbus a little after 7pm.

Dinner reservations were at 8:30pm, whenever my family has a weekend of any sort together (especially weddings) it is ALWAYS jammed packed with family dinners, activities, workouts, you name it. So we headed to Bravo! Cucina Italian – my first time there, andddd I know it’s a chain, but I wasn’t impressed at all. Service was slow and the food wasn’t that great. Which only led me to snack on Doritos later in the evening. *smiles* After dinner was over, some people went to the casino and others headed back to the hotel.  We stopped and grabbed some adult beverages to hang out at the hotel with my parents, Nate and Kiera.

Saturday morning we slept in until 9:30!! We haven’t slept in, in so long, it was so amazing! We got up and headed to Starbucks and then came back to workout and hang with the family. The hotel had a basketball court so everyone was hanging out between there and the pool while I sweated through a 45-minute boot camp workout, luckily my cousin Niki joined halfway through! From there we headed to lunch at First Watch, yum! (Avocado toast for days, please and thanks.) By the time we got back after lunch it wasn’t long before we had to start getting ready for the wedding.

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The ceremony; was so nice and the vows were beyond sweet. Tim and Morgan have been together for nearly 11-years, not to mention living long distance, so this has been a long time coming. My cousin Tim is a bit more reserved than the rest of us, so it was so awesome seeing him pull out his handmade scroll with his vows and reading them with so much love and truth in what he was saying.  After they said their vows, and kissed the rest of the night was about celebrating!

Tim & his adorable Mom
Morgan coming down the aisle
The kiss!
The send off – big smiles.

The reception was at La Scala Restaurant, which had a back room for the reception area and was the perfect size to accommodate everyone. The staff was great catering to everyone and we had our own private bar in the back which worked out perfectly too! Although it took some tweaking for the mixed drinks, since I’d like to say my family is a bunch of alcohol snobs, it would’ve been easier if we could just get behind the bar, ha! The dinner was served family style, which I really liked. It was a mix of lasagna, two types of chicken, green beans, and mashed potatoes, with salad and bread as the starter. Yum!

Forever Wedding Date ❤
Our Table!
Kiera & Nate
Their cake!
Most of the Fruit Loops!

Once the dancing finally started, the rest of the night was toast (unless a country song came on, then the dance floor was nearly cleared out, yet the DJ still insisted on playing his set-list).  Everyone tore up the dance floor and definitely got a second workout in. I think B danced the most out of all the weddings we’ve been too together, it was so much fun! Of course, there were a few breaks for shots – although we had to order them in the main restaurant, so it was funny to see the bartender mix up 25-lemon drops and a rowdy crowd come into the main area demanding shots.

B and Tim
The First Dance
Jordan and I cutting a rug
Me and Niki
Hampel Ladies
With the beautiful bride
Final Dance!

It was a great time,  and family drama was at a fair minimum, minus a few situations which I am currently ignoring for the time being. *smiles* You could tell how happy Tim and Morgan were and how excited they were for their big day and commitment to each other. They’re truly just a sweet couple. It’s always a great party when we are welcoming another person into our family, needless to say everyone was hurting the next day.

We had a family brunch Sunday morning so everyone could see each other one last time before we all went our separate ways, a family tradition for wedding weekends. B and I were back home by 12:30 and got our little pune baby back (Moz). She was exhausted from her weekend with her friend Maybel! We were exhausted too, so it was a lazy afternoon.

Cheers to another beautiful wedding and fun weekend!

Five.

| The Bee Life

Today marks 5-years with B.

