Monthly Archives: June 2014

Being Smart But Playing Dumb (or Adventures In Job Hunting)

I’m still on the lookout for another day job to help pay the bills. Until the season starts at my box office job, I’m only going to get a few shifts a month (hopefully during the season it will be more like 2 or so a week).

I’m applying a lot through various websites and I’ve been letting people know that I’m still looking. Sometimes other people know of jobs that I can’t find out about elsewhere.

And that’s what has happened over the past few days. The aunt of a friend of mine was at a store and overheard a woman saying that she really needed to hire an assistant and fill some other job openings that she had. So my friend’s aunt sent me a message on Facebook telling me that I should email this woman (I’m not saying her name because I don’t want it to come up if someone searches for this person online). I felt weird emailing someone when I had no idea if they were looking for full-time or part-time employees or even what they were paying, so my friend’s aunt called me so I could talk to the woman on the phone.

For the first few seconds she was very nice. Then she asked me if I was looking for a job. I was very upfront with her and said that I was looking for a flexible day job because I was an actor. I said that I wanted to be honest with her in case she needed someone to work more stable hours.

That’s when the call went bad. She told me that I was putting my negativity on her and that I should never assume that a job wasn’t going to be flexible. I apologized and said that I just didn’t want to waste her time if I wasn’t what she needed, and since I had literally zero information about the job I didn’t know what she was looking for. I tried to get some more information out of her, but she said that she was very busy and wasn’t expected to be on a phone call about the job (which I understood) so she asked me to submit my resume to her. She then kept saying to me that I needed to understand that she wasn’t offering me a job at that moment but offering me a chance to apply for a job. That was weird. Of course she wasn’t offering me a job. I had no idea what the job was yet!

I submitted my resume to her and figured that maybe I wouldn’t hear back from her. I tried to look her up online (she said that she had done a lot of film and tv work and was creating her own tv show), but there was nothing online under her name. Not just nothing useful, nothing at all. I figured that maybe I had the name written down wrong or she used a different name publicly, so I let it go.

Then the next morning, she called me at 9am as I was about to run an errand. She asked me if I could talk and I told her that I had 20 minutes.

She was very upset with me for telling her I only had 20 minutes. She said that if Oprah had called me that I wouldn’t tell her that. I responded by saying that I would and I would hope that Oprah would respect me enough to not take up time that I didn’t have.

She said that I had a lot of education and experience but that I wasn’t a very smart person as far as street smarts go. She called me classless and without grace. She didn’t want me to talk for a while on the phone so I just listened. She never said anything about the job or what her show was about.

Finally, I had a chance to talk and explained how I tried to look her up online the night before so I could become more familiar with her work. She told me that her team was a very powerful group of people and that they removed her from being in online searches so she could re-brand herself. She didn’t want anyone to know that she used to be a successful actress.

That’s when I started to realize that this woman wasn’t being truthful with me. You can’t erase everything about you from the internet. If she was in a lot of film and TV work, you would be on IMDb and have reviews about your projects. You can’t delete everything.

I specifically asked her about IMDb. I asked her why she wasn’t on there. She said that her team was able to take her entire page down.

I’m sorry, but that’s not really possible. There was recently a lawsuit about someone trying to get their birth year taken off of IMDb and that woman lost her lawsuit because IMDb said that they are an information site and have a right to show truthful information about people. So for one person to claim that they had their entire IMDb page deleted to re-brand themselves seems pretty much impossible.

At that point in the phone call, I decided to start playing dumb like I didn’t know that what she was saying was pretty much false information. She told me that I just couldn’t understand because I’m not on her level.

She also told me that I should have my IMDb page deleted and that actors at my level should not have a page yet. My page was not created by me. I was in a show and the producers submitted my information. That’s how a lot of information gets on IMDb. This woman told me that showing the world the stepping stones of my acting career is not going to help me at all. It’s only going to show people that I’m not worthy of a big career.

I could go on and on about what this woman said to me, but honestly I realized in the end that she was pretty much saying lie after lie. Or maybe she honestly believes it but I know that it’s not correct information.

She asked me if I still wanted to interview with her and I said yes. Not because I want to work for her. But because I’m wondering if she’s running some sort of scam that more naive actors might fall for. I don’t know if she’s trying to get people to work unpaid or something, but something isn’t right about this. Even after the second phone call, which lasted about 45 minutes, I still don’t know what jobs she’s hiring for, how much they pay, what the hours would be like, or anything else.

