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Behind the Scenes at a YogaVibes Core Fusion Filming

Well it looks like I  took a spontaneous blog vacation last week. I actually had my baby brother’s wedding to Mallory in the Smoky Mountains and then a crazy busy work week, so blogging went on the back burner. Sorry I’m not sorry.

A quick plug for my good friend Alissa, who is the most talented baker and makes gorgeous cakes for her business Pastry Girl Cakes. She is trying to raise $5,000 to open her bake shop (she’s been working out of her house!) through Kickstarter and is offering special treats to people who donate. I promise it is worth it! Click here to donate and for more information.

Pastry Girl Cakes

Yes, that is one of her cakes.

Back to business. I’ve talked about YogaVibes here before. YogaVibes is a really great website and resource for people who want to  take yoga or Core Fusion classes from home, or while traveling or from anywhere else they might be. The company films live classes and streams them on their site. Pay a small fee and you can take class, almost like you are right there in the room.

A couple of weeks before YogaVibes was set to film two classes at exhale in Bridgehampton, I got an email from Meredith at YogaVibes asking if I would be able to help out the day of the filming with getting the film consent  forms signed by all the guests and assisting with anything else the cameraman, Fred or Lis (the founders of Core Fusion) might need. OF COURSE I said yes. I love Core Fusion and I love YogaVibes and this was the perfect opportunity for me to help two organizations I truly respect.

However, I needed to be at exhale in the Hamptons (far out on Long Island, NY) at 6 am that day! I checked the public transportation schedules and obviously nothing went out there that early. I scrambled to find a place to stay and luckily one of my mom’s friends has a house about 15 minutes away from exhale and she offered not only to let me stay with her for the night, but to drive me to exhale in the morning. Thank you, June!

I arrived at exhale bright and early — and excited! I was rocking my new YogaVibes tank top and was prepared with the consent forms and some YogaVibes promotional material that Meredith mailed to me that week.

I helped Fred set up the mats for Core Fusion Cardio. Fred offered me a spot right in front for that class, but I sadly had to turn down his offer since I was there to work for YogaVibes and I had to sign in people for the  second class before the first was over. Just as an FYI — I am AWESOME at Core Fusion Cardio. Maybe I’ll make my own video . . .

 . . . no, I won’t.

So I set up the class and signed people in and then watched some of the class.  I have to say, Core Fusion Cardio seems to go much so much quicker when you’re not in there doing it!

Core Fusion Cardio filming in action:

Mountain climbers! We do hundreds of these throughout class. They really do look like they are climbing up a mountain. Ha. That’s Fred sitting in front. Hi Fred.

The time flew by and before I knew it, people started arriving for the next filming, Core Fusion Open, a class that was filled to the limit with 40 people. I had to explain to every person that we were filming the class for YogaVibes.com — although they were all informed beforehand — and asked them to sign the consent form. I also told them where they could stand in class if they did not want to get on camera.

Once I finished signing everyone in for the Core Fusion Open class and waited for any latecombers to arrive, I was able to join the class myself and appear in the video! AHHHH! You can now watch me (and take class “with” me!) on YogaVibes.

Click for a free preview of. . .

The Core Fusion class that I am in.
The Core Fusion Cardio class also filmed that day.

Also, the Core Fusion and Music Yoga Flow classes filmed on the rooftop of 45 Province in Boston.

Look! That’s me on the left in the white shirt!

I came in a little late, during the pushups (where I appear in the left corner) but when it was time for the forearm plank there was no space around me. I noticed an open spot in the class and moved there, not even realizing that I was directly in line with the camera. As a result, I became the star of Core Fusion!

Okay, okay, not really. But I am in the video a lot and there is quite a bit of zooming in on me. I love how during the plank when Lis says to engage our glutes, you can visibly see my tush tighten up. If nothing else, I follow instruction well.

What is great about these Core Fusion classes is that the classes are full of real people; actual Core Fusion students. The first few Core Fusion classes on the site were classes full of teachers, and obviously they are all awesome, so it is really great to see people of all levels taking class. There will be someone you can identify with at home and you can watch for modifications.

After class I collected all the consent forms and took the Hampton Jitney back home. Talk about convenience! I got on the bus right across the street from exhale and two hours later I was dropped off ON MY STREET. That is service.

On the way home I realized I forgot to take a picture with Fred and Lis while wearing my YogaVibes shirt! I was really bummed about it (I guess I’ll just have to help at the next filming to get my photo!) that so I attempted to make up for it by figuring out how to use my camera’s self timer in my backyard!

Oops.

Okay let’s try that again. My head is cut off but you get the idea.

