Yoga and Running: Part 2

Wednesday night's yoga class was incredible. An hour and a half of sun salutations, warrior poses, pigeon and inversions. I felt strong and at peace after a physically and emotionally exhausting first half of the week.

On another note, I finally broke through a wall and ran for 3.5 miles at an 8:58 pace this week! BIG SMILE! Until then, my quickest pace had been 9:26 and the fact that I am seeing such major improvement reminds me that all my hard work is actually working. And so, here is I am, inspired to write part 2 of my yoga & running posts.

As I wrote in part 1, yoga has been an important part of my life for many years. Once I began running, I found it to also be an incredible way to keep my body feeling strong and injury free while training for races. Here are two more poses that have really helped my running performance.

Eka Pada Rajakapotasana

(Pigeon Pose)

Eka Pada Rajakapotasana, or Pigeon, is a pose I practice just about every day. Since my hips tend to tighten significantly from running, I incorporate it into my morning wake up stretches, as well as my pre & post run practice. I completely credit Pigeon Pose with helping me overcome a painful bout of bursitis that almost prevented me from running this year's NYC Half. This pose stretches the thighs, groin, abdomen, chest and shoulders.

1. Start in downward dog and lift your right leg up in the air, keeping your foot flexed and your hips squared.
2. Bend your right knee and pull it forward to your chest, sliding it to meet your right wrist, and angling your right foot towards your left knee
3. Extend your torso forward and let it rest on top of your thighs, keeping your hips square
4. Your left leg should be actively extended straight in back of you, with your left foot flexed and the heel pointing towards the sky
5. Rest in this position and breathe 
6. Repeat on the other side

Elevated Pigeon with Quad Stretch

I'm honestly not sure what this pose is called, but it's a great way to get a deeper hip and thigh stretch. I almost always perform this pose together with pigeon on each side.

1. From Pigeon Pose, let your hands slide back towards your hips and push your fingertips firmly into the ground
2. Bend your back leg and take hold of that foot using the arm on the same side
   
3. Roll your shoulders onto your back, allowing your heart to open and melt forward
4. Look up
5. Your legs should be active. Do not let your torso sink into your pelvis. Instead, push your tailbone forward and lift your pubic bone off the ground. Your leg muscles should active pull towards one another, lifting you slightly from the ground.

Thanks again to Jessica for taking these pictures of my practice. I am so grateful to have you as a friend!

Namaste :)

Shop 4 A Cause 2

Get ready to bid on some truly great items all for a good cause! On her website Oh She Glows, Angela Liddon is hosting a silent auction featuring over 50 items up for bid. 100% of the proceeds benefit the Canadian Cancer Society and bidding begins at $20 Canadian Funds for each item.

Stop by her site today only to bid on fitness clothing, private yoga sessions, personal training packages, home baked treats, and even one of my necklaces pictured here! Just click on the Shop 4 A Cause 2 Image above for more information and to support this incredible cause. Kudos to Angela for organizing this important event!

Carrot, Apple & Grapefruit Juice (aka Creamsicle in a glass)

I'm not the kind of girl that will tell you never to eat a cookie or a piece of cake. I believe that life is for living and enjoying, and if you want to enjoy a piece of cake, so be it. Almost everything in moderation is healthy, for both your body and your mind. But I also majorly lack self discipline and find that for me, one piece of cake usually leads to eating the entire cake and that just leaves me feeling tired, crappy and really unhappy. It's not about losing weight or being thin, it's about feeling healthy, strong and clear headed. And junk food leaves me feeling just the opposite.

So whenever I'm in the mood for a sweet snack, I eat a fruit or make a juice to see if that satisfies my craving. The good news is, it usually does. By reducing the amount of processed junk food you eat, and as a result the amount of sugar, your taste buds actually adapt over time and you find that junk food is too sweet, and an apple or grapefruit starts to taste like candy.