I posted this story on my Facebook page on Saturday after the second phone call. I got a lot of responses from people. Some people want me to go to the interview to see what her deal is and to turn it down in person (I even have some friends who want to come with me and see what happens). I have other friends who said I should just drop this whole thing and not to waste my time with her.

If I do meet her, it’s going to be in a super public place like a coffee shop. I would never meet someone who I don’t know (and who technically doesn’t exist on the internet) somewhere where there aren’t other people around.

And now that I’m thinking about it, she might end up googling my name and finding this blog and this post (don’t worry, I did some research online and there’s no way she can sue me for libel because I didn’t use her name or any identifying details about her so there is no way I’m ruining her good name). And she might decide that she doesn’t want to talk to me again. And if you are reading this, I’m sorry if I wasted your time on the phone. I really was interested in a job at first, but I can’t work for someone who insults me on the phone several times and lies about things.

I actually have a very busy week this week and pretty much no time to go to an interview, so chances are I will never get to meet whoever this person really is and decline the job in person. I have a feeling when I tell her that I can’t meet her this week, she will say that I should be willing to cancel my plans to meet her. I’m not willing to not go to a paying job to meet her to turn down her job in person.

But I’m hoping that even without saying this woman’s name (or at least the name that she gave to me) or saying really any identifying details that this story will be a warning to others. I’m sure that she has spoken to other people about the jobs that she’s hiring for. She said that craigslist is not a good place to find people (which I don’t believe) so she won’t post the jobs on there. So I have no idea how she is finding people.

But if this story sounds familiar to you, this is my warning. There is no shame in asking someone questions. If you get shamed, there is something that they are hiding. When I had asked about IMDb and wanting to do some research about her, her response was that I would be so embarrassed that I ever questions who she is when I meet her. People who are really that famous or in that position don’t need to talk themselves up like that.

I’ve had so many horrible jobs and job interview situations in the past. I’m just glad that know I have this blog to document them on and hopefully give you all a good laugh. And if you want to read some more about what happened on the second phone call (I typed out some direct quotes), they are on my Facebook page.

500 Posts! (or A Reason To Celebrate!)

Today’s post is about a lot of good things that have happened lately.

First of all, like the title of this post says, this is my 500th post on Finding My Inner Bombshell! That’s so bonkers to me! I write 5 days a week so that means I’ve been writing for 100 weeks. So yes, that also means that my 2 year anniversary of the blog is coming up soon as well.

I’m still in shock how this blog really has become an important part of my life. When I started, I hoped I’d be able to keep it going. Now when I’m not writing on the weekends, I feel like something is missing. I’ve made new friends because of the blog and I’ve become closer to old friends because of my honesty here. It’s just awesome.

The next part of my awesome news is that my mom got her BRCA test results back and she doesn’t have the gene mutation! When my mom texted me with the news, I cried in relief. This is a weight lifted off my shoulders (and I’m sure the rest of my family feels this way). When I talked to my mom that day, she said that getting these results have allowed her to relax and she can go on and enjoy life. And for me, it means that while I still have a higher risk of getting breast cancer in my life because my mom had it, it’s not nearly as high of a risk if I had had the gene mutation.

I’m still going to be monitored much closer and I’ve already talked with my gynecologist about setting up a mammogram appointment after I see her (I’m sure I’ll be writing about that appointment when it happens because I’m still crazy nervous about it).

The third, and technically, final good news is that I’m finally starting to get back on track with losing weight. I’ve lost about 10% of what I had gained recently. It’s not a lot, but it’s totally a start. I’m working on my eating and I’ve been working out again. My journey is still going to be a long one, but I’m happy to be moving in the right direction again.

And in other celebratory things (but not technically good news), today is my friend Kate’s birthday! I’ll be seeing her next week, so we’ll get to celebrate her birthday then, but I wanted to acknowledge how amazing of a friend she is. She was the first person I talked to when my mom was diagnosed with cancer. She kept the news a secret for a while until my mom was ready to go public with the news. And she was there to listen to me whenever I was freaking out or having a tough time. Not many friends would or could do that and I’m so insanely grateful that she was willing to be there for me.

