Tag Archives: Lifestyle

Zumba Motivation!

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zumba paola outside gym july 17-13

This was taken today, just outside the gym after completing a Zumba class – that is a huge smile on my face! Can you see the dewy glow I have on my face  (ok, the dewy look is really from sweat & the glow is from the work out)!

I am always looking for ways to stay motivated to exercise! I find Zumba to be a fun way to get a work out & it keeps me motivated! I wasn’t feeling like exercising today, but forced myself to drive to the gym after work for a Zumba class. I know every single time I do Zumba, I will feel good, smile, and have fun! Really, every single time, it never fails to make me smile, sing, and gets my endorphins going, so I feel happy! Unlike other exercise classes that can be grueling, Zumba is fun, you dance, that’s it!

Do you remember how much you like dancing? Zumba will remind you. The Latin rhythms automatically get your hips and shoulders moving! Before you know it, you are singing along and moving to the rhythm of the music. Even if you don’t know all the steps, you can go at your pace and the more often you go, the more you will learn the steps. Most routines are repetitions of the same four or five steps.  According to dietandfitnesstoday.com, you can burn between 400 – 500 calories in one hour of exercising to Zumba. That is pretty good! It is mostly a cardio, aerobic workout but there are also specialized Zumba classes for abs and toning (I’ll include more about that in another post).

For those of you that are not familiar with Zumba, it was founded in 2001, by Beto Perez, it’s is described on Zumba.com as a global lifestyle brand, which fuses fitness, entertainment, and culture into a dance fitness solution. It is a latin inspired, easy to follow, calorie burning, dance fitness party! It is used in 151 countries, by 141 million people, in 140,000 locations. Wow, I was aware it is popular, but those statistics amazed me! I admire Beto for his entrepreneurial spirit to make his invention a success!

It really is like a party, some instructors even bring dj style spinning color lights to the class. The songs aren’t all Latin either. I usually take Zumba at 24 Hour Fitness gyms and the instructors also mix in hip hop, rap, african, and even hawaiian songs and rhythms. I have been exercising to Zumba for about 6 years and still love it! I even have the DVDs (available for purchase at Zumba.com) and do the videos at home. Sometimes, if I don’t have lots of time in the morning or weekend, but want to exercise, I will do three songs on the cardio DVD and the cool down. It takes about 15 minutes, but it is amazing how energized I feel when I start my day exercising! The cool down serves as my morning stretches. I’ve even taken the DVDs to my friend Lola’s and sister’s homes, and we’ve exercised in their living rooms to the DVDs. I admit it, by now I know the songs to the exercise routines on the DVDs!

So, next time you are not feeling very motivated to exercise, go to a Zumba class or put on the DVD! Trust me, you will start to dance and exercise! You will be smiling, have fun, & feel better! Think of it as an opportunity to dance, in comfortable clothes and tennis shoes, and without having to worry about how much you sweat! You will actually be glad you are breaking a sweat, it means you are getting a workout & burning calories! Plus, you may learn some steps that you can use on the dance floor at the next wedding, Quinceanera, or party!

Have you taken a Zumba class before? Do you like Zumba as much as I do? I am even getting motivated and excited just writing this blog post!

Hugs,

Paola

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These are the Zumba DVDs I have at home! I have even taken the cardio DVD with me to San Francisco & Germany, so I could exercise while on vacation. I need to exercise and be active, even on vacation – after a few days I get the need to exercise, otherwise I start to feel lethargic and tired!

Note: As with other exercise, you should check with your physician before starting a new work out routine, to ensure it is appropriate exercise for your level of health.

Enjoying Yoga

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yoga stretch july 82013

For those of you that have followed me on Facebook the past few years, you are aware that I enjoy exercising. It is a part of my lifestyle. I have taken yoga classes before, then stopped for about a year. I was doing cardio workouts, mostly Zumba and speed walking. Recently, I found a yoga class at the gym that I like. It is not too hard, I find it relaxing, it includes simple poses, lots of stretches, observing your breathing, and just the right amount of challenge. I would usually pass on yoga for a class that would burn more calories. I looked up the info recently and you only burn about 200 calories in one hour of light yoga, which is not very high, but the health benefits are good. I have taken yoga once a week for the past two months, and I am really starting to appreciate it and look forward to the class. Yoga helps me de-stress, I really try to clear my mind, which is not easy for me to do. I was so relaxed towards the end of the class today that I felt I was dosing off a bit (ok, I was also a bit tired, haha).

One of the main reasons I like yoga is the awareness it helps create of our muscles, organs, and the importance of stretching and of breathing with intention. Have you noticed that unless you are exercising, you don’t really stretch throughout the day or take a breath with intention, let alone an exhale with intention? I try to stretch daily. I see our kitties stretch throughout the day. As humans, we go about our busy days and don’t stretch, resulting in tension and stress. According to MayoClinic.com, yoga is a mind-body practice that combines stretching exercises with controlled breathing and relaxation. Yoga can help reduce stress and anxiety, lower blood pressure, and improve heart function. It can help improve your fitness through flexibility, balance, and strength.