The other day, I was waiting to meet up with some friends for brunch and had a major sweets craving. I looked in my refrigerator to see what I could throw together and found carrots, green apples, and a nice large grapefruit on hand. So I threw them in my juicer and made one of the most delicious juices I've ever had. It seriously reminded me on the Orange Creamsicles I used to get from the ice cream truck as a child. The best part is that if left me feeling satisfied, refreshed, and full of energy.

Carrot, Apple & Grapefruit Juice (Orange Creamsicle in a Glass)
3 Large Carrots, scrubbed well
1 Green Apple, unpeeled, quartered & seeded
1 Large Pink Grapefruit, peeled

Run all the ingredients through your juicer and enjoy!

And yes, I tend to drink my juices out of a wine glass. Why not, right?

This juice is full of Vitamins A, C & B6. What are your healthy go to snacks?

Meat(less)loaf with Garlic Baby Bok Choy & Broccoli

Tonight's dinner was inspired by recipes I've recently discovered on 2 wonderful blogs: Feed Your Roots and Honoring Health. I read both of these blogs regularly for inspiration, advice and some really great recipes. The women who write these blogs seriously ROCK!

First, I made a vegan and gluten free meat(less)loaf inspired by Penina's Black Bean Burger recipe. I can't gush enough about how much I truly enjoyed this recipe! Even before I put it in the oven, I kept eating spoon fulls of the black bean and tomato mixture. I left the shallats out of my version only because I forgot to buy them. The finished product definitely was not lacking even without them, but I could imagine it would be even better with them. You can find Penina's original recipe here.

I decided to serve my meat(less)loaf next to Bok Choy and Broccoli sauteed with fresh garlic. I was in the mood for a beautiful plate of greens, had nice bunches of baby bok choy and broccoli in my refrigerator, and had read Christie's Garlic Swiss Chard recipe just last night. With no swiss chard on hand, I figured my greens would make perfect substitutes. They were delicious! But I'm still looking forward to picking up some chard to make Christie's original recipe, which you can find here.

Here are my adaptations of the 2 recipes. I highly suggest you check out these ladies' sites to see the originals, as well as lots of other great information and inspiration!

Vegan & Gluten Free Meat(less)loaf
adapted from Penina Bareket's Vegan Black Bean Burgers
2 cloves garlic
2 carrots, scrubbed well & cut into 2 inch pieces
1 can black beans, rinsed well & drained
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
2 cup gluten free rolled oats

Preheat your oven to 425 F.
Place the garlic and carrots in a food processor and process until finely chopped. Add the black beans, diced tomatoes and fresh cilantro. Process about 3o seconds until just combined & chopped, but not completely mushy. Remove the mixture from the food processor and place in a large bowl. Add the rolled oats and mix well. Set aside for about 10 minutes to allow the rolled oats to absorb the liquid.
In the meantime, lightly grease a loaf pan. Once the mixture has rested, pour it into the loaf pan.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let rest 15 minutes to set before removing from the pan. Run a knife along the edges of the loaf to loosen before removing.
Makes approximately 8 delicious servings :)

Garlic Baby Bok Choy & Broccoli
inspired Christine's Garlic Swiss Chard
1 small bunch of broccoli, washed & stems removed
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
3 bunches of baby bok choy, roughly chopped & rinsed very well
a splash or spray of Olive Oil
dash of salt

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once it's boiling, submerge the broccoli in the water and blanch for 1 minute. Remove from the boiling water and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
Heat a small splash or spray of olive oil in a large saute pan. Once it's hot, add the garlic and stir for about 1 minute until it becomes fragrant. Add the chopped baby bok choy, stirring for a minute until it begins to wilt. Add the broccoli florets and continue to saute for another minute until the veggies are just cooked. Sprinkle with a dash of salt and serve.