So to recap: yay for 500 posts, yay for my mom not having the BRCA gene, yay for me losing some weight, and happy birthday to Kate!

I love how my life has become so wonderful and positive!

Going Orange Again (or Having A Successful Second Workout)

My first experience at OrangeTheory Fitness was good, but the few days after it were pretty painful. But I didn’t want to be scared of any workouts, especially because this one was so different from anything else I’ve ever done.

So as crazy as it sounds, I went back to OrangeTheory this week! I tried an after work class, which in itself is challenging for me. When I workout in the morning, I know exactly what I should eat before working out. I almost always have a glass of chocolate milk (I like the 100 calorie pre-packaged kind). But working out in the afternoon means trying to figure out what to put into my body for breakfast, lunch, and most likely a snack before working out and hoping that it won’t make me nauseous (either from feeling full or feeling light-headed).

I managed to do ok with my food this week, so I was only nervous about the class. Check in was much easier this time since they know me there now (I was even greeted by name when I walked in the door!). I got a heart rate monitor from the front desk and got ready to workout.

This time, I tried doing the treadmill workout first and the rowing and strength second. The treadmill was still tough on my hips, but I think that that is something that won’t go away (it’s similar to the pain I get sometimes doing my 5Ks). I did push myself a bit with the incline on the treadmill, but I kept my pace a bit slower than I’d like to be.

For rowing and weights, I did as much as I could. There was one round of squats that I didn’t do so well because I’m scared to hurt my quads again. And we had to do burpees, which is something I’ve never done before. The instructor showed me how to do modified ones (basically making them low-impact instead of high-impact). I did a couple, but I have to say that burpees make me feel dizzy! The instructor said that some people experience that because you are going from upright to parallel to the floor so quickly and often. But I took some breaks and managed to do my sets.

Overall, my workout didn’t burn quite as many calories as my first one did, but I still did pretty awesome.

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Again, the green zone is the fat burning zone and I managed to stay in that for almost the entire class!

And I’m happy to report that I don’t feel any crazy pain after this workout! So clearly I just pushed myself way too hard the first time.

I really enjoyed the class again and I’m planning on going back hopefully next week. If anyone wants to join me, let me know! I believe that you get your first class for free!

 

 

FOX Girls’ Night Out (or Getting To Meet Women I Admire)

This past Monday I was invited to go to the FOX Girls’ Night Out event that was being held at the Television Academy. I of course said yes!

Things were a little tough driving over to North Hollywood (there was a shooter incident very close to the Academy and there were street closures I wasn’t expecting). The event started at 7:30 and had advised everyone to be at least 30 minutes early, but I didn’t even park my car until about 7:20.

Luckily for me, I went to the event by myself and managed to find a single seat free pretty close to the front. Thank goodness for people wanting to have a one-seat buffer around them!

I’ve been to the Television Academy before many years ago. I actually went to a screening and Q&A for “Brokeback Mountain” there before that movie was released. But I’m still in awe over how cool the theater is (and how awesome the giant Emmy statues are).

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The event was pretty amazing with some of the most incredible women in television on the stage.

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On the stage is Jane Lynch (from “Glee”), Chelsea Peretti (from “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”), Mindy Kaling (creator, writer, and star of “The Mindy Project”), Liz Meriweither (executive producer of “New Girl”), Heather Kadin (executive producer of “Sleepy Hollow”), Yeardley Smith (the voice of Lisa on “The Simpsons”), and Alex Borstein (voice of Lois on “Family Guy”).

I mean, seriously, this is a dream team of women!

The Q&A covered some background on everyone’s stories as well as advice that they wanted to share with all of us. That lasted maybe an hour and then the Q&A was over and there was a reception with appetizers and champagne in the lobby.

But I noticed that some of the women were standing at the stage saying hello to people, so I headed up there to try to thank some of the panelists for coming and sharing their wisdom.

I had a brief second to talk to Jane Lynch. She shook my hand and asked my name and I told her how I admire her and her career so much. I didn’t get to take a picture with her, but that’s ok.

Next, I went over to Yeardley Smith. I have loved “The Simpsons” for forever and wanted to thank her for coming as well. I did get a chance for a picture with her.

