Days 1-15

I confess I am a homebody, I go to work and come straight home and don’t leave the house again. Repeat this five days a week. On the weekends I run my errands but then back home.

You all know I love my 30 day challenges So this time I’m getting out of my comfort zone and finding things to do, to improve my body, mind and soul or just to have fun. I need to be less boring and I need to embrace life outside my house and get out more.

I should mention I stumbled across class pass which helped make my adventure possible. I’ll leave a link below in case you’re interested.

Day 1

Bikram Yoga…my first big day and I signed up for the Yin class which is a more passive yoga class and more like great stretching. I wanted to start small and I thought “Yeah I got this” so I got my Yoga Mat and headed to class.

Now…When I read the description it said unheated but apparently that meant not as hot. Guys this was my first experience with hot yoga and it was quite the unwelcome surprise. 

How to explain it, it’s like working out in a sauna. I got used to the heat but the stretches lasted a long time. And my flexibility was so very sad. 

Just my luck I was next to Mr. All American Yoga Master shaming me with his incredible flexibility, I tried to reach for my toes and only got as far as my knees while he literally folded himself in half. Now I know this is an excellent opportunity to push myself and I could have faked the poses for a few moments but we held them for five minutes each…impossible.

Okay aside from the shame, the class was great and I met a very nice lady while I was there, who kindly woke me up after our end of workout meditation session. Yep I fell asleep. It was hot, I just spent and hour stretching and it was dark and they made us close our eyes. What can I say…

Fortunately my short nap didn’t ruin my bedtime because I slept like a champ all night, which I’m not usually good at. 

Initially I would’ve said I’ll never do it again but the day after I felt amazing….so maybe.

Day 2

Lomi Lomi Massage – Tonight I embarked on a more therapeutic adventure. I went to a new spa that offered Lomi Lomi massage. If you’re not familiar with this one, it originates in Hawaii and the movements are focused on long strokes and moving like the ocean. 

This is my favorite type of massage, because it’s so relaxing. If it’s done right. I was a little apprehensive to go to new spa because you never know what you’re going to get. 

I’m happy to report they were great and I was treated so well. The truth is I felt good helping out a new business and left them a great review because they earned it. The massage was relaxing and they even added hot stones at no extra charge and who doesn’t love hot stones.

I was definitely ready to go home after work but I’m glad I didn’t this was a great way to end my night.

Day 3

Pilates Reformer 1 – Much to my Dismay I ended up with a kidney infection, and I was down for two days. Now I’m back up and running and to kick off this weekend Im doing a reformer Pilates. Now I am a Pilates girl so this is not a new activity but I’m getting up and getting out and that is my goal. 

I had a really great instructor. My favorite so far. I love Pilates because it’s great exercise but also not so high impact it kills me. The best part is it still challenges me and I see a difference in my body because of it.

Day 4

B12 Injection – If you have celiac like I do you probably have a hard time absorbing some vitamins. I am no exception, I struggle with absorption from all the fat soluble vitamins and B12. 

Even though I hate needles I thought this would be a good one to try. The good news… I didn’t pass out. It did hurt a little and my arm felt heavy but by morning I didn’t even notice it. 

While I was there I met the owner who took me on a tour of the facilities. Which was pretty cool because she offers so many natural healing alternatives. I confess I geeked out a little bit with all the gadgets and gizmos.

Day 5 

Barre 60 Minute Signature class – I was disillusioned when I signed up for this class. I imagined my ballet barre doing pirouettes and some light stretching. Man was I wrong, this was an intense class. 

We did so many lunges and squats I’m stunned I was able to walk to my car. Without question I will be in pain tomorrow. The instructor was so high energy and it did feel like I was dancing instead of working out for the first half of the class.

There were a lot fun moves and the music was upbeat and exciting and if I had better stamina I probably would have enjoyed the heck out of it, but I don’t …so I was doing quite a bit of modifications by mid-class.

I was told it’s like Pilates and I would agree they have similar moves but Pilates is more form and barre is more dance. I think it just depends on your body and what it can handle. 

All I know is I’m thankful there is no workout tomorrow just pure sweet oxygen.

Day 6

Oxygen Aromatherapy Treatment

So tonight is Day 6, I’m almost done with my first week of adventures and I’m enjoying it. 

Tonight I tried oxygen/aromatherapy. I have to say I really embraced this one. They put me in a big comfy chair and give you a warm neck pillow and a blanket. The room is dark and soothing music plays in the background and on the very big screen they showed beautiful pictures of nature. They called it sanctuary theatre. Which I thought was awesome.

