My Cabaret Act

Well, it is official. I just finished my application to the Capital Fringe Festival to enter my very own Cabaret act into the running for this year's festival. I have no idea what to expect, but the worst thing that can happen is that they don't accept my show and I try again next year. I do have three years to complete this task and be able to include it on my 40 by 40 blog.

I began to explore this idea after seeing the show "Next to Normal" on Broadway a few years ago. I had a rough idea of what the show was about, but I had no idea what I was really getting into. Needless to say, I felt like I had been hit by a truck after seeing it, but it started me on a journey that allowed me to explore my own bipolar disorder in new and fresh way. Here's a short clip to give you an idea of the show..

**Side note - If you haven't seen this show, do yourself a favor and see it whenever and wherever you can. It is the most honest, raw, authentic and accurate portrayals of mental health issues that I have ever seen. Check it out!

Seeing someone explore these issues so boldly and courageously encouraged me to start sharing my own story more openly. All this and the encouragement of many important people in my life right now finally led me to begin creating my own cabaret act that delves deeply into my own life with bipolar. I am currently taking a cabaret class at TheatreLab in DC and our first class affirmed for me that this is a style of communication that allows me to express myself freely about some important struggles and challenges I have faced in my life.

So, the bottom line is that I have submitted the application and come February we will all find out if they have accepted my act. I might be sitting on pins and needles until then!!

In the meantime - my cabaret class will be putting on a Cabaret Showcase on Sunday, October 21st at the TheatreLab in DC. It is going to be a great show and it will include a 10 minute set by yours truly that will hopefully serve as the seed for my Fringe Festival Cabaret Show. I would love to see you all there - it will be a free night of lovely entertainment! More details to come on this soon, but please...

 SAVE THE DATE!

Sunday Evening, October 21st at TheatreLab in Chinatown.

Hope to see you all there!

Friday Confessions - First Installment!!

So, those of you who have already been following me know that I was inspired to blog by my sister, Caroline. You can check out her fabulous blog here! Every week she does what is called her "Friday Confessions." Apparently lots of different bloggers participate and it is all hosted by a fabulous blogger over at Dandelion Wishes. There's a whole process for posting this and it's my first time, so I really hope I get it right. We'll see!
But in the meantime, here's my first installment of my Friday Confessions...
I confess that I finished my 10 day challenge with great success! I lost 3.2 pounds and one whole inch off my waist! AWESOME! You can read my post about my results here. I was so pleased and motivated about it that I have decided to continue with a 90 day challenge.

I confess that I am absolutely TERRIFIED of the 90 day challenge. Can I commit to something like this for 90 whole days? Will I fail? Will I mess up along the way? Will I make a complete fool of myself? None of that matters, because I have committed and that means I AM going to DO IT! I will be doing the Turbo Fire workout along with my continued C25K running. This workout looks CRAZY INTENSE!

I confess that on the day after my challenge ended I had great intentions of sticking to the plan until my package arrived for my new 90 day challenge. However, I slipped up a little bit. On my way to Subway for my healthy lunch sandwich, I instead stumbled into Dunkin Donuts for my favorite turkey, bacon, cheddar sandwich. WOOPS!
I confess that I don't have big plans for this weekend and I am kind of excited about it!
And finally, I confess that I may be developing an addiction to the protein boxes at Starbuck's. They are a good breakfast and super convenient...but pricey. Maybe I need to find an alternative! :)

What are you confessing this week? Head over to Dandelion Wishes to join the confessing!

#2 - Leave 30 pounds in my 30's - Days 9,10, and results!!!

Here's a quick report on Days 9 and 10:

Day 9 -

Workout: Jillian's Ripped in 30
Recovery: 1% Chocolate milk
B: protein box from starbuck's
S1: 0% vanilla greek yogurt, blueberry special k cereal
L: shake with skim milk
S2: string cheese, blueberries
D: 0% strawberry greek yogurt, banana (at 10:30pm!!! this was the night I went to an audition expecting to be there for 30 minutes and was there for nearly 3 hours!)

Day 10 - 

Workout: C25K run

Recovery: 1% Chocolate milk

B: protein box from starbuck's (I might be addicted!)

S1: rice cake with natural PB, baby carrots

L: shake with skim milk

S2: 0% vanilla greek yogurt, blueberry special K cereal

D: turkey burger on whole wheat english muffin

AND THE RESULTS YOU HAVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR.....

I lost 3.2 pounds and one whole inch from my waist!!!! Very exciting!

Stay tuned to learn more about my 90-day challenge! I will be doing Turbo Fire for my workout and I'm kind of scared - it looks CRAZY, INTENSE! But I have a different attitude about what I can do, and THIS is definitely something that I can do. 

I will also be supplementing my workouts with running 3x a week as I prepare for my 5K in November with my sisters at the Color Run in Charlotte, NC.

And remember that this is all still a part of my 40 by 40 list - the 10 day challenge and the 90 day challenge are just part of JUST ONE of the tasks on my list of 40. There are a lot more adventures to come. The next one is scheduled for the first week in September. I won't give it all away yet but it involves fire and flying... :)

Until next time...

#2h - Leave 30 pounds in my 30's - Day 8!

