Bay Area restaurant eating, weekend stories and my weekly workouts

Hi, friends! I hope you had a nice weekend. Did you enjoy that extra hour of sleep? I sure did. Let’s chat about the weekend (which featured a mixture of healthy activities, movement, retail, self-care and sugar) and then dig into my recent workouts. 

Dinner at Postino in Lafayette

While I definitely prefer to have a low-key evening at home on Fridays because I wake up so early on Saturdays to teach, it seems like lately, Dave and I have had plans on Friday nights. The good news is that this past Friday night was great, so I can’t exactly complain. We met two other couples (from Dave’s work) for a delicious meal and wine at Postino, an Italian spot in Lafayette.

Ashley at Postino by A Lady Goes West

Ashley and Dave at Postino in Lafayette by A Lady Goes West

Postino has an incredible setting — shaped greenery around the entrance — and cool decor inside. We dined on burrata, bread and Brussels sprouts as appetizers, then I had a salmon dish for my entree (surprise, surprise), and we finished up with two delicious desserts. I kept my camera away for most of the meal, but did at least capture the sweet ending.

Dessert at Postino in Lafayette by A Lady Goes West

BODYPUMP, car shopping and Walnut Creek Yacht Club

Saturday morning included teaching my usual Les Mills BODYPUMP class in Walnut Creek. Then, I was supposed to get my hair done in the late morning, but there was an appointment snafu, so I ended up with some unexpected free time. I used that time to make myself a tasty lunch at home featuring my dear purple sweet potato …

Purple sweet potato lunch by A Lady Goes West

In the afternoon, Dave and I headed out to get a new car for me. We had done some pre-shopping the week before and were ready to make a decision. My lease was three months away from being up (which means we are three months away from being in the East Bay for two years after moving out of San Francisco, BTW), and I opted to get a new car from the same car company, but instead of white, I went with black. It’s shiny and pretty and I’ve named her “Betty.” (My previous car was named “Pearl” because she had a pearl-ish white color, you see.) 

That night, Dave and I went to one of our regular spots, Walnut Creek Yacht Club and sat at the bar. We’re such creatures of habit that we ordered the same thing we always order — except this time we got a different dessert — seasonal, of course. Our line-up included prawn cocktail, fish tacos, lots of thick brown bread and pumpkin cheesecake and ice cream for dessert. Yay pumpkin!

Prawn cocktail at Walnut Creek Yacht Club by A Lady Goes West

Fish tacos at Walnut Creek Yacht Club by A Lady Goes West

Pumpkin cheesecake at Walnut Creek Yacht Club by A Lady Goes West

Soccer game and lunch at Lemonade restaurant 

On Sunday, I took Rudy to go watch half of Dave’s weekly soccer game. He plays in a co-ed intramural team, and this was our first time going to watch him. (In fact, I hadn’t seen him play since our Orlando days.) It was a nice sunny day, and Rudy and I got to see Dave score three goals so that his team could win. Go Dave! Oh, and Rudy was a total hit. People kept coming up to me to pet him, as they tend to do. He was mostly a good boy, but he did have a barking fit at a dog about five times his size, so that was great.

Soccer game by A Lady Goes West

Later that day, we hit up Lemonade for a late lunch, and it was everything we had hoped for and more, because we were both pretty hungy. I’m still hoping to try the new True Food Kitchen soon — but for some reason, we keep ending up back at Lemonade when weekend lunch-time hunger strikes.

Lunch at Lemonade by A Lady Goes West

In the late afternoon, I got a mani and a pedi (red on all accounts), then we had grass-fed burgers at home for dinner. I wrote this post while lounging in my pajamas with almond oil slathered all over my face, and that was the weekend!

