Zumba with Coco

This morning I headed back over to MC Dance Fitness for Zumba with Coco. I love Coco, I love her classes, and I love her style. I was experiencing some serious envy over her DC Shoes today. I wasn't able to find the exact pair on the DC Shoes website, but I am a fan of most of their high top shoes.

I wore a pair of Under Armour black pants, my neon yellow C9 for Champion sports bra, and a hot pink tank top I found in the closet in the guest bedroom. My green K-Swiss tubes and a hunting camouflage pullover completed my own Zumba look. I prefer Coco's.

quick pic in the only full-length mirror left in my parents' house

I haven't gotten any better at Zumba but I still like it and it's a great workout. You burn an average of 750 calories per class and now Zumba is running the Great Calorie Drive to help combat world hunger. When you check in at a Zumba class, $0.14 is donated. I know this seems like a low amount, but with all the crazed Zumba fans out there, I don't doubt they will reach the $1 million mark.

Learn more about this Great Calorie Drive and get the app.

check in using the Zumba app

Just an awkward group shot of my fellow Zumba classmates and me before we got our dance on.

Clean Snatch*

* Sorry, I couldn't resist.

Yesterday I went to Kettle Bell Workout at 50th & Broadway. I've gone to this before with my friend Anna (um, who is leaving me for the freakin South. Now I have to motivate myself to workout!), but it was a different day with a different instructor.

I really like kettle bells because they give you a great workout and they're kind of fun. I'm so busy trying not to hit myself in my leg that I don't have much time to focus on the pain of lifting the dang thingss.

source

Equinox describes the class as "the ultimate in cutting edge strength training, cast iron bells are used to

develop the correct blend of strength with flexibility for maximum fat burning and muscular endurance. Shred your mid section, tone your legs and strengthen your back while pushing your cardio capacity to the limit."

We started off doing two-arm and one-arm swings followed by mountain climbers to warm up. Then we did some cleans and some snatches. I like this instructor, Sabrina Cohen, because she kept saying snatch and laughing about it. I just giggled while I typed that. I need to grow up.

Anyway, all the swings and cleans and snatches were broken up with burpees (without the kettle bells), and figure eights and around the world with the kettle bells. Try to do figure eights quickly. The grip gets so sweaty that it starts to slip out of your hand. I've dropped a kettle bell a few times before but never in a class as full as it was last night. I was scared that I was going to hit someone.

I had a great time and I would like to make this one of my regular classes. It's pretty easy for me to get there from my office, and now that I don't have to worry about contacts and all that nonsense, getting ready quickly hasn't been a problem. I like classes where I can get competitive with the people around me. This Asian guy with a knee brace and awesome calves (yes, I was jealous of his calves, and yes, there's something about knee braces I find attractive) was doing pretty well and I just had to lift the same weight and keep up a faster tempo. Hopefully he's there every week so I can use my envy to kick my own ass.

Sabrina complimented my work after class. I'm really flattered when instructors notice me (maybe it was my navy Under Armour shorts, neon blue C9 sports bra, navy tank, blue and white Old Navy socks, and Figi blue and white K-Swiss sneakers?) and I'm more likely to take their class again.

Speaking of those Under Armour shorts, I've been wearing them since 2007 and my sister owned them before me. I'm not sure how they're still in one piece. Feel free to send me presents.

Whatever Happened to Clearly Canadian?

Today I went to the Great Neck Equinox for Coco's Cardio Kickbox and Zumba classes. Awesome workouts as always. Highlights included a woman telling me I am in amazing shape (booyah!) and dancing the Macarena. Who doesn't love a 90s flashback?

Crazy Hat Day 1996

I was pretty impressed with my outfit today: neon yellow C9 by Champion shorts and sports bra (the bra was free!), a grey Mossimo tank, and my bright green K-Swiss Micro Tubes.

I seriously struggle with self-timer pictures.

Now finally to the purpose of this post: what the hell happened to Clearly Canadian? That drink was the sh*t. I remember coming home after school and drinking an entire bottle of bubbly, berry goodness while doing my homework. It came in a glass bottle and the top made a horrible screeching sound every time you tried to close it.

While Clearly Canadian has been MIA, I have found Clear American at Wal-Mart. It's not only delicious, it's less than a dollar for a liter! Like, WTF? This proves that Americans produce products of equal value for better prices. (It's probably made in Taiwan.)

Key Lime is my favorite flavor.

This used to be a treat for me when I visited the Wal-Mart in Iowa, until I realized yesterday that we too have Wal-Mart in New York. I bought myself a bottle of Raspberry Apple and could barely contain my excitement while I waited for it to get cold in the back of the best friend's Jeep.

To learn all of the flavors go to Clear American's website.

K-Swiss Micro Tubes 100fit Review

I got two pairs of K-Swiss Micro Tubes 100fit shoes for Christmas. I went to Equinox this morning to test out the Fiji Blue pair.

This is the review that I sent into K-Swiss:

I ordered two pairs of these shoes to wear to the gym. I do a lot of step aerobics, kickboxing, and bootcamp classes and it's important that I have a comfortable, light-weight shoe that will keep my ankles stabilized. I wore these for a cardio step sculpting class today and my feet felt great. I was able to feel the step (not always the case if wearing running shoes) and keep my balance. The shoes are also light-weight. I didn't feel like my legs were being weighed down when I was in tabletop doing my ab work. I also love the color of these shoes. The heel cup is a little narrow, but it stretched out a bit after wearing them after a half an hour.

My workout:

I  ♥ baby blankets.

I got my sleepy ass out of bed to go to Assia Winfield's CARDIO Burn! class. We each had a step with double risers, 8 lb weights, 2-3 lb weights (I picked up 2s and really wished I had gotten the 3s), and mat. Assia combined step moves with the light weights (no choreography) with a little boxing and plyo work. This keeps your heart rate up and burns a lot of calories. Every few minutes (10? I don't know. I was too busy having fun in class) we would put our mat onto our bench and do ab work or lift the 8 lbs weights. I love that Assia intersperses the ab work throughout the workout. Too many times I find myself skimping on my abs because I wait until the end of the workout. I also really like Assia's classes because I don't find myself looking at the clock. Assia is a tough but fun instructor, and her regulars get serious results. If you attend one of Assia's classes, you should know that she likes to be addressed as Drill Sergeant (she was in the military.)

Look how pretty these are!

I got to see some of my gym friends in class. I'm always happy to see Rose. I absolutely love her. Today she was trying to get me to introduce myself to the cute gym guy who came into the class at the end. (I think he needed to count how many people attended.) Although he is supercute, I have a 34 year-old and a dog. He came in during our cool down and he was standing right behind me while I was oh so attractively quivering in a raised-heel plié squat. Yeah, it was distracting. I was standing in the back today because I wasn't early and I am not a regular in this class. I don't like when people show up and take my front row spot and I try to be respectful of gym-goers who attend the same class each week.

Proud to be an American

Today I am even more proud to be an American than usual. I have been listening to Darryl Worley's Have You Forgotten? (absolutely not!) and remembering that red, white, and blue are the colors that don't run. In honor of this momentous occasion, here are some pieces that a proud American can get sweaty in.

 K-Swiss makes the K-Ona S in American flag. The K-Ona S is a lightweight shoe perfect for fast days, races, and triathlons. I've been dying for a pair for MONTHS. They're $100 and my birthday is in August.

 K-Swiss also makes these bike shorts. There's a version for triathlons as well.

I recently received these supersick Knockaround sunglasses as a gift. I've been wearing them everywhere! I desperately wanted to wear them for my last race, but alas, it was pouring rain.