Happy Friday friends. It’s been an eventful week being home in North Carolina. Our governor announced on Wednesday evening that we are moving into phase two of our state’s phased reopening plan today at 5p. The most significant change this brings is that restaurants can open at 50 percent capacity. The drama came in because gyms and fitness centers were originally part of phase two and have now been pushed to phase three. To say that this created an outcry in the fitness community would be an understatement.
I understand all sides of this and there is no easy answer or solution. I will say personally that although I know the crushing effect that this is having on studio and gym owners, as well as staff that aren’t being paid, I still feel safer teaching virtually. I was having some anxieties about going back into the studio, especially teaching formats including HIIT intervals and hot yoga.
If you’d like to workout out or practice yoga with me virtually, here’s how you can do it!
- Livestream classes with VIBE5 and Charlotte Yoga. Regardless of where you are in the world, you can purchase a class pass and attend a virtual livestream class with me! It’s important to note that you can buy a new student special at either studio and get a great deal on unlimited classes if you’re a new client.
- On-demand classes on my Vimeo platform. You can access my yoga classes here an my strength/HIIT classes here!
This is all still so heavy and hard on so many levels. I hope that you guys are doing okay right now.
FLORIDA EATS
To lighten up our Friday post, I have a few recent eats to share with you that feature what I ate when I was in Florida with my family. My dad prepared home cooked meals every night that we were there and it was wonderfully refreshing and nourishing for the body and the soul! I have shared that my cooking fire has been all but extinguished lately so it was nice to eat meals prepared with thought and love!
BREAKFAST
My breakfast every morning was either cinnamon roll bread from Trader Joe’s (which is really good and you should try it!) topped with peanut butter along with fruit or…
My dad’s homemade yogurt with honey, berries, homemade granola and peanut butter.
LUNCH
Lunches were not super exciting. This was spinach, avocado, berries, toasted pecans, shredded cheese, balsamic and olive oil with buttered sourdough toast.
This was a breadless sandwich roll up. Ham with cheese, avocado and sweet pickles. Really enjoyed this for a lighter lunch!
DINNER
Grilled barbecue chicken thighs, roasted acorn squash with some sort of yummy butter/dried cranberry sauce and homemade mac and cheese.
Shrimp tacos that I turned into a shrimp taco bowl! Baby spinach, shredded cheese, rice, shrimp, a homemade salsa/guacamole hybrid, lime crema and a tortilla on the side. This was so delicious!
Grilled barbecue chicken thighs with grilled asparagus and rice. Chicken and rice is one of my all-time favorite comfort meals. It was such a treat to have something grilled since I never grill at home.
Stuffed pork loin, leftover mac and cheese and steamed green beans.
ETC
My mom made this strawberry cake with white chocolate frosting and it was delicious! Carrot and strawberry are tied for my favorite cake flavors. The white chocolate frosting on this cake was so good!
We also had a chocolate cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting for Finn’s birthday. We didn’t mean to make two entire cakes in the span of three days but when Finn’s birthday rolled around, I just couldn’t not have a cake for him! I brought the leftover chocolate cake back to Charlotte and froze the leftovers wrapped in individual slices so that I can pull one out when I want a special treat. Cake freezes so well!
It’s time to go for a walk with Finn and the dogs! It has been torrentially raining ever since I arrived home and I can see some blue sky right now for the first time so I’m heading out to soak it up. 🙂
QUESTIONS
Are gyms open in your area? If so, are you going?
What’s the best dinner that you ate this week?
Any weekend plans?
Hi Jen,
Sounds like a great trip and wonderful to soak up some family time! Just wanted to let you know that I not only make your peanut butter chia set granola which is amazing, but also tried making your Dad’s granola recipe with one change as my daughter didn’t want the raisins so I added slivered almonds instead. This granola is amazing as well! Thank you for posting! They are not only delicious but very simple to make with few ingredients.
Gyms are open in Oklahoma. I am coaching and taking classes at they gym. I coach/train at a smaller boutique style gym so we are not allowing more than 12 member per class.
The best dinner I had this week was the penne alfredo and caesar salad I made last night.
Weekend plans include finally getting my hair trimmed and colored.
Gyms are open in my state (Iowa). I will say that the only reason I am willing to go to mine is that a) they’ve capped classes at 10 people and everyone is 10 feet apart, b) the group classes are set up so that there is no shared equipment, we just train in place, c) they eliminated back-to-back classes so that instructors have several hours in between to sanitize the floor and equipment, and d) there are a ton of windows, all of which are open, and fans so that there’s a ton of air circulation.
I don’t think I’ll feel safe in a hot yoga class or other space without air circulation, and I won’t attend classes with more than 10 people or with shared equipment, until there is a vaccine. I know this puts fitness professionals in a real bind, because that basically eliminates a lot of yoga studios. There really is no great solution, but I can see why states are treading carefully on reopening gyms and fitness classes. They are the perfect place for a breakout to occur, because of all the heavy breathing/close quarters/shared equipment.
I wish we had a better way to take gym classes to outdoor spaces, which is really where I’d feel the most safe.
Hey Jen and Finn!!
I saw that Y2yoga is opening tomorrow. Are they considered a gym or no? I was kind of surprised to see the message?
I’m so glad you and Finn got down to FL and had a wonderful time. You are making wonderful memories for you both.