My weekly workout recap

Here are all the ways I’ve been moving lately …

Weekly Workouts by A Lady Goes West

Weekly Workouts

  • Monday: Rest day
  • Tuesday: Taught a one-hour BODYPUMP class
  • Wednesday: Did 45 minutes of Bootybarre at home
  • Thursday: Did 20 minutes of full-body weights
  • Friday: Did 45 minutes of Bootybarre at home
  • Saturday: Taught a one-hour BODYPUMP class
  • Sunday: Rest day

Overview of the week

Two full rest days, two big workouts and three less intense workouts — that’s what made up this past week. Between BODYPUMP and Bootybarre, I got in plenty of resistance training and bursts of cardio, so I’d say this past week was balanced. I haven’t been to yoga in a couple of weeks, but plan on making my return to my favorite spot, CorePower Yoga, very soon, because I can tell I’m in need of some more time on the mat! 

Pictures of good #food and fun in the #BayArea with @apstyle #Fitness #Workouts ... Click To Tweet

P.S. Thanks to Meghan for today’s “Week in Review” link-up. See you soon! And don’t forget to enter to win lots of delicious peanut butter!

Questions of the day

How was your weekend?

What’s something you’re looking forward to this week?

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21 Comments

  1. I am now in the mood for some fish tacos! New cars are so fun! I’m glad you found one you loved. RUdy is adorable so the question is HOW wouldn’t anyone come up to you to comment on him 😉 Go Dave! We actually were going to go to my hubby’s hockey game yesterday but that darn DLS screwed our entire day up and the little one needed a nap.

    1. Ohhhh too bad, Heather! It will take a while to get used to the time change, of course. 🙂 And thanks for the sweet words about our little Rudy heheh. Happy Monday to you, friend!!

  2. I want the shrimp and the desserts. YAS. I have tried purple sweet potato several times, and though they look pretty, mine always come out super starchy and not so tasty. I wonder what I am doing wrong!

    1. I am so sorry to hear that, Susie. I microwave mine and they are soft and delicious — but I’ve heard a few people have trouble. Maybe we get really good ones here in the Bay Area or something?? Do you poke holes in it before cooking?

    1. Yes, Sara! The big BODYPUMP 100 release is mid-January, so you should try to find a gym by then with the class. You don’t want to miss it hehehe. And yes, I’m still thinking about the food from my weekend too. Hope yours was awesome as well!

  3. I really love reading about your wknds! Yay to the new car:) I went with black for my new car too—I’ve only had it since mid August and appreciate every drive I take in it. With Winter on the way, I’m so ready for the heated seats—ha. We had a really good wknd, flew to Kansas City and drove to Kansas for a family wedding. It was beautiful, the weather was great, outdoor ceremony and we enjoyed the Marriott we stayed at. Great to get away and so good to come home!

    1. I LOVE to use my heated seats to warm up my muscles on the way to the gym. I use them every day even when not cold hehehe. Soooo fun you went to a wedding!! I haven’t been to one in too long after a few years of TONS of weddings. And YAY for being home!! Have a great day, Amy. Thanks for saying hi and sharing, my friend.

  4. Had a black car, it was a nightmare of constant washing and waxing. Black oxidizes easily so make sure you clear coat it and wax weekly with hand wax. Welcome to your car taking up half your weekend. I wish I had such a luxurious life this weekend. My landlord made me paint all weekend and my only possible affordable eating out was Taco Bell.

    1. Hi Laura, I had a black car once before and recall it getting dirty much faster than other colors, so I’ll take your tips into account. I’m sorry to hear that your weekend had you painting — that’s not super fun. But hopefully you’ll have a great week starting fresh today, lady! 🙂

  5. AHHHHHHHHHH salivating over that pumpkin cheesecake. I’ll be having a stateside Thanksgiving for the first time in 6 years this year so I think I’ll have to find me a piece!

  6. Looks like a great weekend! Don’t you love when small dogs decide it’s cool to bark at the bigger ones? Harvey (our corgi) decided it was okay to try to play with and bark at a great dane…. who just ignored him… haha.

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