Happy Sunday! I hope you’ve enjoyed the weekend thus far! Yesterday, after a personal training session and afternoon movie date, Bo and I headed over to the UGA bar, The Village PourHouse, for an evening of football watching, beer, bar food, and catching up with college friends!
We arrived early enough to score an amazing window side table which meant we were able to greet everyone as they walked through the door and enjoy some epic people watching!
Bo, a Georgia Tech alum, even got into the spirit of things with a new NYC Dawgs t-shirt!
None of my teams (Notre Dame and UGA) won yesterday but we still had a blast with everyone! Talking with friends and game watching took the place of picture taking but I promise I enjoyed more than one cold, delicious beer and a grilled chicken sandwich along with a few pita triangles, hummus, and wings!
This morning, I woke up after eight lovely hours of sleep craving one thing: pancakes!
I don’t know where this craving came from but I was immediately referenced my favorite blogs, cookbooks, and the internet for a whole wheat banana pancake recipe for which I had all the ingredients.
- Tina’s protein pancakes: fail due to the lack of oats
- Kath’s numerous pancake recipes: fail due to lack of Kodiak Cakes (Note to self, order some immediately!)
- Roni’s Banana Whole Wheat pancakes: WIN!
- Within minutes, I gathered all the products and Bo’s iPad so I could quickly reference the recipe.
I read the recipe three times through in order to ensure I didn’t miss a step.
These were a flip, flop, fail!
I couldn’t figure out what I did wrong or whether my products were out dated. As Bo heard me groan and whine, he offered to make me his “no fail” pancake recipe.
“Only if you can make it banana and whole wheat.”
Really, I didn’t want him to make the Joy of Cooking recipe because I wanted my recipe to work. But, when you’re craving pancakes and someone offers to make them for you, saying no is just dumb. 
The only real difference between this recipe and mine was the addition of butter, a little extra sifting of the flour, and more baking soda. I also threw in a few dashes of cinnamon and nutmeg for extra flavor.
Flip, Flop, Win!
These were everything whole wheat pancakes should be! Light, fluffy, and bursting with a healthy flavor! The bananas didn’t make it into the actual mix as Bo was fearful it’d affect their height but having them on top was just as delicious.
After my tummy was filled with whole wheat goodness, I headed out for one of my favorite activities, 60 minute Vinyasa. I really, really do not like 90 minute yoga classes. I’ve forced myself to take them time after time but I end up spending the final 20 minutes staring at the clock or wall in boredom.
I enjoyed the 60 minute Vinyasa at the 17th street Equinox which was a welcome treat in itself. I forgot how beautiful this location is! The gym is adjacent to The High Line which means you can watch people walk by during your workout and enjoy amazing sun filled views!
The above is the view from the yoga studio!
The yoga studio was spacious with floor to ceiling windows and soft bamboo floors. In addition, the temperature was warmer than most Equinox studios which meant we actually enjoyed “warm” yoga by the end of class!
The instructor, Narween Otto, just returned to NYC after a stint in Miami. Her voice was a peaceful Australian accent which immediately calmed my mind. She started class off by describing her style which is fluid and fun.
From her website,
Her clear, detailed style and playful perspective are unique. Narween believes in cross-training for the body and mind to avoid injury and boredom and has zero interest in show-off-pretzel shapes in yoga-asana and believes Pilates should be fun, fluid and not too serious. Narween wants to help people stretch and strengthen their bodies and minds as they make their way on their own unique journey towards the sublime.
The class was very leg and hip focused, perfect for my runner legs and tight hips! I really can’t say enough wonderful things about this class. Everything was perfect including the location, the number of attendees, her attention to adjustments, the length, music, and her calming guidance.
If you’re in NYC, I highly recommend you check out her schedule! My goal is practice yoga every Sunday that I’m in town so I hope her new schedule will be posted soon!
Question: What is your favorite yoga or Pilates pose? If you’ve never practiced, what is your favorite stretch?