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After that, we were all told that we had to head out to the reception. But once I got out there, I noticed that Mindy Kaling was still saying hello to people and taking pictures. So I lined up like a crazy fan (which I am, I just try to play it cool more often). The picture is a little blurry, but I’m so glad I got it.

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Again, I got to thank her for coming to the event and tell her that I think she is an amazing role model for other women trying to make it in the entertainment industry.

After my pictures, I was walking around to see if there was anyone I knew hanging out in the lobby, and my friend Porter Kelly called my name. I hadn’t seen Porter in a while and it was awesome to get to catch up with her! I loved taking her commercial class a while back (which if any of you actors want to take, Porter said that any of my blog readers can get a discount!).

Before I knew it, it was getting late and I wanted to head home so I could get a decent night sleep before working the next morning. On our way out, we noticed that the step and repeat was still up so Porter and I got a quick picture in front of it.

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On the other side of the red carpet, they had the signs for all the various entertainment shows to know where their reporters could stand to do interviews. They don’t give each show a lot of space.

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I had such an amazing evening that night and felt more invigorated than ever that I’m on the right career path and that one day it will be my turn. Hopefully that day comes soon, but I’m willing to wait it out.

ClassPass (or Attempting To Workout While Hurting)

Last week I had the opportunity to take a workout class to celebrate the launch of ClassPass in Los Angeles. If you aren’t familiar with ClassPass, it’s actually a really amazing concept.

You pay a monthly membership to ClassPass and you have access to take classes at tons of different workout studios. You can go 10 times each month and you can take such a great variety of classes. There is spin, Pilates, yoga, strength training, boot camp, and barre classes just to name a few.

The classes that was part of the launch event was a barre class held at Exhale in Hollywood which is located in the Loews Hollywood hotel. I had never been to Exhale before, but I have to say that it was pretty amazing.

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First of all, there is free valet parking for people going to Exhale. Considering that I would have had to pay about $10 in the lot across the street, free valet is quite a nice thing.

The workout studio in Exhale had just opened last week, so the group I was with was part of one of the first classes there!

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Exhale is also a spa! We got a little tour of the spa areas as well.

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The workout class that we were going to take was a barre class. I’ve never taken a barre class before, so I was pretty nervous. This was also only 2 days after my crazy workout at OrangeTheory so I was in a lot of pain and was having trouble moving.

My plan was to watch the class since I figured I really couldn’t do much. But the instructor encouraged me to try to do as much as I could, and I’m glad that she did!

The class was actually something I was able to do! There were a couple of things that were not going to happen with the pain that I was in, but I think I was able to do about 80% of the workout! And I was surprised that I loved the barre class! Most of the classes I’ve enjoyed in the past are high-energy classes with really loud music. This had music, but it was much quieter and the class was much more controlled than most of the classes I’ve been to.

After the class, I was surprised that I wasn’t in more pain. I wasn’t feeling much better either, but I expected to hurt a lot more. The class was pretty low-impact so it’s good for my hips. Turns out it was good for my sore muscles as well.

After the class we had a little tent outside the studio for some snacks and to have some time to chat with the founders of ClassPass. The snacks were quite yummy!

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We also got some really fun swag bags!

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Part of the swag bag is a one month membership to ClassPass! I’m so excited that I can try out a ton of new fitness studios this month! I’m totally going to take another barre class and I’d really love to take Pilates again (I used to take Pilates years ago).

At the end of the launch event, I just took a moment to admire how amazing it is to be in Los Angeles. I’m so grateful to live in this city and sometimes the cool views (and pools) still impress me!

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Thank you so much to ClassPass for inviting me to such an awesome event! I highly encourage all my LA readers to check out ClassPass for themselves (it’s also in NYC if you live there!).  It’s so great to not have to feel tied down to one studio and to get to try everything to see what you love!

A Phone Call Can Change My Future (or Making Plans)

A few weeks ago, my mom did her genetic testing for the breast cancer gene mutation. This Wednesday, my mom gets a phone call and will find out the result.

My family has been very open about discussing what either a positive or negative result means for everyone in the family. And I’ve talked about it a lot with my mom.

She has her own ideas of what she wants to do in both cases (and it’s not my place to discuss what she wants to do until she tells me I can share it). And I’ve had to make my own plans.