How did I feel after? I felt great. I chose blackberry and vanilla essential oils for my aroma, which was not too strong just nice and gentle. Before you begin they offer you choices, there were about five different ones. For this particular one they mentioned it is supposed to help with digestive issues and I definitely struggle with this one. And shockingly it did…. 

Not to mention my energy is great tonight. I feel happy and positive. I wish I had gone this morning when I was not feeling so happy or energetic it would’ve made my day so much better.

Day 7

Spin – So tonight’s adventure was spin class. First I want to say the instructor was amazing… high energy and so much fun. 

We practiced for an hour and a half, and I don’t think I’ve ever been so exhausted. You have to use your core and have serious arm strength. I learned three very basic moves, one of them upside down and there may have been some unladylike screaming when I finally got my self into position just from fear alone. Please don’t think it was really scary. I was 2 feet above a very cushy mat. The exercise is beautiful and I guarantee you will be so strong if you do it.

I got lost trying to get there and I was a few minutes late and I’m kind of grateful because that class kicked my butt! I was sweating like crazy and half an hour after the class ended I was still trying to get my heart rate down.

I was little unsure of the special shoes we had to wear but thankfully the staff was so nice, they helped me figure it out. At first I did not like being locked into the bike by my shoes but guys I might have fallen off a couple times if I had not worn them. Overall, the class was fun but man my cardio ability needs improvement. I definitely want to do this one again but maybe later in the month…

Day 8

Center and Balance Pilates

This daily adventure is a stretching class for Reformer Pilates . This is my first time taking this class and I find it more like yoga. Even though the class seemed slow I have to say my muscles were sore for the next two days. Pilates always surprises me when I’m sore after because I can’t feel it like you typically do until the next day.

Day 9

Dermaplaning Facial – this morning I head off to the aestheticians for a session of Dermaplaning. Why my aesthetician was young and was just starting her company I give her credit because my face looks amazing. The session took 30 minutes which was a little disappointing but the normal cost is $75 and I probably paid close to $25. So I get why the shortened session.

Day 10

Absolute Beginner Ballet – Okay I was super nervous about going to ballet class but at the same time the little girl in me was excited. I always wanted to do ballet but we grew up very poor so there were no classes like that. I enjoyed this class even though my flexibility was not as great as some of my classmates. I feel so much more educated about ballet now and understand some of the basic moves. Surprisingly this is the first class that made my legs hurt after so I felt like I got a great workout. Oh and I had to get a pair of Ballet Shoes

Day 11

Aerial Yoga with Silks

This was a true adventure, so I ended up going to circus school. To do the silks aka aerial yoga. Which are so cool but so hard.

Day 12

Boxing – I decided after my last few days I would go completely opposite and try a class called “hit the bags”. First, to many workouts in a row, I was in pain and just couldn’t get into a class that made me use my arms. Which, hello it’s boxing of course we are using our arms. We learned some basic techniques and did some weights. I might have appreciated this class more if my muscles had not been so sore overall good class and excellent energy.

Day 13

Eyebrow Threading – So probably most people have tried this before but I haven’t. I typically wax my eyebrows but decided to give this a try, I ended up in the little India district and was concerned they would not understand my incredibly thick Irish eyebrows. I was so wrong, this is the most beautiful my eyebrows have ever looked. They kept the fullness and shaped them beautifully. I’m never going back to waxing.

Day 14

Compression Therapy – I initially signed up for a leg compression therapy but they said I could do my arms or hips too. My arms were hurting so I thought the arms would feel great. And it did, but I should mention I’m a control freak and not being able to do anything for 30 minutes was torture. However when the machine stretched my arms it felt great.

Day 15

Center and Balance Pilates – I have done this class before so I won’t take you through it. I knew what to expect and it didn’t disappoint.

How I’m feeling

Well I’m halfway through my experiment and I feel tired but also more invigorated. My friends are always asking what I’m up too and I’ve really enjoyed sharing my experiences and trying so many new things.

What have I loved the most so far? I enjoyed being a ballerina, and part of a circus act. I loved the oxygen therapy and I felt so pretty after the Dermaplaning and threading. There’s nothing I have hated and wished I hadn’t done.

So what’s next, I realize now flexibility is something I really need to work on. I’d love to try an infrared sauna or something along those lines but I think will try to do a couple of just for fun things too.

As promised here is the link for ClassPass free trial.

ClassPass free trial