As we used to say in high school, RePrEsEnT!

(Yes, we really did say that and write it in exactly that format. In fact, my entire AOL profile was written in the upper- and lowercase mix for a time.)

After a couple of weeks I received word that the classes were online and of course I watched myself carefully. It is funny watching yourself do something you do every day but never get to see from the outside. I noticed I did a couple of things wrong — namely my side planks, oy — and lots that I did right! Of course I put on a little show for the cameras. You can see just from the free preview how much my legs were shaking during thighs — this after taking class almost every say for eight months straight, it really never gets easier — and yet I pushed on and maintained my form. In real life I can’t promise I would have done that. Same goes for some other aspects of class (cough, long form low pushups post thighs). What can I say, I love cameras being on me! Too bad there aren’t always cameras in class because it would guarantee I always do everything correctly, with proper alignment, pushing my limit, and getting the absolute best workout possible. Needless to say my quads were SORE the next day.

Enough about me. Here’s something for you:

Use the code doricorefusion to get 20% off any YogaVibes purchase through December 31!

You can buy just one class for 14 days ($10), 5 classes for an unlimited month ($20), or full access to all classes for an unlimited month ($25). With 20% off, it is definitely worth a try. In addition to the exhale classes (Core Fusion, Core Fusion Cardio, Core Fusion Yoga, Core Fusion Sport and Music Yoga Flow) they have lots of other really great yoga classes from some impressive teachers, like Sadie Nardini. They offer yoga in countless styles and at all different levels, so there really is something for everyone.

I am especially happy you can all experience Core Fusion Cardio at home now because it is just SO HARD to explain, but so so so amazing in the way it gives you the sweatiest cardio workout while toning you all in one hour. Oh, and in the live class we use really fun, real music. Because of licensing agreements, these videos use what sounds not unlike adult entertainment music, but class is fabulous anyway!

I hope you try out YogaVibes (or take a live exhale class) and let me know what you think! I love the classes and I love the results and I really just want to share it with you all.

Outdoor Bound Surprise Lake Hiking Trip

I’m back this week from my vacation. It’s funny, I’ve been working in corporate America since February 2006, but last week was my first paid full week off work in that entire time. Needless to say, it was one of the best weeks I’ve ever had. I visited my brother in Kirkland, Washington, a suburb right outside Seattle. I ran a fantastic 9 mile training run there that I’m excited to tell you about and show you some gorgeous pictures from! I also got to spend a night in the Hamptons to help YogaVibes film Core Fusion Cardio and Core Fusion. I even got to be in the Core Fusion class that we filmed! More on that soon too.

I have so much to share, so let’s start with my very last day of vacation, this past Sunday. I went on a hike with Outdoor Bound.

A few weeks ago, I was at Angela’s rooftop party and met this cool guy Kirk. Turns out Kirk owns Outdoor Bound, “an education-based adventure company that offers unique international excursions, outdoor fitness programs, youth development programs, corporate team-building activities, and a variety of single and multi-day excursions.” Missy had actually gone on two of their hiking trips (one that included a wine tasting!) and loved it. She’d been trying to get me to come, and after meeting Kirk (and, let’s be honest, Kirk offering me a free trip) I said sure!

We chose the Surprise Lake Hike. This is the description of our hike, from the Outdoor Bound website:

A Stunning 6.5-Mile Day Hike!

This beautiful trail is notable for some steep and rocky sections that provide spectacular views. There is a wide variety of fascinating vegetation and terrain along our loop route, which includes a section of the Appalachian Trail. We hike around lovely, secluded Surprise Lake, where we will stop for lunch. In summer, bring or wear your swimsuit for a dip in the lake!

The Hike

We will cover 700 vertical feet of elevation during this adventure, and the majority of the climb is in the first two miles. After joining the Appalachian Trail for a short distance and learning about the world-famous journey that AT hikers undertake, we will follow an undulating mountain ridge for the next 2.5 miles. Our loop trail will take us through rhododendron groves and lush and mossy woodlands and we’ll scramble up craggy ridges to spectacular view.

Even with that description, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Luckily, Missy is a hiking trip expert now and sent a packing list to me, Angela and Kristine. I borrowed an awesome backpack from my roommate and filled it with water bottles, a beach towel, sunscreen, bug spray, wet wipes, flip flops, bandaids, lunch, snacks and my camera. We met with our tour guides, Arielle and Jon, and the rest of the group on 73rd and Broadway where we signed a release and boarded a van. We drove a little over an hour and arrived in a foreign land called New Jersey. In this strange place, we sprayed our bodies with sunblock and bug spray and used the facilities. By facilities, I mean the woods.