5-years ago, I was a nervous wreck, yet so excited to go out on this date with this guy who I had hit it off with the weekend before on an advertising competition trip (nerdy, I know). We were meeting up after my night class and were going to grab a drink at a local spot near campus, yet not your typical college bar, it was called Corks (which is sadly no longer).  We met-up in the Communications building and walked down to Corks, we sat down and literally talked the night away, nonstop.  We had so many similarities growing up, it was crazy! We eventually ended up going to a different bar, because we realized we should probably grab some food, so we went to the Viking Tavern and got some chicken tenders, the talking and drinking continued, although still very casual and intently talking about everything. We then wound up at yet another campus bar, Becky’s and ended the night with some PBR’s.  I think we talked well into the wee hours of the morning, until we finally parted ways.  We made plans to go for an 8-mile run the next day since we were both training for a half-marathon. Yes not your typical second date. 247195_10150253120955692_5463259_n
And since that day, 5-years ago, it was pretty much the end to the beginning, we never looked back, we never questioned our relationship, it just was. B said in his proposal love letter to me that he knew that first weekend at the advertising competition that I was the one. I knew he was the one after our first date.

B has forever changed my life, and makes me a better version of myself each and every day – we challenge each other and we love each other and it’s the perfect balance and flow of us.  I’m excited to see what this next year will bring leading up to our wedding and next stage in our lives, he’s the best partner and teammate.12141595_10153635960645692_3058254985265414869_n
So here’s to the next five… fifteen….twenty… forty… forever years ahead of us.

Throwback Thursday

| The Bee Life

Queue the ewwy-gooey-lovey-dovey post:

During this time of the year I tend to get a bit sentimental, as the end of this month and beginning of next highlight a time in my life, years ago that has forever changed me, when I met B. And last week rang some more nostalgia at a work event for B, since it had been the fifth year, and the first work event we were engaged at. Which channeled back to all the work events I’ve gone to with him, especially when we first started dating.  We’ve come a long way since the pictures below, but it’s funny how some of the events and people at the events don’t change much at all. 522093_10150796993775692_1208026736_n
I love looking back at these old photos as they symbolize and depict the foundation of what we have today – which I wouldn’t trade for the world!

Fitness Friday no. 11

| The Bee Life

Okay, so I must admit, since the last Fitness Friday – when I was sharing my ongoing struggle of balancing, life, work and workout life, and my new goal of trying to focus a week at a time, I have come back with a vengeance!

Focusing one week at a time has been SO helpful.  The weekend before March 28th, I told myself that Monday, March 28th I was going to start my super expensive, boot camp classes that I got for Christmas.  Here is the kicker – the class times are a bit tricky for me, I either have to wake up early, leave work a bit early, or go super late and I can only go Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.  Not to mention, I had everything packed and ready for my first class… except my sneakers. I was so mad, but also determined that it wouldn’t let that stop me! In a panic and on a limb I reached out to my girlfriends at work, luckily one had a pair in her car and was my size. (Thanks, A!) Fitness Friday 11 - the bee lifeSo after overcoming my first day obstacles, and making it to the class (and nearly throwing up) I looked at my scheduled and made it happen the rest of the week, whether it was after work or before I actually got my butt out of bed! Woo-hoo! So needless to say, the classes have been kicking my butt – but it feels great to be in a routine again and really working at it… I just need to start adding in a little more cardio to supplement.

Although my classes are strength, circuit training, they do include some cardio, however not as much as a full 40-minutes on the elliptical or a long run.  Adding in some extra days of sweat and burned calories is what I need to start doing in order to crank everything into gear. Now that I’ve got 2-solid weeks under my belt, I am going to try and start adding in a little extra in my in between days, but still focus one-week at a time.

Here are some suggestions on finding focus and balance in your workout routine:

Pick Strength Days: Don’t try and fit everything into one day, you’ll get burned out and the workouts won’t be as strong or impactful. I am considering my boot camp days my strength days, Monday,  Wednesday, Friday and Saturdays.  Planning and focusing on my strength time in my 1-hour classes allows me to help focus and dominate the workouts while not getting overly fatigued.

Pick Cardio Days: Find days to contribute to cardio, I am a firm believer in ‘rest days’ so I don’t need to workout 7-days a week, but adding in two-days of cardio for at least 30-minutes will help me pick up and get to my goals. It’ll also add to the current workouts I’m accomplishing in my strength days.

