Author Archives: hopebordeaux

The Yogalosophy Project: Day 17 & 18 How Yogalosophy Killed the Frappuccino

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th.

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 No major updates for Day 17 so I didn’t post yesterday, except that I have a story to tell y’all.  You know how Starbucks has those frappuccino specials in the spring? Normally, I’m all over that. Well, this week I decided I could swing by and get myself one. I took a look at the calories in my longtime favorite–the light caramel one–which is truly a scary act for latte lovers (don’t look up anything venti, if you love your white mocha lattes) and realized it wasn’t so rich that I couldn’t have one. I haven’t had anything from Starbucks recently either, because I got a milk frother for the holidays and have been making my own coffees at home. So, I stopped by Starbucks and ordered one, sans whipped cream and those “crunchy” sprinkles they’re doing now. There was that little green straw, the familiar caramel swirl. This is going to be yummy, I thought. I picked up my cute little cup and sipped. Then, a terrible thing occurred.

It was too sweet. I couldn’t finish it. Yogalosophy has killed my love of caramel frappuccinos. 

I could not believe this was happening. To me. Now, I have never been one of those women who says things are “too sweet.” Ever.When I hear someone say that cake is too sweet or chocolate is too sweet, I generally think, haha, I will eat that cake, sucker. But here’s the thing I’ve learned over the last two and a half weeks: cutting out processed foods really does change your taste buds. Reset them. Things that used to taste normal to you will suddenly seem overly sweet or salty if you try them again. That salad dressing you liked before? It’ll taste like a cube of salt. And you won’t really want to finish that  sweet treat. Even if you’re not a perfect dieter like me, the change will still take place. Your taste buds will have become used to lower levels of saltiness and sweetness from the fruits and vegetables you’re eating. Anything more will seem wrong. Which is weirdly refreshing.  The secret to eating less junk food is apparently just to eat less junk food. 
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Funnily enough, today’s Yogalosophy routine is about staying positive and getting your groove on. Mandy includes some of my favorite exercise music on her playlist–a little Bob Marley & Michael Franti–so, for Day 18, I’m going to hop on the elliptical and then do a little yoga.

The Yogalosophy Project: Day 16 Tips & Tricks

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th.

whereismyguruSince  Jessica of Where is My Guru is sharing some of my blog posts on our FB page, I’ve got friends calling dibs on borrowing the book next! That’s pretty sweet. I can say that the project is tough, but rewarding. Despite yoga’s “girly” rep, Mandy’s routines really work your muscles. Check out this new feature that Mandy Ingber is doing with People Magazine. 28 days of Yogalosophy tips!

What would my tips & tricks be?

If you are totally new to yoga, I’d start the program with your own personal Yogalosophy kit: get the book, a comfy yoga mat, and a journal to record your thoughts, goals, and gratitude list. If you can swing it, I might buy Mandy’s Yogalosophy DVD, too.  You don’t need the DVD to use the book successfully, but if you are a visual person like I am, you may find the poses easier to visualize and follow on video initially. They really complement one another–and all of these tools are still cheaper than a gym membership or pricey yoga pants (I tend to exercise in old t-shirts and shorts, anyway. I’m so not one of those lululemon worshippers who spends $100 on one pair of pants. That seems insane). I did get a really cute new mat for Christmas, though. Zebra stripes & from Target!


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The Yogalosophy Project: Day 15 Breakthroughs!

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th. whereismyguru

Today, I had a breakthrough: I actually completed the ‘Fully Loaded Challenge’ on Mandy’s Yogalosophy DVD! I had attempted it before and chickened out, sticking with the shorter Express sequence on the DVD, which doesn’t have Sun Salutations. Y’all know Sun Salutations scare me. But since they were required on the Yogalosophy plan for today, I decided to crack open the DVD and try them again (the DVD and book sequences overlap). Day 15′s plan called for cardio exercise and the Fully Loaded Challenge. As Mandy says in the book, this point in the routine calls for pushing forward to get stronger.

And I did the Sun Salutations! Plus, tree pose! And my balance is getting better and better–I’m more able to do standing poses without using a chair for balancing help and modification. How cool is that? I can honestly say I’m less wobbly and haven’t tripped or fallen in the last week, which is major for me. Really, I fall all the time! But since I started exercising daily for this project, I’ve become much more stable.

To add icing on the cake of increased fitness, I hopped on my scale again and weighed 138 lbs. That means I’ve lost 6 lbs total. For a minute, I seriously thought the scale was lying to me! So, I weighed again, and it still said 138 lbs. I’d been avoiding weighing because I thought it might make me too invested in minor fluctuations or be misled by water weight changes, but I’m glad I tried tonight.

