Hello, my friends. I hope you are doing well. Welcome to September! A new month, and one that marks only four months left in 2021. This year has been flying by. And although there’s a lot of hard stuff still going on in the greater world, I’ve had some major improvements in my own life on a micro level over the last year, which I’m thankful for every single day.

This week was so busy, because I was playing catch-up after being away for a few days for our trip to the Keys. I didn’t do hardly any work in the Keys, which was great, but it also left me behind on all the things. In case you didn’t catch it, I wrote a whole recap on our trip, and it felt good to get it off my chest into one post. You can read that here: “Celebrating my dad in the Keys.”

This week, I taught three classes at Life Time, I took Brady to his open house at his preschool, I worked like crazy on creating a new set of moves and music for my Life Barre class (a very time-consuming but fun process I have to do regularly), and Dave and I even went to a college football game with some of his local coworkers, which was a good time. This weekend, we’re planning to relax, work out, use our new grill and hang out with a couple of new friends too.

Let’s get into the faves …

Current faves

Fun 

Our family trip to the Keys

I wrote a whole post about this trip, so I won’t go into too much detail. But even though we were in the Keys for a heavy reason, we still had a lot of fun. And I came away so happy to have spent time with my whole family. We are a small family, and we don’t get together as often as we should, but it’s so nice when we do.

And we’re definitely going to make it happen during the holidays this year, which we missed last year because of COVID and our move. Families are always imperfect groups, and we can definitely get on each other’s nerves, but I still like these people a whole lot. 

Fashion

My floral blue and white wrap dress

I linked all of my outfits for the Keys in the post I wrote about the trip. But I wanted to highlight one item here. I ordered this dress a while back for our Jamaica trip, but didn’t end up wearing it there. I’ve since worn it out to dinner with some ladies, and I wore it out to dinner in the Keys. It’s light, comfortable, flattering and super cute. I’m wearing a small. And it’s a real wrap dress, with no buttons, which is really nice. You can find the dress here.

(My dress.)

Accessories

My white and silver MZ Wallace tote

How many times did I put MZ Wallace bags on my holiday gift guides over the last few years? Many times. I’ve had my eye on these unique bags for a long time, and I finally ordered one for myself a month ago.

My bag arrived, I let it sit in my closet, then I decided to use it. I took this bag to the Keys, and have been using it ever since. It’s an oversized purse, or a small tote, whichever you prefer — called the Small Metro Tote Deluxe.

And it has a lot of pockets and a short set of tote straps as well as a longer strap to use the bag as a crossbody. I did both. I’m so glad I finally have one of these bags, and I can see myself getting more, because they have so many styles, and they are so soft and pliable. You can find my tote here. And, because I bought it from Carbon38, you can use my discount code ASHLEYPITT for 15 percent off of it too. You can also find a bunch of these gorgeous bags here.

(My bag.)

Workouts

Weekly workouts 

I feel like this part always needs a disclaimer.

This section of the post is where I share all the workouts I did the previous week. I want to remind you that I do more than the average person, because I’m a group fitness instructor, and it’s part of my job.

For most people, a 30-minute workout several times a week is totally sufficient. Just stay consistent and move your body in ways that feel good to you.

And here’s a post you may find helpful: “How do you know if a workout is right for you?” Because life is too short to do workouts that you hate.

• Monday: Taught 1-hour full-body barbell workout at Life Time, 9:45 a.m.
• Tuesday: Taught 1-hour barre class with light weights at Life Time, 9:45 a.m.
• Wednesday: Took 45-minute barre class with light weights at Life Time, 9:45 a.m., did a 10-minute run on the treadmill via Peloton, 10:30 a.m.
• Thursday: Rest day
• Friday: Rest day
• Saturday: Rest day
• Sunday: Rest day

This past week of workouts was much lighter than usual, because I took four days off during our trip to the Keys. I didn’t bother bringing sneakers or workout clothes with me, and I didn’t even do that much walking or regular movement, even though our VRBO resort had a gym. I’m all about regular movement and workouts, but I didn’t feel like it on this trip, and I was totally okay with the break. Breaks can be good, when used as needed. This one was needed. And I felt totally fine when I returned to my regular movement on Monday.

Promo codes

A Lady Goes West favorite products

There are certain brands that I swear by in my own life, and so I like to share them with you. If you choose to try them too, and if you use my links or promo codes, you will be supporting me. Thanks for that!

• Carbon38. I’m always wearing stuff from here, and it’s the coolest activewear around. Get 15 percent off your first two orders of $100 or more using the code ASHLEYPITT. 
• G2G protein bars. I love these tasty and minimal-ingredient protein bars. You can get 15 percent off your order on the G2G Bar site with the code ALADYGOESWEST.
• Organifi supplements. This is my go-to protein powder brand. You can get 15 percent off your order on the Organifi site with the code ALADYGOESWEST.
• Beautycounter. The best safe skincare and makeup. Send me a message, and I’ll share a 20 percent off code for your very first order.
• Les Mills On Demand workouts. My favorite fitness brand. You can do a whole month of workouts during a free 30-day trial by using my special referral link here.

Best reads

A couple of good ones from around the web 

• How to get muscles that are hard to stretch. Do you ever finish stretching after a workout and feel like you are still tight in some areas and just didn’t hit them? Me too. This is an excellent list of how to focus on some of those hard-to-reach stretches, and my favorite is the one where you lie back along a foam roller to open your chest up. It feels great.
• How to make a pumpkin spice latte at home. I’ll probably continue to buy mine, but in case you want to take the homemade route, here you go.

Here’s the thought of the week …

A Lady Goes West favorite archives 

• Our Keys trip. A little trip recap for you … “Celebrating my dad in the Florida Keys.”

• Pumpkin time. Did somebody say pumpkin? I’m totally making this soon … “Superfood pumpkin oatmeal breakfast bake (gluten-free).”

Thank you for coming by A Lady Goes West, my friends! Here’s to a great start to the month for you.

Questions of the day

What are you up to this weekend?

Are you ready for pumpkin season yet?

Do you have any goals for the last four months of the year?