Take care,
Amy
So before COVID-19 I hated working out at home to a video (or so I thought). The gym/boutique fitness/yoga studios were how I worked out solely minus going on an outside run. My previous experience with workout videos was really just Taebo and a couple others I had in college. I think the repetition and lack of variety is what I hated, not the actual workout at home part if that makes sense. And I like having someone physically near me encouraging me.
I’ve been doing streaming workouts at home since March and there are so many great options out there with wonderful instructors like yourself! I’ve gotten into such a great routine with working out at home and variety that I don’t think I will go back to a physical gym/studio until things are more under control with new COVID-19 cases in the DC area than they are currently. It makes me sad to say that because I love the social aspect of exercising in a group, but my boyfriend and I are now doing workout videos at home together and that does feel pretty similar to if I took a workout class with one person I know. I am sad for the times we are living in with this pandemic and how that’s impacted the fitness industry and running races. <3
Hi Jen,
I couldn’t help but notice that my post that included question regarding yoga studios being able to be open va gyms was deleted. I didn’t mean to offend you if I did. It was a legitimate question. I thought this was an open space for conversations and I didn’t mean anything by it.
Amy
Amy – I didn’t delete your comment. It was being held in moderation (same as this comment) because your email address has never been used to comment on my blog before. This is a precaution that I take to cut back on spam comments.
To be honest, I don’t know what Y2 is doing. I haven’t kept up with the studio news there since my departure. After I read your comment, a quick check of their Facebook page says that they are not opening Saturday as they planned. This is in line with most fitness studios in Charlotte. Most assumed they would be reopening and were making plans for it and then had to pivot after the unexpected announcement.
We had a great time in Florida, and I’m grateful that we were able to make the trip happen.
Gyms are open here again as well, but participants in group fitness classes must be spaced 2 feet apart so they can only fit 12 people per class! Additionally, bootcamp classes each person has to have their own station and no circuit classes where people are moving from station to station. As an instructor, I’m still not sure I feel 100% comfortable with it, but it was also completely optional for us to take a regular class on the schedule or not so I opted out for now and will continue to sub.
I really hope studios continue to offer virtual classes because some people might not want to go into the studio’s / gyms for a long time due to their own personal situations and it’s also been such a great opportunity to workout more at home!
Yum! All of your meals look so delicious. Sorry to hear about gym openings being pushed back. I live in Georgia and if you didn’t catch that national headline, we re-opened everything rather early. Gyms have been open for a couple of weeks now, but we’re still staying home unless absolutely necessary. Several areas nearby are becoming hotspots for the virus so I still don’t feel like we’re in the clear quite yet. We’ll be enjoying our weekend at home celebrating a couple of friends who are having virtual graduations.
Kaitlyn | http://www.oh-theplaceswellgo.com
Hi Jen! A friend introduced me to your blog a while ago and I never really comment on blogs but just wanted to say how much I enjoy the little snapshots to your life! You seem very thoughtful in the way you present what you are doing/feel/the choices you make, and I admire that.
I live in NYC so their are no restaurants, gyms etc and probably will not be for a long time! I feel very grateful right now for nice weather and the ability to run and bike outside.
And I just wanted to add I share a mutual love for carrot cake and totally agree cake freezes so well! 🙂 Have a great three day weekend!
What good eats! I hope I have as much enthusiasm for cooking in retirement as your dad does – everything always looks so amazing.
The gym thing is really hard. I’m particularly worked up over this because the trainer I had been working with and I do not see eye to eye on safety and health, so I think I will be parting ways. I’ve really enjoyed working out “with” you and other fitness pros virtually, and based on my conversations with doctor friends I think that’s where I’ll stay for the foreseeable future. I have a full time from home job, so I sort of see it as my civic duty to keep distancing as much as I can because I’m able to. I really, really feel for you as you navigate these weird and unexpected challenges.
On a happier note, I have given myself permission to turn “birthday” into “birth-long weekend” and have enjoyed plenty of good books, coffee, wine, and time in the garden. It’s not what I would’ve pictured a few months ago, but I’m enjoying being more aware of my many simple blessings on a daily basis.
Gyms and fitness studios are re-opened in my state and capped at 25% capacity for now (I believe they can move to 50% capacity soon). The yoga studio I was teaching at previously asked if I would be interested in returning, but I honestly do not feel safe teaching (or practicing) in a studio at this time. I know that my decision comes from a place of privilege because teaching yoga is just a part-time job for me and one that I mainly do in order to be eligible for free classes at the studio. I know that my former studio is taking all of the precautions possible, including requiring masks in the studio. For now, I am sticking to practicing virtually and may attend some outdoor classes in the near future.
I made one of my favorite dinners last week, lemony squash and orecchiette with rosemary and feta! Such a delicious summery pasta dish and the leftovers are great!
Love this post!!! CrossFit has re-opened, with 10 people limits per class, and some classes have been removed so cleaning can happen. At this point, I’m still not comfortable being back at the gym. I’ve invested more into our home gym workout and am debating on whether to cancel for the year. We are thinking about expanding our family, and with class limits and time options shortened, it would be hard for both of us to enjoy the benefits of the gym being open…. reminding myself that this phase in life is short and the safety is more attractive. BUT I am enjoying online programs and options too, and am a huge fan of having and participating in more virtual options! Best of both worlds!!!