Day 8

B: nonfat vanilla greek yogurt and a banana, wasn't very hungry this morning

S1: rice cake with natural PB, orange

L: butterfinger shake - chocolate shakeology, almond milk, water, butterscotch pudding mix, and ice blended to a yummy, frothy concoction! (I got my new ninja blender - awesome!)

S2: string cheese, orange

Workout: Jillian's Ripped in 30
Recovery - 1% chocolate milk

D: turkey burger on whole wheat english muffin with lettuce and mustard

Did my workout just a little before dinner so might have a yogurt or an apple to finish off the night!

AND it is a good thing I got my new blender because my sister Caroline (check out her blog here) and I committed to each other tonight to join, with our coach Lindsay Phillips, a 90 DAY CHALLENGE! I cannot believe I just committed to that much more time, but the word is out now and that means I have to do it.

So stay tuned and keep reading because there's a lot more blogging to come about my journey! Don't know what to expect, but maybe, just maybe, you will all be invited to a big celebration party after I finish my 90 DAY CHALLENGE! WHOA!

#2g - Leave 30 pounds in my 30's - Day 7!

Day 7 -

B: shake with skim milk, orange

S1: rice cake with natural PB, blueberries

L: turkey burger on english muffin with lettuce and mustard, orange

Workout - Jillian's Ripped in 30
Recovery - Glass of 1% chocolate milk

S2: nonfat lemon yogurt, blueberry special k cereal

D: greens with grilled chicken breast, strawberries, blueberries and lowfat rasberry vinaigrette. It was a super yummy salad and only took a couple minutes to put together! 

Have to be up super early the next two mornings in a row which is going to be a challenging way to wrap up the challenge - looking forward to it though!

Not much to report today - in a bit of a funk today but I will not let that stop me from sticking to the challenge...although it may make my blog a bit shorter tonight. :)

Night all!

#2f - Leave 30 pounds in my 30's - Day 6!

Day 6 - CANNOT believe we are over halfway through with this challenge! I feel like it has flown by and I don't want it to end. Can't wait for the next adventure!

Here's what happened today...

B: 2 eggs scrambled, nonfat strawberry banana yogurt, orange

C25K Run!

S1: rice cake with natural PB

L: shake with skim milk

S2: string cheese, orange

D: 6" turkey sub from Subway with lettuce, cukes, green peppers, spinach and mustard, 0% vanilla greek yogurt for "dessert"

Went grocery shopping tonight to stock for the last few days of the challenge... AND for continued healthy eating.

Part of the challenge has been to think about our "crazy, awesome" goals for the next year. Here are mine...

1) It will be crazy, awesome next year when I am back in my intermediate theater jazz dance class on a regular basis.

2) It will be crazy, awesome next year when I am ready for my first advanced yoga or pilates class.

3) It will be crazy, awesome next year when I am playing on a recreational volleyball team. (or another sport if I try that one on and it doesn't quite fit - but I really think I will enjoy volleyball!)

The last one is the biggest for me because I NEVER played sports growing up and would not in the slightest way ever consider myself athletic. In the past few years I have been able to overcome some big insecurities and do things I never thought I would do - but this is one I have not been able to conquer. UNTIL I did this challenge. Now, I'm not saying I'm going to be the next Michael Phelps, but I am gaining a lot more confidence in my ability to be and to be strong physically. And I am also giving myself a little more freedom to simply enjoy the physical activities and not always have to be really good at them. I can play volleyball just for the fun of it! I can run just for the fun of it... if it ever becomes fun! :)

Still loving what this challenge is doing for me and can't wait to see where it takes me next. Day 7 on the way tomorrow...

#2e - Leave 30 pounds in my 30's - Day 5!

Day 5 - HALFWAY THROUGH!!! I can't believe I have successfully made it through the first five days. That is so awesome. I was out last night for Shakespeare in the Park about an hour away from my house, so it was a L-A-T-E night. I have already had some big wins today for day 6, but I am going to save those for my post tonight and try to focus on Day 5.

Here goes...

I took the day off yesterday so I was worried about staying on track. I didn't have a set schedule and that was going make it difficult for me stick to the plan. I was going to start the day with a run, but it was POURING BUCKETS of rain from about 5:30am-9:30am so I decided to switch to an indoor workout. Well... that never happened. Normally that would derail me, but I just let it go and decided to do better next time. (spoiler alert - i already did my run for day 6!)

Food went like this:

B: nonfat strawberry yogurt, blueberry special k cereal, strawberries

S1: rice cake with natural PB, orange

L: shake with skim milk

S2: string cheese, blueberries, orange

D: teriyaki chicken with very light sauce and veggies, cantaloupe, side salad with no dressing
Did splurge with one cocktail at dinner - sweet tea vodka with spritzer

LOTS of water throughout the day!

Also spent some quality time with some great friends and got to support some other great friends at their production of Romeo and Juliet! I am loving how this challenge is helping me to focus on being the best version of myself - which naturally includes investing more in the relationships that make my life so rich and meaningful.

Day 6 report will be up later tonight! Thanks for all the continued support. And don't forget that I am doing this with my sister and she blogging about it too. Check out her blog here: http://bakerunlive.blogspot.com/