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Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Out of My Comfort Zone

I spent this whole weekend outside my comfort zone.


It started on Thursday when I did "real" yoga for the first time:






This is a great DVD for anyone who is interested in beginning yoga. It's a 45 minute workout and comes with illustrations of all the poses used. The instructor, Nicki Doane, also explains each pose the first time through and provides the viewer with very helpful cues. 


I was shocked by how poor my yoga performance was! I can bench (more than) my body weight for crying out loud - I figured yoga would be a breeze. 


Not the case. It kicked my butt!!! 


I'm planning on continuing to do yoga twice a week. I've always believed that if something is difficult, it means you need to get better at it. ;-) Maybe once I feel like I'm a decent newbie yogi, I'll start taking a real class! =)


This weekend I also experienced my very first Passover Seder. 


Part of Max's family is Jewish, and they invited us to their Passover this year. 


I was brought up Catholic and went to Catholic school, so the Passover story is very familiar to me, but all of the traditions (the four cups of wine, opening the door for the prophet Elijah) and cuisine were new. 


Source - Matzo ball soup!
Matzo ball soup is actually pretty tasty. The matzo balls are kind of like soft meatballs and the broth is just basic chicken broth; it's kind of like chicken noodle soup without noodles. 


Source - Gefilte Fish and horseradish
I did not partake of the Gefilte Fish. I noticed that of the ten participants, only three ate this dish, so I figured I wouldn't risk it. There's nothing more rude than involuntarily making a disgusted face or sound!


Brisket!
The main course was beef brisket, potatoes, latkes, and plenty of roasted Brussels sprouts, asparagus, and carrots.


So, yes, I kicked myself off my diet for a whole weekend: we had Passover dinner on Saturday night, and Easter dinner Sunday afternoon. I always sacrifice my diet for family on holidays: it makes Grampa happy when I eat his sauce and Aunt Dot's cookies, so I eat them. It's such a simple way to make someone smile.


Did you celebrate a holiday this weekend? Anyone else have the pleasure of being introduced to a new culture? :) 
Posted by Sable Weisman at 4:44 AM
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23 comments:

  1. I so desperately need to figure out how to like yoga. I know it would help so much but it's so boring to me LOL. I've never tried Matzo balls. In my mind they would be mushy like dumplings - I'm a big texture person.

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    1. I was too busy being like "And you want me to do WHAT with my leg?!?" to be bored hahah!

      Matzo balls aren't really mushy - they're kind of airy and soft.

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  2. I started off doing yoga at home, and then I moved into a studio. My very first class was a 90 minute Bikram class...in hindsight, probably not the best way to begin! But I loved it and continued to do yoga once a week - until we moved! I'm trying to find a new studio but no luck yet :(

    I only do it for the mental benefits. That, and it makes me feel like I'm doing something for my flexibility!

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    1. I'm SO glad I was in the privacy of my own apartment for this class LOL!

      I haven't gotten to experience any of the mental benefits yet but I can't wait!

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  3. Yoga is a tricky critter... for me, the more I do it, the more challenging it is. It's NOT easy to do it well :D

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    1. Oh geez don't even say that! haha it's hard enough as it is :P

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  4. That's so neat you did so many new things! It reminds me of that quote-- "life begins at the end of your comfort zone" :) I could never really get into yoga, but I enjoy the relaxing breathing, it's soothing!
    Hope you have a wonderful rest of your day!

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    1. So true! You'll never know what you're missing unless you push your boundaries a little bit! =)

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  5. Matzoball soup is so comforting.

    I wish I loved yoga. I am so jealous that it is good for you! it will probably prove to be an awesome way to heal your body and at the same time really work your muscles in a different way -- all good! PLUS the meditative properties.

    I miss latkes. Seriously. I am going to mourne them today. Unfortunately they love to glom on to my rather puffy tum.

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    1. It definitely is a comfort food! I actually liked it better than chicken noodle soup.

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  6. OH yoga is so not easy! I tried hot yoga (bikram) last month. Absolutely loved it but was not very good at it! my problem (and the instructor pointed it out a few times!) was that I have a hard time relaxing my muscles. I would love to do more of it too.

    And wow, that food looks and sounds amazing. Lucky girl!

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    1. I have a REALLY hard time relaxing my muscles too! I can never fully relax them while I'm awake..I need to work on that!

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  7. Thank you for the comment on my blog. I clicked through, and now my search for a yoga dvd has come to an end! I do a short 20-minute yoga routine twice a week, but I'd like a longer one for the weekends.

    While I'm not Jewish, my family used to celebrate Passover before Easter Sunday, so I'm familiar with the tradition. It's a pleasant memory. I've never had matzo ball soup, though, and I would like a bowl of it right now.

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    1. Haha I hope you like it!! :) I'm not really familiar with yoga so maybe I shouldn't be giving recommendations ;-)

      I loved the matzo ball soup! I even loved the matzo balls by themselves.

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  8. We're twins! I had my first passover seder as well this weekend, and had things like Matzoball soup (and even tried the gifelta fish) for the first time!! I actually really enjoyed it, and had fun learning more about the story of passover as well as taking part in the tradition. Fun!

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    1. I loved seeing all the traditions!! I know I had my fair share of traditions and customs growing up but I'm kind of jealous of Jewish kids...they really, REALLY get an in-depth education on their uclture and history!

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  9. yoga is so hard because you can't power through it and force it ... at least not without serious injury! i've been using yogadownload.com (you can download 20 minute sessions for free) free = win!!! :)
    happy holidays!

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    1. ooooh that's a great resource!!!!!!! Thank you!!!

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  10. i have been to one seder, it was awesome! fun. and way to step out and embrace the yoga challenge friend.

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    1. Yoga is DEFINITELY, for sure, a challenge for me. haha! But it's worth it. I think.

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  11. Gush alert!!
    First, way to go with trying to yoga! It was kinda of neat that you found it difficult because I think of you as having a lot strength. I know yoga is a totally different kind of work out -- I wish I could get more into it and am curious to know how it supplements your lifting/ break from lifting. I love the feeling before and after but tend to be thinking crazy thoughts during yoga class haha
    Ok, it totally made my day that you talked about Passover! Matzoh ball soup is my favorite food ever. I'm always trying to think of random things to add matzoh balls to- and I'm the resident ball maker in my family. Passover is much like the Jewish Thanksgiving (in my opinion) and although it's exhausting to clean the house of bread products (my family has a very traditional Jewish background), it is my favorite holiday because of the fun family nature (singing, eating). I'm glad you enjoyed your seder!

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  12. looks like your sedar was a success!! amazing! :) I bet you're hooked on matzah ball soup!!

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  13. I love ashtanga yoga!! I need to find a way to fit it in my schedule so I actually do it...consistently :)

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