Hello, hello, my friends! How was your week? Ours was busy! Group fitness classes, work, touring another preschool, going to a Warriors playoff game and more. This upcoming weekend has very little on the agenda. Now let’s do the faves, as we do every single Friday …

CURRENT FAVES

Fun 

MNT Mother’s Day Mingle

Last weekend, I went to the gorgeously designed MNT Studio in the SoMa neighborhood of San Francisco for an event just for mommas, in advance of Mother’s Day. We chatted, had treats and fresh juices, took a mat Pilates class from the studio founder and a friend of mine, Elaine, and then we listened to panel of mommas talk about their real-life struggles with balance, mom guilt and navigating a different set of responsibilities once you have to care for a child.

(Elaine, the owner of MNT, me and Cat. And here are my pants, top and shoes.)

The moral of the story: Motherhood is no joke, and if I know ANYTHING at all, it is that we’re all just trying to figure it out as we go the best we can. I left this event feeling so uplifted and connected with these other amazing mommas, and that felt really good. And definitely a fun event worth getting a babysitter for. 

Books

“Lessons” by Giselle Bundchen

I really didn’t have high expectations for supermodel Giselle Bundchen’s book, “Lessons: My Path to a Meaningful Life,” when I checked it out of the library on a whim, but I totally enjoyed it and read it in just a few days. (It’s a quick read and even has pictures in it, which is fun. Why don’t more books have pictures?)

The book not only talks about Giselle’s rise through the modeling world at a young age, dealing with anxiety and panic attacks (which is what initially inspired her to start a healthier lifestyle), but it also talks about how she balances motherhood and her career now — while being married to superstar quarterback Tom Brady. She has a lot of insightful words on being at peace with your situation and season of life — and all of that spoke to me. She does have a pretty strict wellness routine, which is not something I plan to emulate, but I will take away a few nuggets of wisdom from Giselle on always trying to be kind to the planet and always trying to better yourself too — for the benefit of those around you, as well as for yourself. 

Here’s a great passage, among many others … 

“Imagine what would happen if each one of us knew ourselves as fully and deeply as possible. And that we led each day of our lives consciously and compassionately, without projecting our emotions onto others, or allowing our egos to distort reality. If everyone did whatever work was necessary to get to know themselves better and took responsibility for being the best self he or she could be, I believe the world would be a different place, a better place.”

Well put, Giselle. Thanks for that. 

Fashion

The very best plain shirt ever

I told you guys when I placed my first order from Everlane a while ago, and I had to check back in to tell you that the plain t-shirt I ordered is the VERY best t-shirt I’ve ever owned — called the Pima Micro Rib Crew. It’s soft, fits well, tucks in nicely and is so darn comfy. I got a medium and am going to get more colors, because I can tell it will be a staple in my closet for a while. It’s sort’ve like a dressy t-shirt, but not dressy.

Everlane is a great online spot for basics, with ethical manufacturing and a good mission, and I highly recommend it. (That’s my affiliate link, so thanks for that!)

Fitness

Weekly workout recap

Because I like to share how I’ve been moving …

• Monday: 1-hour BODYPUMP class, 10 a.m.
• Tuesday: Taught 45-minute BODYATTACK class, 4:45 p.m.
• Wednesday: Practiced BODYATTACK for 15 minutes, 15-minute back weights workout, 10 a.m., taught 1-hour barre class, 5 p.m.
• Thursday: Taught 1-hour barre class, 12 p.m.
• Friday: 20-minute lower-body weights workout, 10 a.m., 30-minute mat Pilates, 3 p.m.
• Saturday: 1-hour BODYATTACK class, 9:30 a.m.
• Sunday: Rest day

This past week was another good one, with teaching classes and taking classes and doing my own workouts. I did two super short solo weights sessions, which means I did complete three total resistance sessions throughout the week — yay. I also switched it up with mat Pilates, which was much harder than I expected. Overall, a good week.

Here’s the short legs workout that I did during the week …

You can find these workouts saved under “Workouts” on my Instagram story highlights or check out this post.

Some things I enjoyed from around the web …

• Self care. Are you sick of hearing the term? Me too, but this article has some great ways to approach taking care of yourself, and they aren’t about wine nights and bubbles baths.
• Sun protection. Did you know that not all sunscreens are created equal? Mineral-based sunscreens, which actually block the sun’s UV rays rather than deflect them, are preferable these days as opposed to the chemical-based ones we all used to use, and Beautycounter makes an amazing line of mineral sunscreens in both lotion, mist and the brand new tinted mist that launched today. Here’s a list on Forbes of other good mineral sunscreens, and Beautycounter is on there too.
• Twisting away the bloat. Did you know that there are particular twisting yoga moves that can help aid your digestion? There are, and I think that’s where this one move comes from, which is said to reduce your bloating in just 30 seconds. Worth a shot if you need it.
• Work the negatives. Are you trying to build up to a better push-up or to a pull-up? Try working the negative part of the exercise move to get stronger. Need more info? This article tells you how.

A Lady Goes West favorite archives …

• Strength. Hope you enjoyed this one from earlier in the week … “Three ways to level up your next strength training workout (bonus workout included).”
• Home workouts. The very best home workout program … “Review of Les Mills On Demand streaming workout service.”

Thanks for reading, my friends! And congrats to Hannah and Catherine, who are getting some Beautycounter samples and other goodies. I’ll offer more soon, and if you ever have a question about Beautycounter, feel free to reach out. Have a fabulous weekend! xoxo

P.S. I have an awesome giveaway going on over on Instagram right now for my favorite hydration product. Head on over to the post to enter.

Questions of the day

What are you up to this weekend?

What’s your favorite piece of clothing that you own?

What are you currently reading?

What was your best workout this week?