Saturday, September 17, 2011

Busy?

Sorry about the delay in posts! I guess you could say I've actually been busy. But don't wory, I made up for it with pictures. Here's a day-by-day of this past week.

Sunday: I opened the weight room bright and early and then I was off on the Quail hike. I also assisted a stretch class and assisted a circuit class. A little side tangent...Kevin is an instructor and trainer here at the Ranch. He has kind of been my "buddy" or "big brother" here because he basically took me under his wing when I first arrived. And to be honest, he is one of the most "normal" staff members here so I am extremely grateful for our friendship.
After class I was able to pack up and head to San Diego. I did some research to try and find a ward that held church in the afternoon and I found a couple of options. So once I crossed the border I drove to Chula Vista and just crashed their ward. At first I think they thought I was an investigator or something...but the 1st counselor and his wife were very welcoming and happy I was there and told me to call them if I ever needed anything. Man, I love Mormons! I was also able to go to great fireside with Amber that evening.

Monday/Tuesday: I spent some time with Maria. We had ourselves a beach day. IHOP for breakfast, searching for seashells at the beach, and a little walking around the mall. Great girl time. We also baked muffins, went to a little park, and ate kettle corn at the farmer's market. There was a little boy and his dad making a sand castle next to us, I thought it was cute.


Wednesday: No hike this morning. But after breakfast I watched a "Smart Weight Training" class. This class is designed for people who don't really know anything about strength training and it gives them a basic full-body workout with instruction on form and such. I then took the "H2O Sports Conditioning" class, which I love because its slightly more challenging than the other water classes. I also attended/audited the "Ranch Bootcamp" class. We ran sprints, steps, jumps, medicine balls, abs, etc. I was drenched in sweat and my booty was sore the next day. In the afternoon I led the circuit class...all by myself! And I also had sand volleyball and open weight room duty. Here's a shot of the weight room, also known as Azteca gym.

Thursday: I had to make the breakfast announcements. I get on the microphone in the dining hall and read the paper that tells the guests to plan their departure time with the concierge desk. And then...drumroll please...I taught my very first stretch class! And they loved it...I got multiple compliments afterwards and I was very proud. And I also taught circuit class. I love that they are giving me more independent responsibility because I get more experience and I feel more important than "just the intern." I then went to the Hydro-Fit Deep water class. I also attended a nutrition workshop on eating mindfully. Very interesting. It was also Mexican Independence Day, so the Ranch had a little festival at dinner. They had a booth with artisan wine and beer, they also had hot chocolate and a dessert table complete with churros! That kind of thing is a VERY rare occasion at this facility. And dinner was a Mexican combination of a tamale, enchilada, and tostada (all vegetarian and in small portions, of course). Here you can see a bit of the setup, including the line of people off to the right for the beer and wine.

Friday: Started my morning with the Alex's Oak hike. I was the shepherd and of course, there were two ladies who hike very slow. I guess I'm learning patience. I had another circuit class and then I attended the H20 Sports Conditioning class. While it sounds so general, going to classes every day, but I'm taking in everything along the way. I'm learning new things, teaching strategies, class formats, exercise routines and choreography, and new exercises all the time. But I also helped with the "L.A.B. Circuit" class, which stands for legs, abs, and back. It's a 30 minute workout with about 10 stations that focus on legs, abs, and back. And lastly I had open weight room and then I locked it up for the night.

Saturday: This morning I was the shepherd for the Professor's hike, a 3.5 miles mountain hike. And surprisingly we had a group of very quick hikers. It was also a great hike because it was slightly chilly and overcast, which happens very seldom (picture below). But the clouds never last, they are always gone by 9:00 or 10:00 in the morning. Sometimes I would just like a rainy day, ya know? But after the hike I posted the new week's schedule and posters around the resort. I also taught a circuit class and had open weight room duty. For lunch I went out for tacos with Britta and then later I went to a movie with one of the instructors and returned to the Ranch for dinner. That makes 7 weeks down!

1 comment:

Chadster and Brittster said...

You look great and it sounds like you are doing an awesome job!