Since I’m all about honesty here, I figured I would share my plans openly. While I really do believe that my mom will test negative for the gene mutation, everything I’ve read has said to be prepared for the worst case scenario.

First of all, no matter what the results are, I’m going to start being monitored much more carefully for breast cancer now. I’ve got a much higher risk of getting it now since my mom had it. My mom’s doctors believe that I will probably have to get my first mammogram this year when I go in for my annual exam. I always schedule my annual exam to be around my birthday (harder to forget to schedule it that way), so I need to talk to my gynecologist about whether or not she wants me to have a mammogram soon and if she’d like me to do it before I see her. I’m a little nervous to get a mammogram since I’ve never had one and I’ve heard that they are pretty unpleasant. Also, I’m a little worried that this isn’t going to be enough monitoring because my mom’s cancer wasn’t found on a mammogram.

If my mom tests positive for the gene mutation, I’ve already made the decision that I want to be tested immediately. I don’t see any reason not to know. If I’m positive, I can make plans that help reduce my risk. If I test negative, I will still have to always be monitored more than most people, but I won’t have to take as extreme of measures.

And those extreme measures do include having  double mastectomy. I know that if I do test positive for the gene mutation, I will eventually take this step. I won’t do it until I have kids (whenever that ends up being), but to me, not taking this step is just asking to be a ticking time bomb. I know that many people who do test positive don’t want to do this or have to go through such a tough surgery, but in my mind, if I don’t I will be paranoid all the time. I would also probably have my ovaries removed (since that cancer is normally not detected until it’s very advanced), but again, I wouldn’t do anything until after I have kids.

I have told a couple of friends my plans as well and I think that talking openly and honestly about it has made it all seem less scary. I really am prepared for the worst case now. But every time my mom and I have talked about this on the phone, we both agree that the chances of her testing positive are so slim that we both feel pretty confident that it will be negative.

If any of you have gone through this, I’d really appreciate any advice you can give me. My family is still going through the unknown here and I like hearing the advice and stories of people who have gone through this. Hearing other’s stories has helped me make my plan and feel confident that what I’ve decided will be the right choice for me.

Audition Fairy (or The Tale Of Two Auditions)

Even though my auditions have seemed to hit a slump recently, this week I had 2 auditions! One was for a music video (which I know I didn’t book because it would have shot yesterday) and one for a short film (which I won’t know if I booked for at least another week or so).

In the room for both auditions, I felt great about the work I did. In fact, in the short film audition the casting director and her team were laughing so hard at my audition and said that I did exactly what they wanted. Even if I don’t book this job, I know that they will remember that I do good work in the room.

At the music video audition, they were bringing people back in groups of 5. I think that was because they were getting backed up and wanted to try to get through everyone as quickly as possible. After I signed in, I stood off to the side (it was very crowded in the waiting room plus I was so sore from my workout that I was scared that I would sit down and not be able to get back up). There was another woman standing right next to me so we started to chat.

If the audition requires a lot of lines, I’m usually not chatty in the waiting room. I spend that time working on my lines. But for this audition, we had to lip-sync to a song. I practiced the night before as well as in my car driving over so I felt comfortable not working on it while waiting. The woman I was talking with ended up being super cool. She and I chatted about random stuff and she told me how she only found out about the audition about an hour before (I on the other hand found out the afternoon before). I told her that if she wanted to look at my printout of the lyrics she could borrow them.

We waited about 30 minutes and then I was called into a group. The woman I was talking with ended up being in the same group as me. We all went into the audition room and I went first. We only had to lip-sync to the first verse and chorus and then my audition was over. I was dismissed but before I left I gave my new buddy my print out of the lyrics so she could practice before it was her turn (there were 3 people in our group ahead of her). And when I walked through the waiting room, I let other women know that they didn’t have to worry about the entire song, just the first verse and chorus.

Everyone thanked me and I headed back to my car. I felt like the audition fairy for helping out. I like to help out my fellow actors. I don’t feel like my chances are any worse if I help someone else out. Either they want me or they don’t want me.

After that audition I posted on social media that I felt good for being able to help people and some friends said that it will come back around to me soon since that’s how karma works.

