A New Reason to Love Miami

I have a love hate relationship with South Florida.  I love the weather and the beaches.  I hate the traffic and the way people drive.  But overall, it’s starting to grow on me.  It really is. 

Over the weekend, while walking around South Beach, I realized why I really love Miami.  It’s quite simple actually.  When in Miami, people gain an extra ounce of confidence.  And to clarify, I’m referring to outward confidence and appearance.   It just seems to me that regardless of what people wear, they wear it with a sense of, “I like the way I look and couldn’t give a shit about what others think.” 

Now, appropriate may not describe a lot of the outfits.  And there have been times when I’ve had to look away.  However, regardless of shape and size, people seem to embrace their bodies in Miami.  And they wear that confidence like it’s nobody’s business! 

It could just be that when people are walking the streets of Miami, they are preoccupied with having fun and enjoying the weather versus what they look like.  It could also be that the heat and humidity forces people to dress a certain way.  Whatever it is…I absolutely love it (most of the time)!  It’s contagious in a way. 

This may be a stretch, but when I think about all of the above, the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty immediately comes to mind.

And I’m hoping that by the time we leave this place, I’ve gained a few extra ounces of confidence too!

Past, Present, and Future

Past

This past weekend was a blast.  One of my best friends was in town for a girls weekend with her grad school friends.  Since I know the other girls, I decided to tag along on Saturday for a fun night out in Miami.

We decided to enjoy dinner at Tiramisu, a cute Italian restaurant in the Lincoln Road Mall area (a popular and extremely busy part of South Beach).  We were so caught up in conversation that it was almost midnight before we decided on what to do next.  Since a lot of the girls were semi-new to the Miami experience, Roshni and I made the executive decision to head over to the Clevelander, a fun hotel/restaurant/club spot.  The music was fantastic, so we had a great time dancing the night away (well, until 1:30 am).

On Sunday, Rosh and I headed back out to Lincoln Road to eat brunch at Yardbird.  Y’all, we ordered a ton of food and ate every last bite!  It was so good…I can’t even begin to explain how good.  I promise I will do a full review of this place soon because it is a must visit restaurant for anyone planning a trip down here. 

furniture 017

Best mac n’ cheese EVER

The rest of the day was spent hanging out and relaxing.  So fun!

Present

Work is busy right now, and I am ok with that.  I think this is because I know I don’t have to deal with a long commute every day.  Living close to the office makes long work days so much easier. 

It also makes dinnertime prep less stressful.  As long as I have a plan for what to cook, I can get dinner on the table in well under an hour.  For example, I plan on making Nisha’s (and technically Kiran’s) bread poha tonight.  Honestly, it’s been on my mind all day.  Can’t wait to dig in!

Future

I’m really looking forward to my colleague from the UK coming to South Florida next week.  She’s even arriving a few days early so that we can hang out.  I believe this is her first visit to Miami, and I can’t wait to show her around. 

Other than that, I’m counting down the days until Vishnu takes his boards.  We’re in the home stretch now and can see the light at the end of the tunnel (well, at least I can!).  The end of this beast of a test marks the beginning of a fun, travel filled summer – woo hoo!

Tell me about your past, present, future, or all 3.

Best Body Bootcamp: Phase 3

Today marks the end of Best Body Bootcamp Phase 3.  And let me tell you – the past two weeks were tough!  The workouts didn’t look like much on paper, but the combination of push and pull exercises and heavier weights was intense.  And don’t even get me started on the full body high intensity circuit that included tricep push-up to frogger.  Eek!

Let’s just say me feet were NOT right next to my hands!

These two weeks for me were more than just about new learning workouts and increasing my weights.  Phase 3 actually taught me more about rest than anything else. 

When I started BBB, I was so gung ho about following the plan to the very last detail.  I was working out M-F and using Saturday as an active recovery day.  This meant my only true rest day was Sunday.  A day where I cleaned and ran errands…didn’t exactly feel like a rest day to me.

Over the past two weeks, I’ve learned that it’s ok to deviate from the plan and do what’s right for my body.  For example, after exercising M-W, my body has no tolerance for cardio on Thursday.  So now I rest on Thursday and Sunday.  On those days, I’m able to get a little extra sleep and just relax.  And there’s nothing wrong with that.  I still feel strong, I’m still seeing results, and more than anything, I’m making the plan work for me.  

Proper rest makes us stronger, helps our body heal itself, allows us to mentally relax, prepares us for things like frogger pushups (kind of!), energizes us, etc. 

Bottom line – rest days should be built into your routine because by going hard every day you’re doing more harm than good – for your body and your mind.  And everyone deserves a little rest!

Do you have a hard time resting?  Are you a fan of rest days as well?

P.S. Be sure to check out Tina’s blog for new information about Round 6 of Best Body Bootcamp.  It will now be starting on June 17th!  And Tina’s upped the anti with lots of great new features.  You don’t want to miss out!

Also, if you’re interested in my phase 1 and phase 2 recaps, be sure to check them out as well!