Strawberry Chocolate Chip Muffins (Vegan & Gluten Free)

There's really no big story behind these muffins. I was at Whole Foods, saw their 365 brand Vegan Chocolate Chips and was inspired to make muffins. I added the strawberries at the last minute because I thought they'd be pretty. I was right :)

Strawberry Chocolate Chip Muffins
2 Tbsp Chia Seeds
1/2 Cup Cold Water
1 3/4 Cup Brown Rice Flour
1/2 Cup Sugar
2 1/2 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Xanthan Gum
3/4 Cup Almond Milk
1/3 Cup Unsweetened Applesauce
1/2 Cup Vegan Chocolate Chips
1/2 Cup Chopped Strawberries, fresh or frozen

Preheat oven to 400 F and prepare a muffin tin with liners.
In a small cup, mix the chia seeds and cold water and set aside. The mixture will form a gel- this will serve as your egg replacer.
In a large bowl, combine the brown rice flour, sugar, baking powder and xanthan gum. Set aside.
In another bowl, combine the almond milk and unsweetened applesauce. Once the chia seed and water mixture has formed a gel, add it to this bowl and mix it well, making sure to break up any chia seed clumps that may have formed.
Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and combine well. Fold in the chocolate chips and chopped strawberries.
Divide among the muffin tins (I use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to do this) and bake for 25-30 minutes.

I couldn't wait to tear into one ... here is the inside full of strawberries and gooey chocolate chips. YUM!

Yoga and Running: Part 1

Yesterday was a great day! I ran the Healthy Kidney 10K Race in Central Park and had a PR of 1:00:36! Considering the fact that I've been really frustrated with my running progress lately, I was so happy to have shaved more than 3 minutes off my time from my last 10K just 6 weeks ago. You may remember from a post last week, I've really been struggling with my running lately. My legs have felt heavy and my breathing difficult. So I set some goals to help me push through these challenges, one of which was to re-dedicate myself to my yoga practice. I'm amazed at how much lighter my legs already feel after adding instructed classes in addition to my daily home practice back to my schedule.

I began practicing yoga long before I started running. For the past eleven years, yoga has been my way of dealing with stress, of facing my fears, and of building outer as well as inner strength. I practice yoga just as much for the active poses, as I do for the relaxing moments and the deep meditation. Once I began running years later, I also found it to be a crucial part of my training for so many reasons, all of which I can't cover in one post.

So, today's post focuses on two of my favorite poses that just happen to help my running. These poses focus on the hips, inner thighs, quads and hamstrings. They lengthen, stretch and strengthen these muscles, allowing for not only greater running performance, but also protecting against potential injury.

It is important to keep your muscles active during these poses to get their full benefits. Even while standing in Tadasana (mountain pose), with your legs hip distance apart and your arms at your sides, your legs should be strong and grounded, with your muscles engaged. During these poses, I often imagine that there are roots growing out of the bottom of my feet and into the ground. You arms should be just as active and engaged throughout the poses.

Prasarita Padottanasana
(Wide-Legged Forward Bend)

I love this pose because it's a calm and relaxed way to get a deep stretch in my inner thighs and hamstrings. Aside from practicing it during yoga class, I almost always do it before and after a run.

1. Stand in Tadasana (mountain pose), with your legs hip distance apart and your arms at your sides.
   
2. Gently hop, or step, your legs wide apart and rest your hands on your hips. Your feet should be parallel.
   
3. Inhale and as you begin to bend forward from your hips, keep your chest lifted.
4. Continue extending your torso as you bend forward until your chest is parallel to the floor.
5. Lower your hands and press your fingertips to the floor, maintaining your extended torso and your back slightly concave.
6. Continue to maintain the concavity of your back as you walk your fingertips between your feet.
7. Inhale and on your next exhale, bend your elbows and lower your torso and head into a complete forward bend.
8. Rest your head on the floor if possible.
9. To come back up, place your hands back on your hips and slowly rise from your hips with your chest leading the way.

Ardha Chandrasana
(Half Moon Pose)

I feel incredible pride each time I arrive in Ardha Chandrasana. It takes great focus and is so rewarding. This pose stretches and strengthens your thighs, strengthens your ankles, and opens your hips.