At my second audition this week I ended up standing up again in the waiting room (for the same reasons again) and there was a woman standing next to me. She asked me if I was part of a particular actor group and I told her I wasn’t. Then she realized that she knew me through my friend Ace. More specifically, she saw the blog post that Ace had shared on Facebook and twitter.

We both laughed about how it was such a small world that we had a mutual friend. And we also thought it was funny that we hadn’t met before because she and I are very similar types.

This audition ran long. There must have been too many actors scheduled too close together plus the casting assistant was letting people who crashed the audition cut the wait and go in before people who had audition appointments and had been waiting. The wait ended up being a little over 45 minutes, but that’s ok. I had a new friend to talk with in the waiting area.

Her audition was before mine and when she was done, she walked over to me to give me a heads up about what happened in the room. When we signed in, we were all told that there were no sides for us to read. We didn’t have to worry about any lines. But in the room, she was handed a page of the script and had a few lines to read.

I’m so grateful that I was given a heads up about this! While I wished I had time to feel comfortable with the lines before going in the room, at least I walked into the room knowing that I was going to have to read the page and memorize the lines super quickly.

It turns out that my friends were right about karma coming back to me. On Tuesday I was the audition fairy for someone and on Thursday someone was the audition fairy for me.

This just reminds me that doing good things for other people is important. It doesn’t matter that technically I’m helping my competition because I know that if I’m who they want, it won’t matter what anyone else does in the room.

Dealing With The Pain (or Not All Pain Is The Same)

After my class at OrangeTheory, I was pretty sore. My quads were shaking a lot during the class because we did what felt like 500 squats.

I figured that when I got home, I’d take a pain pill, take a long shower, and I’d feel fine. That’s not at all what happened.

The day of the class, I was sore but it wasn’t too bad. I took my prescription Motrin and that’s it. The next morning (Monday), when I tried to get out of bed I fell onto the floor and it took a good few minutes before I could stand up. And once I was standing, walking wasn’t exactly and option for me.

I took my prescription Motrin as well as one of my stronger painkillers (because of all my hip issues I’m pretty stocked up with painkillers) and did my work for the day. Thank goodness my desk chair is on wheels because I spent most of Monday getting around my house on that chair.

Before going to bed on Monday, I tried a prescription painkiller cream and hoped for the best that night. I really didn’t sleep too much. Every time I shifted in bed my legs felt like they were on fire.

Tuesday was pretty bad as well. I was very careful walking around my house and did manage to make it to the store to get some Icy Hot, which I had never tried before for my pain (since my hip pain is in the joint, most topical creams won’t help me at all). I also went to a blogger event (post to come about that soon) where I was forced to move around. It was very very painful but it did seem to help afterward.

As I’m writing this on Wednesday, I’m still wincing every time I sit down or stand up and walking is still tough for me. I’m hoping in the next day or two all the pain will be gone.

What I’m assuming happened was I completely overdid it in the workout class. Your muscles have to tear a little to build up and get stronger, and I probably tore too much of my quads in that class (which is ironically one of the things I was misdiagnosed with when my hip problems started).

This is a setback for me, but I’m not letting it get me down. I feel like I’m kind of a pro at dealing with pain and I know that I will get through this. I just have to take it easy and not push myself. That’s tough for me because with my hip issues, sometimes I have to push myself to make it feel better. But right now, rest and painkillers are my best friends.

And like I said before, I’m taking this all as a sign that I have to go back and workout more. I shouldn’t feel like this after a class and clearly I need it (or something like it) to make sure that I get stronger and this never happens to me again.

OrangeTheory Fitness (or Pushing Myself)

This past weekend, I was invited to check out OrangeTheory Fitness. This chain has been around for a couple of years, but their first Los Angeles location is about to have their grand opening in a few days. So before the grand opening, a couple of us were invited to take a free class and see what OrangeTheory is all about.

The studio is in Brentwood, so it’s not super close to my house but not unreasonably far either. There’s valet parking in the building and OrangeTheory validates your parking so you get free valet for 90 minutes (the class is an hour long so you should be able to not have to pay at all to park)!

When I walked in to the lobby, I checked in and tried to get ready for a workout that I had no idea if I could do.

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OrangeTheory is like group personal training. Each class is an hour-long and the class is split up into 2 groups. Each group does cardio and strength, but one group does cardio first and the other does strength first.