My gratitude list for Day 15:
1. Making it to this point without totally quitting!
2. Getting to teach a class in the fall
3. Puppy snuggles :)
4. I’m supposed to get a new book in the mail tomorrow
5. Discovering Bryan Ferry’s Jazz Age album

The Yogalosophy Project: Day 14 The Exercise Junkie?

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th. whereismyguru

I can’t believe I’ve reached the halfway point of my Yogalosophy mind-body makeover! Today’s theme was cultivating the gracefulness of a dancer. Mandy suggests thinking like a ballerina when you do your yoga poses. I tried my best to think about alignment and poise, rather than huffing and puffing. It reminded me that I had this odd little book of ballet exercises, too. I pulled it out and added a few of the ballet stretches to my Yogalosophy and cardio routine.

I realized tonight that my endurance has improved so much over the last two weeks. The first week was really tough and challenging, but I’m really enjoying my daily exercise now. I said something about going to exercise and someone accused me of being an “exercise junkie” today! Isn’t that hilarious? I’m contemplating putting it on business cards: “Hope Bordeaux, Book Guru & Exercise Junkie.” What do you think?

Here’s the little ballet book and my much-read copy of Yogalosophy on my nightstand.

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The Yogalosophy Project: Day 13 A little love + risotto + Where is My Guru

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th. whereismyguru

Today’s Yogalosophy prompt is to practice self-acceptance and treat yourself well. I love that idea. Isn’t that something we should be doing everyday? Mandy suggests taking yourself out to dinner, but I had my heart set on trying out a more Yogalosophy-friendly version of a classic risotto recipe: Mark Bittman’s Brown Rice Risotto. Have you read Bittman? His Food Matters is full of great vegetable cooking suggestions and will be making a cameo in my upcoming Daily Muse column. He’s really helped convince me of the joys of vegetables, along with Yogalosophy.

Bittman’s recipe calls for pre-boiling healthier brown rice to soften it, then proceeding as if you are using standard white arborio rice. Since I had some red onions and a bunch of baby zucchini, I decided to substitute them for Bittman’s winter squash. I used tons of chopped zucchini and a fourth of a red onion here. For meat, instead of larger quantities of shrimp or beef, I used three chopped strips of bacon for the entire pan (there is enough for two people, plus leftovers, so that is less bacon per person than you imagine). What I normally do with risotto is slice the bacon into tiny pieces, cook them, remove them and most of the bacon grease from the pan, then use a little of the bacon drippings to flavor the onions, rice, and zucchini as they cook. When the risotto is done, I stir the bacon back in as a final step, so it retains crispiness. I don’t like soft bacon, personally; I use an applewood smoked bacon. That’s probably the most un-Yogalosophy, southern girl part! If you’re worried about fat, skip the bacon. Since that was all the meat I’ve eaten today, I wasn’t worried. If you are vegetarian, you could probably use mushrooms for their flavor, too. There were certain points when I thought the recipe was going to go terribly awry–it looked like the liquid wouldn’t absorb–and all those good ingredients would be wasted in a weird soup thing. But I kept stirring and made sure the heat was very high, per Bittman, and it turned out wonderfully.

I just love risotto, y’all. My mother, who was my non-Yogalosophy taste tester and isn’t keen on some veggie risottos, declared it “DELICIOUS!” I think it was the excellent layering of flavors in the recipe–the onions and zucchini made it less bland that some risottos I’ve made before. She says it is her favorite now, which surprised me.

Before I did all that, had a little 20-minute cardio party and 25 minutes on my elliptical, so I was looking forward to a satisfying dinner and a movie before my evening yoga session. I love old movies, so I’ve turned on one of the Basil Rathbone series of Sherlock Holmes films, The Woman in Green, for my Friday retro fix. Rathbone was the original movie Sherlock back before Robert Downey Jr. I think they have a similar goatee thing. See?

And since it’s Friday, you should check out the latest Where is My Guru show!

The Yogalosophy Project: Day 12 Late, Late, Late!

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th.

It’s technically Day 13 already, but I wanted to do a belated Day 12 post. Yesterday, I got up early and did all my exercise, thinking that I would post about them later in the evening. But I was so tired by midnight last night, I wanted to go straight to sleep! That’s the great thing about Yogalosophy: I’m sleeping much better than I was before. One of the things Mandy talks about is working your muscles to help you relax and I can say 100% that the program is improving the quality of my sleep.

