elyssa: recommitting

location: snowy toronto

christmas and new years have come and gone. i'm back at school for my last semester of law school. it's time to reset goals. reaffirm. recommit.

2010 was a year of great pride for me. since the month of may, ive maintained a regular fitness schedule. 8 months marks the longest period of continuous progress in my 5 year on/off love affair with fitness. i've discovered that exercising 6 days out of 7 keeps me feeling my best. what's important is not what i do - but the fact that i do something to get the blood flowing. yoga on easy days. cardio circuits on hard days. after 8 months of commitment, i feel the healthiest i've ever been. hardly succumbing to colds. and benefitting from much needed endorphins. i've become convinced that keeping active is the key to a happy life.

home for the holidays brought christmas trees. festivities. cakes. biscotti. and of course the inevitable 5 pounds.

5 pounds, however, that we're gained happily in the company of loved ones. and intermixed with daily exercise - either by doing a workout dvd at home with the boy or taking a yoga class in a downtown studio. sometimes a quick 30 minutes of elliptical in front of the tv. or just a walk through the forest.

in the past, a cookie and mug of hot cocoa would have been my signal to spend the rest of the day on the couch. this year, i took my cookie and cocoa to the couch like any other year - but at the end of the day, i kept moving - and as i return to regular exercise in the new year, my body is thanking me for never giving up.

my goals for the following year are as follows:

- to continue to practice the art of exercising for health, not for weight

- to resume regular yoga (december was by and large a yogaless month - and my aching body knows the difference)

- to try new things (run a race perhaps?)

- to pay attention in school and relish the dwindling days of my academic life

- to plan for the future in a way that minimizes stress and maximizes the endless possibilities that lie ahead

- to cultivate a constant awareness that in every step i take i am never alone

elyssa: thankful

location: toronto (post-family departure)

apologies for the belated t-day post - it has been a wonderful start to the holiday season. i am so thankful: for the beautiful food consumed this past week. for the loving hands that prepared it. for friendships undeterred by distance. for a surprising turn of events. for my faith. for love.

oh and for the hope that this time next year the holidays will no longer go hand in hand with the ominous cloud of exams. it's definitely time to seriously hit the books.

all day i've been carrying with me the warm and fuzzy afterglow of our 6 day thanksgiving festivities. definitely not conducive to productivity - so i'm off to starbucks to shake off those cozy vibes and get to organizing the next 20 days of studying frenzy. stressful - but nothing that cant be solved with a good list/calendar combo.

for now, a thanksgiving week recap:

most days started off with breakfast in the apartment. a frittata seemed like a good and easy way to feed all 6 of us.

cheddar, bell peppers, tomato, basil

clearly high-fashion was a must.

at least we clean up well.

lovely dinners out.

but nothing compared to the big day.

t-day preparations started bright and early. we took turns. shared and helped. the day flew by and culminated in a beautiful feast enjoyed by 20 friends and fam. so. much. food.

enough left over for a turkey pot pie whipped up by my mom just minutes before she left for the airport. aaannd enough turkey and fixins in the fridge to feed an army of exam-season starving students.

new goals:

unfortunately, my abs and bum challenge (previous post) is going to have to take a back seat to exams. no biggie. for now, the goal is to maintain a daily exercise regime during the busiest time of the year. regardless of how much i can do, the idea is always to do something. it makes me feel better. it makes me think better. i really think exercising makes me smarter. so i'll keep at it.

current obsessions:

goat yogurt. finding the perfect new years dress. surviving exams.

ps happy belated dearest bff. wish i could have celebrated with you.