Plan Ahead, Make It Happen:  It gets as granular as setting out your work-outs clothes the night before.  Having these ready to go in the morning eliminates slacking, and putting off getting ready and out the door. I’ve also been blocking my calendar to accommodate for my workouts and planning to see when I can make the next one happen. If you don’t make it happen, be sure to have a Plan B – but also remember that your Plan B is your last chance, there is no skipping that!

Feed the Addiction: After you’ve gotten into a routine, whether it be two weeks or ten, you are going to start loving how you feel (because I sure do). So feed into it, and keep going, don’t stop even if obstacles come!! I look forward to getting to my workout and challenging myself and I want more, and I want to see more results.

Happy Friday!! Have any of you focused one-week at a time?

Attic Update – 8 months

| The Bee Life

Exciting updates with this post on our biggest home renovation to date! Our attic turned master suite-oasis, and ohh boy did we out do ourselves this time. Attic Update Month 8 - the bee lifeSo I’m probably getting you all excited for a big reveal, sorry folks, not yet. But I do promise a few sneak peaks! The perfectionist in me has a few things that still need to be purchased and a DIY that is going to make a big difference – so until then we will all have to wait for the big reveal!

We are up and living in our master suite, and it’s awesome! It came out exactly how I pictured and more! Not to mention our second floor is now fully open to family and friends for a weekend visit. Now for the sneak peaks…   Our DIY mini barn door, strictly decorative to cover an uglier door heading into a storage space. We used old gas pipe we had found in the demo and threw together the rest!  If you’re interested in the specifics, leave a comment below, but I saw inspiration for a full size door and we just figured out the measurements for our custom piece.

Textured wallpaper on the stair backers. We had started with deciding to paint the backs white and the tops grey, but the white backs just weren’t cutting it. Adding this pre-glued wallpaper was beyond easy and  an amazing upgrade. Totally worth the $20 and 40-minutes after work!

A little sneak of the gallery wall! I am loving the way it’s turning out, however it still needs a few extra final touches! I am a firm believer that you can’t rush these types of projects you have to look and do what speaks to you and the wall. (Nerdy, I know)

Our little seating area!! Obsessed with these chairs. Obsessed with these pillows. Still need a few final touches like a light for the side table, a foot ottoman and maybe a few other pictures.

So yes, we’ve been busy! A lot of this was wrapped up a few weekends ago, the day B proposed we had put a solid 10 hours in, since then we’ve been able to dial back, slow down and work on the smaller things as we can- oh and enjoy the finished product!

Stay tuned!

Wednesday Reminders – Firsts

| The Bee Life

There are definitely times when I am especially reflective and thoughtful on specific moments in time or memories and in this instance, some firsts with B.  Four years ago marked our first weekend getaway together and our first Valentines Day.  I don’t know why this year I am so gooey over V-Day, it seems to vary year-to-year and for no particular reason… although in college my girlfriends and I threw a V-Day Sucks Party. *smiles*

Anyways… as I was saying, four years ago was our first weekend getaway to the cabin, which had gotten bombarded with snow, so much that it was up to my knees! There isn’t a whole lot to do in the middle of no-where, so we played a lot of scrabble and ate pizza and even took a stroll out in the snow.  It was a fun weekend away doing a whole lot of nothing, which makes it feel like you have all the time in the world.
Our first Weekend Getaway 2012 - the bee lifeOur first weekend getaway - the bee life (1)Our first weekend getaway - the bee life (2)I love looking back at this first trip to the cabin, because it’s become a tradition and our getaway, a place to get away from all of the daily noise. I also love looking back, because I’m thankful (and sometimes in shock) for the journey that’s gotten B and I nearly to five this year. I think that’s why I am especially reflective this year since we’re hitting a small milestone, yet still a milestone in my book!

 

Fitness Friday no. 6

| The Bee Life

We are 29 days into the new year and if you’ve joined along, 29 days into our first 30-day focus.  My focus items included, limit times we eat out, do barre 5-days a week, walk Moz on the weekends, no sweets, and limit alcohol intake.