Other things that have improved/changed during the last 12 days:

-increased definition in my arms, shoulders, and legs
-clearer skin (I’m attributing this to drinking more water)
-greater balance and stability
-my clothes are fitting slightly differently & I’ve lost 3 lbs. overall

I actually feel like I’ve added some muscle, too, but don’t have an easy way of measuring that to verify. My shoulders, for example, look stronger. I may have to dig up a “before” post and take a current one for comparison. I’m really happy about feeling stronger and more stable, particularly when I’m walking around—that’s a huge plus for me. Yay Yogalosophy!

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The Yogalosophy Project: Day 11

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th.

I can’t believe I’m on Day 11 already! Since this was my first day working from home since the semester ended, I had time to workout on the elliptical and the bike earlier in the day. I like to use the randomized program on my elliptical for more variety and raise my heart rate, then take a slower, high resistance ride on the bike while listening to podcasts. Plus, I was making up for resting yesterday because I was a little achey and sore from Monday’s major workout (I had too much fun at the cardio party, apparently! My glutes still hurt!) and running errands. Then I had a big ol’ bowl of fruit and greek yogurt for breakfast today. This has been one of my favorite Yogalosophy Project things–I didn’t eat a lot of fruit before but I really enjoy eating it now–and I’m trying new veggies that I don’t usually eat at home. I bought a bunch of asparagus last night, too. Tonight’s plan: do some yoga!

If you feel like doing yoga,check out this great Popsugar video of Mandy doing a 10-minute happiness flow routine.

Another cool thing I found today? This Canadian project called 30×30. The goal is to spend 30 minutes outside everyday in May. Neat, right? Getting outdoors has all kinds of de-stressing benefits, including greater concentration and better immune health. It’s raining today, so I’ll probably take my 30 minutes on my porch, but I can imagine that an outdoor yoga session might be neat.
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The Yogalosophy Project: Day 10 Dancin’ Fool

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th. whereismyguru

Day 10! Did you miss yesterday’s update? I was super busy and didn’t have time to write one. I was yoga-ing and dancing like a fool. Yesterday’s cardio prompt was to throw a little party, so I did! I turned on some Pandora music and generally bounced, wiggled, and shimmied in the silliest manner imaginable. I am not a dancer, y’all. As my mama says, “You dance like a Baptist.” I could have popped in one of my Zumba DVDs, but I forgot them! I hoofed it on the elliptical too and feel a little sore this morning. But it was so much fun.

Today’s prompt is to engage in play, so I might do a little bit more dancing, actually. I love this cat dance meme. I looked a little like that.

My favorite impromptu party music is a mix of retro and world music: Ceu, Pink Martini, Ella Fitzgerald, and the Squirrel Nut Zippers. What are your favorites?

The Yogalosophy Project: Day 8 Sun Salutations with Bridget Jones

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This is part of a 28-Day Yoga Challenge to follow the guidelines of Mandy Ingber’s new book, Yogalosophy, before I review the book on the Where Is My Guru radio show on May 17th. whereismyguru

  I was nervous about the Sun Salutations in yesterday’s workout! I’m not so great at these, especially in other yoga DVDs. I don’t have the balance required to flow from standing to mat-based poses easily. I can’t keep up with that kind of rapid vinyasa sequencing. It’s the stepping up to standing again; I feel like I’m dragging myself awkwardly up off the floor and using bad form. I actually prefer the slower versions of sun salutation that Mandy does in this Youtube clip. It’s a great resource:

Eating-wise, I’m back to eating mostly salads, veggies, and fruit rather than muffins and brownies. Plus, I’ve started using agave in my coffee. This stuff is really good!  However, I did have wine last night. I missed it with dinner (according to this Health.com article moderate wine consumption has certain health benefits, too).  Also, my mom, who doesn’t even drink herself, said that I seemed kind of flat and tense earlier in the week and that I wasn’t laughing as much as I normally do. Was I eating too little?  Should I add in some good dark chocolate to perk myself up? Or was it just a tough week? I haven’t decided yet, but this struck me as somewhat ironic. I joke sometimes that Bridget Jones is my guru. Have you read the original Bridget Jones’ Diary? I love it to bits. People think it’s fluffy and insubstantial, not realizing it’s terrifically challenging to write an entire narrative arc in a diary format. I re-read it to marvel at Helen Fielding’s talent for dialogue and the way she can make the diary device work. One of the novel’s plotlines involves Bridget losing weight successfully by cutting out all her favorite candies and wine (she eats some kind of chocolate called Milk Trays, which I’ve always wondered about. What are those?). Then her friends tell her she seems too thin and overly subdued! Oh no! I think I’ve lost somewhere between one and two pounds this week, so I hope this tragic fate doesn’t await me.

Image via Salon.com article: http://www.salon.com/2013/02/05/the_return_of_bridget_jones/

You can read about the return of Bridge here.