And we were off!

 

I had never been on a challenging hike before. I’ve hiked a couple times, but it was more like slightly hard walking. This trip was a HIKE. It was a level intensity 3, which means the following:

Level 3 > Moderate — for Novices & Above

ACTIVITY: 4 – 6 hours most days
DISTANCES: Hike up to 10 miles, cycle 20 – 40 miles most days
SURFACES: Rolling or mountainous terrain with some steeps
ELEVATION CHANGE: Up to 2,000 feet per day
ALTITUDE : Up to 10,000 feet

Even though I learned about the hikes from Missy, she never told me about the climbing involved — or the sitting, which is how I had to slide myself down some steep rocks and dips. I relied on my hands to help me navigate the trail at times, and other times I was able to jump and climb pretty well! The guides were knowledgeable and helpful and gave some great advice for tackling the more challenging sections.

(Missy climbing — this one was HARD. Someone on the trip took a picture of me tackling this but I forgot to have him send it and I don’t know his name!)

We learned how to follow a trail, which was very cool because I never knew about this at all. The trees and ground is painted with a certain color every few feet to indicate which trail you are on (a yellow trail, a blue trail, etc) and which direction you should go to continue on this trail. If you stop seeing paint, you know you might have navigated off the trail and can turn back. The stack of rocks also indicates you are on the trail.

 

Before we left Manhattan, our guides checked to make sure we all had at least two liters of water. I brought the luxury to the wilderness with my exhale mind body water. Kristine stayed hydrated with her sleek flask-looking water bottle.

 

On one of our breaks on the hike Missy and I decided stretching was necessary. My quads were already sore from filming YogaVibes.com Core Fusion the day before, and this hike was rough on the legs!

We reached the Appalachian Trail — which extends from Georgia to Maine — and the New York/New Jersey state line! I got to sign a guest ledger and stand in both states at once! And actually, it is on the Appalachian Trail that I did my downward dog. I wonder how many people can say that?

 

After this we had some of the toughest hiking of the day. As challenging as climbing up can be, I was most scared going down (TWSS). I would choose to sit down and push myself down with my hands instead of jump or try and shuffle down quickly. I’m running a half marathon next month and really can’t afford to get an injury! I was erring on the side of caution partly out of fear of getting injured and partly because I just get scared. Either way, it was a challenge and scary but I felt so accomplished after completing each of the difficult sections of the hike.

I was rewarded with views like this:

 

 Finally we reached Surprise Lake and got to relax and eat lunch. Some people went swimming, my friends and I opted for some relaxing in the sun.

 

 

We saw a giant turtle.

 

What a cutie! Can we hug him?

Kristine went with some interesting clothing options.

After lunch and relaxing, everyone got very quiet for the remainder of the hike. The chattering from the first few hours was over and it left lots of time for self reflection. I’m always writing my memoir in my head, so I spent the last mile and a half or so we had left working on that. Maybe one day I will write some of this down.

Before I knew it, the 6.5 mile hike was over and we were back at the van, ready to head home. I always get sad coming back to New York City after being somewhere beautiful and relaxing. It was hard coming back from Seattle earlier in the week and it was even hard coming back from my short stay in the Hamptons. This was extra melancholy because it meant that not only was the hike over, but my perfect vacation was coming to an end as well.

It really is incredible that you can get in a car in Manhattan, drive for an hour and find yourself in an entirely different universe. The hiking trail was so close but felt like a million miles away. The good news is that going on trips with Outdoor Bound is easy and inexpensive. This specific trip only costs $59, which covered transportation and being guided along difficult and hard-to-navigate trails, and guaranteed incredible views and a lake to swim in — oh yeah, and real air to breathe. For less than $60 you can get an entire day outside of the city.

 

My friends and I loved the trip so much we already signed up for another in September! As I disclosed before, I did not pay for this trip, but I did pay for my next one. The cost is cheap for an entire day of hiking, exercising outside, being with friends (or meeting new ones) and enjoying the outdoors. The city can be so stressful, and a one day getaway is sometimes exactly what I need. The entire trip was organized and executed flawlessly. I am impressed.

If you decide to book an Outdoor Bound trip, you will save 10% off your trip with the code Dori’s Discount upon checkout! I really hope you decide to try an Outdoor Bound activity — in addition to hiking, they offer a variety of activities such as biking, mountain climbing, horseback riding, skydiving, kayaking , photography hikes and more.  There is even a yoga hike and a wine tasting hike! Kirk started something really fantastic here and I know you would love it.

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