So how did I do? You’ll have to wait and see… Monday I will give my full 30-day run down, but until then, we still have a few days to finish strong and start looking ahead at the upcoming 30-days and some more fitness tips to help you (and me) succeed!

Fitness Friday 06 - the bee life - emilyboylan.com

    1. Treat Yourself – Regardless of how ‘successful’ you consider yourself to be these last 29 days, the fact that you tried and accomplished feats is something to be proud of! It’s OK to treat yourself, whether that’s having some of your favorite ice cream, buying a venti at Starbucks, or splurging on some wine and chocolate. If we deprive ourselves too much for too long, we might end up over indulging in a moment of weakness.  It’s easy to focus on the negative, we need to reflect and acknowledge more of the positive!
    2. Pump Up the Volume – With music! Take some time to make sure you have an awesome playlist for your workouts, this will keep you motivated from the start of your workout to the finish, not to mention a few dance moves in between sets or while you’re on a run.
    3. Prioritize Goals –  One of the perks of focusing on 30-days, is the focus! It’s also a time to prioritize your goals.  Is one of your goals, to be consistent with workouts, week after week? And another to loose weight? And another eat better?  If you’re like me and have endless amounts of goals, start small and prioritize – in order to accomplish X I need to do Y first… aka in order to loose weight, I need to maintain working out week after week, so that is my first focus goal. The rest will fall into place.
    4. Be Practical – Just like prioritizing goals, be practical in what you’re asking yourself to accomplish.  Are you jamming too much in and it’s resulting you to not succeed? It’s OK if you can only workout 2-nights a week and the rest has to wait for the weekend. I am realizing that right now, running has to wait for the weekends and I can focus on Barre and strength during the week given the time I have.  I’ve even come to realize that 30 or 40-minutes is better than nothing – so although it isn’t to the standards I’d prefer or would like, I need to make strides in the right direction.

    Here’s to finishing the first 30-days strong!

    Fitness Friday no. 5

    | The Bee Life

    Happy Friday! How is everyone doing with their 2016 fitness goals?

    I’ve been making slow progress. I signed up for Barre3 – which offers a plethora of online videos at a low monthly cost, and right now that’s exactly what I need. I’m enjoying the challenge and core building exercises, and I’m excited to keep it up once I start training for my 10-miler.

    So this week I want to focus on the “little” things that are just as important to your health and fitness, as the actual physical work.  What’s that? Maintaining your stress and positive energy.

    Fitness Friday 05 - the bee life - emilyboylan.com

    1. Confront It. If something or someone is bothering you, confront the situation. I think the word confront often has a negative connotation – but the way you approach the situation is key and doesn’t have to be negative or defensive. Clear your chest and speak your peace, the rest is out of your hands…

    2. Lose Control. Speaking of out of your hands, you can only control yourself, aka you cannot control others. So if you’ve spoken your peace, knowing you’ve tried, work on letting go of the rest.  You’ll thank yourself later!
    *Disclaimer: I know it’s easier said than done.

    3. Release The Stress. With exercise! Not food! Personally, I often crave some bad eatings when I am stressed or had a bad day at work – I find I have a small window to get motivated to exercise, but when I do pick exercise over the burger and fries I feel 10x better AND not fat!  Challenging your mind to pick fitness over food in those situations is half the battle.

    4. Stretch! I’ve mentioned this before; but since I’ve been stretching more I can’t get over how much I can feel it in my muscles and body and how much it helps.  It helps release all those stresses that get stored in our body from long days of sitting at a desk or standing on our feet. Try 10-minutes a day, I bet you’ll feel a difference.

    5. Reflect on the Good. It’s easy to fixate on the bad, how we didn’t work out, how we ate bad, the jerk at work… and it’s easy to overlook the good. Try writing down on a post-it at least one good thing that happened during your day and tuck it away in a jar, by the end of the year you’ll have a jar full of happy memories, that hopefully also helped you in the current moment – focus on the good. You can also bring this up with a roommate, spouse, or best friend at the end of the day and both share your “goods” of the day.

    Keep focusing on your 30-days there is still time to work towards your goals and build good habits!