So, if you want to de-stress and improve your fitness (who doesn’t?), you may want to give yoga a try. Don’t worry about the poses, you will learn those in time. You can go at your own pace and challenge yourself at your own level (don’t overdo it at the first class). If you are not a member at a gym or go to a yoga studio, perhaps try your local YMCA or community center. Many cities or local schools offer yoga classes for free or at a minimal cost. You can also buy a yoga video and try doing it at home.

Do you take a yoga class regularly? Or practice yoga on your own? Which is your favorite yoga pose? Share your comments about yoga.

Hugs….or in this case “namaste” my friends,

Paola

Exercise Buddy

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lola paola exercise baylolapaolanewyearsfaustos

Exercise is an important….and necessary part of my life. I have battled with my weight my entire life. It is not easy to maintain my weight, I gain weight easily and have to watch what I eat, as well as exercise regularly, otherwise my weight goes up quickly! I do not consider myself overweight (nor do the medical charts). Every year it gets harder to stay at my weight because well, as we age our metabolism get slower….fantastic, right? Luckily, I do like to exercise….but am not one of those people that wakes up with the desire to go for a jog….I have to talk myself into exercising. Exercise has many health benefits, physical and emotional, it helps me de-stress, feel more energetic overall, and I sleep better when I exercise regularly.

Over the next few weeks, I will share with you strategies that I use to stay fit & not gain weight. Trust me, it is not easy for me. Wish it was….wish I was naturally thin, wish I did not have an appetite for sweets & tortilla chips, wish it was easy to lose weight, wish there was a secret pill to stay thin…..but, that is not the case, haha.  I can’t wish to be thin, I have to work at it….all my friends and colleagues tell me they have to work at it.

Meet Lola (pictured) – you will hear lots about her in my blog, she is one of my closest friends and the one I spend the most time with! I love this gal! She is not only an excellent friend, the best I could ever ask for, she is also my exercise buddy and helps me get motivated to exercise! We have been walking together for more than six years! We take long, speed walks, usually downtown by the bay. Our route doesn’t change much, but it is a wonderful, fun time, every single time! We call it “our therapy”- haha! It is our “amiguita/friend time,” we chat, we vent, we laugh…all while we exercise. The walk goes by fast, sometimes we walk around the block a few times at the end of the walk because we still have things to talk about. Before I was married, we used to walk together about two to four times per week, now we both make an effort to at least walk together once a week. It is our time to catch up and we value it. Every week we touch bases on Monday and set a day to walk that week. Once we set the day, we rarely change it and pass on other invitations which may seem more fancy (like dinner out)….because this is our time! I joke with her that if Jim and I have a baby (when we do), I’ll probably bring the baby along in the stroller on the walks with Tia Lola (aunt Lola)!

So, if you can, exercise with a friend…..it does wonders for the soul! The calories you burn are just extra….better said – part of the benefit!

Do you have an exercise buddy?

Hugs,

Paola

Amazing What a Book Can Do

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This is a picture of our library at home. My husband and I greatly enjoy reading, as inviting as the chairs in our library are, we usually read in our bedroom or on flights. When I arrive at home after a long day at work, I usually go straight to the kitchen to make dinner for my hubby, or to our bedroom to change and begin relaxing.  Between the both of us we probably have way too many books – we keep more books in our offices and our nightstands – and seem to have a hard time detaching from them. We do buy books as gifts. We have books in English, Spanish, and German (as well as Italian, French, Mandarin, & other languages from our travels). My husband reads all sorts of subjects. I mostly read non-fiction books – I really enjoy biographies, leadership books, history, fashion, and self-improvement topics. I think I’ve only read two novels, even though I do like watching movies often (just for entertainment). I love visiting libraries and regularly check out books. Reading is one of my hobbies, a guilty pleasure. I can spend an entire weekend reading a book cover to cover. For the most part I am reading two to three books at a time.

Books have been a part of my life since I was a child. We went to a catholic school and they had a program with a local library to encourage children to read more, when students reached a goal they would get ribbons and a free personal pizza from Pizza Hut. Funny the things we remember from our childhood. Reading lead to spelling contests, my mother says she was proud her little Latina daughter would win spelling contests in English. Growing up I don’t remember thinking I was Hispanic or different, not even encountering racism. I played with our neighbors, was involved in clubs at school, became a Brownie and a Girl Scout, we were perfectly assimilated. I think being born here and learning the language at an early age helped.

I have learned so much from books, about so many topics….a book can transport you to another country, teach you about other cultures….and even take you to another world! I have many favorites….the Oprah Winfrey biography has been inspirational, as have the Jack Welch books, and more recently Lean In…..too many to list! Now, even with tons of information at our fingertips via the internet, I love to curl up with a good book, to feel the pages, and get lost in the story….trying to find some type of a learning experience from every book!

Happy reading to everyone!

Did you have  a favorite book growing up? Do you have a favorite book or which was the last book you read? Any suggestions you recommend on good non-fiction books?

Hugs,

Paola