1. Stand in Tadasana (mountain pose), with your legs hip distance apart and your arms at your sides.
2. Step your right leg back, keeping your feet parallel and your hips square.
3. Bend forward from the hip and bend your front knee (left)
   
4. Reach your left hand to the ground and press it firmly into the ground.
5. Place your right hand on your hip
6. As you straighten your front leg, lift your back leg off the ground.
7. Flex your back foot, extending actively through the heel
8. Rotate your upper torso towards your right, opening your right hip and pushing your left hip slightly forward. **If you are new to the pose, you may choose to stop here, keeping your hand on your hip and gazing forward**
   
9. Rotate your right shoulder onto your back, opening the shoulder and lifting your right arms straight up. Extend actively through your arm
10. Gaze upwards towards your right hand
11. Repeat on the other side
    

Prasarita Padottanasana and Ardha Chandrasana are just two of my favorite poses that also happen to help my running performance. Stay tuned in the coming days for Yoga and Running parts 2, 3 and however many parts I ended up writing ;)

Thanks to my wonderful friend Jessica for taking these pics of me in my poses! Love you!

Do you practice yoga or are you interested in starting a practice? Any favorite poses? I'd love to hear your thoughts, questions or any suggestions you might have so leave a comment and let me know you were here.

Namaste and Happy Running!

Swoon... Jonathan Adler

I've been talking about re-decorating my apartment for quite some time. There were posts about pillows & posts about lamps. But life's been a bit busy and decorating has taken last place to running, eating and working on Erica Sara Designs (launching the website soon- stay tuned...yay!)

Well, I’m finally ready to do it! I just re-covered my lampshade with some awesome orange fabric and received my new chairs for the living room. Time to transform my apartment into a happy, shiny place full of color! I stopped into the local Jonathan Adler store for some cheery inspiration this weekend and fell in love with almost everything. Seriously, is this guy brilliant or what? And I sort of know him. Ok, well… not really but when I worked in the Barneys NY buying office, Simon Doonan, Jonathan’s partner, would walk past my desk sometimes. And once he looked up, smiled and said hello to me. So that means…. ok, well nothing really but makes me feel sort of cool ;)

Anyway, back to the point which is I heart Jonathan Adler. His pottery is tongue-in-cheek brilliant, his colors are beautiful and how he puts it all together totally makes my heart melt. My favorite is his Muse line which incorporates different body parts into vases, lamps and candles. The guy can make a bunch of ceramic boobs look fantastic! Here are the picks I'm considering for my apartment, some of which are a bit out of my budget. But a girl can dream, can’t she?

the x bench in newport grass would be perfect next to my new chairs!

Garden of Eden salt & pepper shakers

edie vase from the muse collection

the banana bud vase would look fab on my coffee table

Do you have any Jonathan Adler favorites? Or other favorite home decor designers I should check out for my apartment? Let me know!

Getting Back My Mojo

Running-wise, last week was a tough one for me. Although I got out there 5 of the 7 days, each run felt like a struggle and left me pretty frustrated. Two months ago, I ran a half marathon. Last week, 2 miles felt like an eternity. I couldn’t help being upset with myself. How could I work so hard for over a year to get into half-marathon shape, only to slack and lose so much fitness in only 2 months?

The good news is that I know, without a doubt, that I can get my fitness back. When I first started running, a mile seemed like an eternity. But each day & week, I watched my mileage grow. Before long, 3 or 4 miles was a “short” run and I began to look forward to the longer ones. I remember the first time I ran 11 miles. The route was from my apartment to the George Washington Bridge, and back. It took me exactly 2 hours and I remember thinking “that was 2 hours? It felt like nothing!” So, yes, I’m positive that with lots of dedication, discipline and hard work, I’ll get there again. But how will I do it?

My plan:
1.Try to start running in the mornings instead of after work so that I have no excuses to skip my workout. I’ve been skipping lots of planned runs to go out with friends lately, and end up drinking wine instead of running. Yes, a social life is important and I don’t plan on giving that up. But I must find a balance because running is extremely important to me as well.

