Back to It ~ Daily Log 4/3

Today is going to be an incredibly productive day - sometimes you need those days.  I look forward to conquering it by keeping an optimistic mood throughout.  I have a meeting at 11, ballroom dancing at 12, class at 2, gym hopefully at 3:30, another meeting at 5:30, and hopefully see my friends after.  I'm really excited for the ballroom dancing because I've never had the chance to do it! And it seems like a great way to stay active, engage in a new hobby, and meet new people.  I'm crashing the class but a good friend of mine who is a TA has assured me that they always need people, so fingers crossed.

*update from later*

As I mentioned, I went to a ballroom dance class today. I was expecting it to be a smaller clas, maybe 20-30 people.  I was shocked when I showed up and there were at least over 100 people there, men and women.  I'm going to be honest, I started to panic for a minute.  Thoughts started racing through my head: I'd make a fool out of myself, I'd fall, I wold be the odd one out for a dance partner, and oh god I had to actually dance with someone?! I started perspiring before the class even began.

I saw my friend across the room dancing (she is a TA for the class) and we made eye contact, and the first thought that run through my head was "oh shit now I can't leave."  I started taking deep breaths and tried convincing myself it'd be okay.  I remember trying to come up with a good excuse to leave, but then I realized I was stepping out of my comfort zone... and that was a good thing. How can I ever expect my life to change for the better if I stay with what I'm comfortable with?  That awkward feeling that arises in these moments is the cue that you're about to learn something new.

With this in mind, I bit my lip, stood up a little bit straighter, and decided I would do this - and I would conquer it.  We all got in a line, men (leads) on one side of the room and women (follows) on the other.  The TAs stood in the middle and showed us the steps.  We started with classical ballroom, then later we did the latin cha cha.  We learned the steps on our own, then the leads would come over and choose a dance partner - the dreaded moment.

Luckily, not one person was left alone!  All of us looked awkward, shy at dancing clumsily with a complete stranger, but it led to big smiles and new friends.  I know I screwed up a billion times, but that's a part of what this class is all about.  I got to dance with 3 different leads, all of whom were very friendly, enthusiastic and just as nervous as I was.  I left the class with a huge smile on my face, and I can not wait for the class next week!  I'm even tempted to go to office hours on Friday - I have NEVER gone to office hours for a class!

Even as I write this I'm smiling, proud that I took this small leap and motivated to keep making small changes in my life to make the most of my precious time here on this earth.

Life is beautiful - embrace it!

Breakfast

• 2 Tacos w/ Chicken, Sour Cream, & Black Bean Salsa

Lunch

• Mediterranean Wrap w/ Kalamata Olives, Lettuce, Red Pepper, & Feta

Workout

• 1 min run (6 mph), 2 min power-walk (3.7 mph) 7x
• 90 Jumping Jacks
• 20 Tricep Dips
• 40 Sit-ups
• 30 sec Plank (4x)
• 40 Crunches
• 10 Oblique Crunches (each side)
• 20 Standing Calf Raises

Post-Workout Meal

• Artichoke w/ 1/2 tbs low fat mayo
• Hard-boiled Egg
• Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Snack

• Grapes

Dinner
Water Intake

• 6 cups of water (& counting)
• 3.5 cups of coffee (& counting)