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The group I was in started on the rowing machines. We did about 4 minutes of rowing (which I had only done maybe once or twice before in my life) and then we moved on to strength training. We used TRX suspension bands and did some squats and lunges. We were told what each exercise was and how many times to do each one, but the number of times we did the circuit was up to us. I made it through the circuit twice before we went back to the rowing machines.

Then it was about 5 minutes of rowing and we headed back over to the strength training area. We did some arms and shoulder exercises and then ended with some planks.

Then it was time for the groups to switch. My group moved on to the treadmills (the other group started on the treadmills and when we switched they did the workout that my group just finished). On the treadmills, you were given the option to run, jog, or power walk.

Of course, I went with power walking. You started at a base level and every couple of minutes you would push yourself. The runners and joggers went faster and the power walkers made the treadmills go up in incline. It was tough.

When the class was over, we all came together to stretch and cool down a bit. Then it was time for something that I found super cool.

Everyone in class wore a heart rate monitor. This is something that I’m used to, but I only really wear mine to tell me how many calories I burned in my workout. During the entire class, there were tv screens showing everyone’s heart rate. And the heart rates were divided into zones (basically easy effort, light effort, medium effort, tough effort, and maximum effort). The goal of the class was to spend a majority of the time in the medium and tough effort zone (the tough effort zone is the orange zone, hence the name OrangeTheory). I didn’t make it into the orange zone too much, but I did do a pretty awesome job.

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I spent about 50 minutes of the class in the green, or medium effort zone. That is also known as the fat burning zone. So I pretty much spent the entire class burning fat.

That chart was also emailed to me so I could keep it for my records. And fortunately, the heart rate monitors we had to use in the class also tracked calories burned (at the front desk they got our age, height, and weight so the calorie burns are pretty accurate).

This class was extremely tough for me. My hips started to kill me toward the end but I burned so many calories in this class! And when it was done, I was absolutely dripping with sweat.

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I’m thinking that I might add this into my workout routine. It’s very different from anything else I’m doing and it totally pushed me (just like how at SoulCycle I work harder than when I bike on my own).

The only downside right now is that I pushed myself so hard that my body is having a bit of a tough time recovering. This class was on Sunday morning and I’m writing this on Tuesday evening. My legs are still a little wobbly and very sore. I probably pushed myself too hard, but this proves to me that I need to be working harder.

They are offering free classes at OrangeTheory Fitness through this weekend (when the grand opening is happening). I encourage everyone to try to check it out! And once it’s open, there are options to buy various types of memberships and class packages. I’m seriously looking into what option is the best for me.

All I have to wait on now is for my soreness to go away so I can take another class!

Honesty Time (or Going Backwards)

I haven’t talked about weight loss on here for a while. And it’s because things are going so great for me right now.

In fact, I’ve gained a decent amount of weight. I haven’t gained everything that I lost, but I gained back a good chunk of it.

And I haven’t wanted to share that on here because I don’t want to disappoint you all. But then I realized that everyone who is going through weight struggles has this moment. I’ve had it before and I’m sure I’ll have it again.

What makes this different is I stopped it (or at least realized it) before all the progress I had made disappeared. And I’m trying to take steps to go back in the right direction.

Why the weight gain? Well, lately both my food choices haven’t been great and I’ve been skipping workouts. So of course I should expect weight gain.

The thing is, I didn’t realize how long it had been since I last worked out. When I finally looked at my history at SoulCycle, I realized that I haven’t been there in a month. And my last workout was the blogger event at FlyWheel. But that was several weeks ago.

Since realizing this over the weekend, I have had a big workout (but that will come in another post). But missing workouts was only part of the picture. Food is always going to be a battle for me and I don’t want it to beat me. So I downloaded several books onto my kindle about eating disorders (mostly on binge eating but some on eating disorders in general).

I starting with a book that I saw recommended on another blog that I read. I’m about a third of the way done with it and it is eye-opening to see that other people have the exact same struggles that I do. Somehow it feels like eating disorders are a very lonely thing and nobody understands how you feel. But when you are really open and honest about it you find that there are other people who get exactly what you go through.

I’m hoping to get myself back on the right track quickly. I have another 5K coming up in less than 2 weeks and I don’t want to be unprepared for it.

But if nothing else, at least I recognized that I was slipping before I got back to the start line.