2.Add more strength training back to my schedule. I used to take a total-body training class and a kickboxing class in addition to running each week. Once my favorite fitness instructor stopped teaching those classes, they dropped off my schedule and I’ve definitely noticed a change in my body. I’ve gained 5% body fat since then! A friend has agreed to lend me his Shred videos so I can try them at home to see how I like them. And once summer Fridays begin, I can begin taking kickboxing with my favorite instructor again – I can’t wait!

3.Return to my steady yoga practice. I began my study of yoga more than ten years ago to reduce stress, to achieve balance, and to learn more about myself (more about that in a future post). When I started running, I found yoga to be an important part of my training. It keeps my hips open, my plantars stretched and corrects my posture for stronger running and deeper breathing. In addition to my home practice, I used to take 2 yoga classes each week: hot yoga and anusara yoga. But due to my crazy schedule, I haven’t been to classes as often as I’d like and my body is definitely not happy. My muscles are shorter and tighter, and my breath is more shallow. Not to mention the fact that my mind is foggier and I just plain miss it. So, back to my steady yoga practice I go!

4.My foam roller will be my new best friend. Yes, I stretch before and after each run. But basic stretching just doesn’t seem to get deep enough these days and I’ve heard that foam rollers can work miracles on angry muscles. So I’m going to give them a try. I’ll keep you posted on how they work for me.

So, that’s my plan for now. What do you think? Any other ideas that you’ve tried and have worked for you? I’d love to hear your thoughts or tips so please leave a comment and let me know!

I'd love your opinion..

... on my new logo

For the past few weeks, I've been working really hard on the Erica Sara jewelry line which I hope to launch on my very own website in the coming months. In the process, I've decided I really want a new logo and here are the contenders

The first option is based on my current logo and I must admit, is my least favorite. But since I've received lots of good feedback about it, I'm keeping it in the running for now.

So seriously, PLEASE leave a comment & let me know which one you like best. And if you don't like any, let me know. I'd appreciate some brutal honesty! Any and all feedback is welcome!

Don't Change! You're Perfect!

I used to love pouring over magazines. In fact, my job required it. Every month, I would take a huge stack of all the new fashion magazines and tear out pictures of the latest designs for color, detail and trend inspiration. Once I became more interested in fitness and nutrition, my passion moved from fashion to health magazines. I would read, re-read and save the articles I found the most interesting for future reference. These magazines taught me so much: how to be prettier, how to be thinner, how to look better, how to make people like me more.

One day a few months ago, I walked into Barnes and Noble and headed to the cafe. I had some time to kill and wanted to relax with a cup of tea and a magazine. I was searching the shelves for the perfect magazine when I realized, not one of them had a headline that read "Don't Change! You are Perfect Just the Way You Are!" Now wouldn't that be nice? Wouldn't it be wonderful if we were surrounded by messages that taught us how to love ourselves?

Take a look at these pictures. They are all before and after images of beautiful women who were airbrushed to be.... what? Perfect? I just don't understand how they can be perfect if they aren't real.
Next time you take a look in the mirror and compare yourselves to these women, remember that

• It's ok to have cellulite. Most women do. It's natural.
• It's ok to have wrinkles. It means that you have lived long enough to have developed them. Laugh lines mean you have laughed and smiled.
• Exercise is important for strength and health. All the exercise in the world won't make most of us look like us (and believe me, I've tried) because these pictures are not real.
• Hips are sexy!
  

There are magazines out there with positive images and messages for women. Some of my favorite running and yoga journals are all about accepting yourself and living a healthy life. Are there any that you'd recommend? Please leave a comment... I'd love some ideas!

Scenes from the Farmer's Market

The Union Square Farmer's Market might just be one of my favorite places in this planet. I love how as each weekend passes, the market changes and represents each season. I could, and do, spend hours there.

Since mom was in town last week, we took a walk to Union Square and spent some quality time strolling and chatting. The market was full of Spring. Beautiful asparagus, greens, fresh herbs and flowers everywhere. Here are just a few scenes ...

Blue Topaz Beauty

London Blue Topaz Drops... coming soon to Erica Sara Designs

"Love of beauty is Taste. The creation of beauty is Art." - Ralph Waldo Emerson