This Week in Workouts

This week was normal and great except for the whole we are going to Disney thing- ahhhh, I cannot wait! The hubs has my whole birthday trip planned out and I am seriously excited. Here are a few of the things that have turned me into an sugared-up four year-old this past week.

1. The weather: It is perfect right now and the best thing to do in this sunny, 72-degree beauty is spend time outside. Specifically, outside with Disney characters around.
2. The new Festival of Fantasy Parade is up and running and I CANNOT wait to see it.
3. We will be staying at one of my favorite Disney hotels.
4. Raglan Road and EPCOT UK pavilion will be AWESOME on St. Patrick's Day. Along with all the other great things Disney will be doing in all the parks for this super fun holiday.
5. Silly, but I have this new pair of Tom's shoes that are ridiculously comfy and I will be able to wear them, possibly, without icing those toesies at night.
6. Looking at the almost completed Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. It. Looks. Awesome.
7. The annual funnel cake I allow myself to eat without sharing. Birthday traditions are the best!
8. Cronuts. EPCOT has cronuts.
9. Refer to number eight. Cronuts.
10. For the first time in 2014, neither the hubs or I are sick. That is enough reason to party for me!

My hope is to have a nice little sum-up after we get back with lots of pictures of foods, parades, festivities, and maybe a yoga shot or two. We will see how things roll. I will also be instagraming pictures (side note, is intagraming a word?) while we are there, so if you are not following me on instagram yet, be sure to start. Click here to follow. And now, to the workouts!

Since I had the mental capacity of a four-year-old on ecstasy this week, not a whole lot got done other than our corporate taxes (happy that is over and I will not think about it for a year), business goods, writing, writing, and more writing, and a couple of workouts mixed in. Actually, this week was quite productive, maybe I should get crazy excited more often?

Sunday: Lots of handstand practicing that left me feeling like my niece in her gymnastic classes. Then, this yoga flow and this one. Look, I am talking like her now too.

Monday: Rest Day

Tuesday: 2-mile interval run followed by core work and a great post-run yoga flow. I will share it one day, promise.

Wednesday: 10-minute ballet fusion arm workout that will be up soon. Then, this yoga flow. I also did this inversion flow with more handstand practice.

Thursday: Rest Day

Friday: 2.5-mile jog followed by that infamous post-run yoga flow.

Saturday: A day exactly like last Sunday :) I know, this week was the epitome of workout creativity. What can I say, I have Disney (and taxes-boo) on the mind.

Did you know that San Francisco is getting rainbow sidewalks? You can read about it here.

Dale Partridge also wrote a pretty neat-o article for anyone wanting to switch life up. Read about it here.

5 Great New Things at Disney World

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We will be taking a trip to Disney World in the next few days for the next few days and I simply cannot wait. A lot has happened since our last trip to Disney World, but what is more exciting, is all the things that have started and will be opening this year! Every year the hubs and I wonder whether we should renew our Disney Annual Passes or not, and every year Disney entices us with tons of new things that we can simply not say "no" to. 2014 is a bit different since there is not one new thing, but several. 

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

Man am I excited about the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ride opening at Disney World in Magic Kingdom this spring! This mine train ride is the last project in New Fantasyland and is going to be massive. Work for the mine carts has recently started, which means we are getting close! So far, the ride looks to be as thrilling as Space and Thunder Mountains with a bonus fantasy aspect along with some incredible scenery. The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is located between Fantasyland, New Fantasyland, and the Dumbo ride.

My Magic+

If someone at Disney does not send me the My Magic+ wrist band soon, I think I may explode. My Magic+ is Disney World Resort's new way of dealing with rides, tickets, meals, and even purchases. The My Magic+ bands will be linked to guest rooms and can be used for opening your room and paying for park/hotel services through the card attached to your account. These wrist bands also count as your ticket into the parks along with your PhotoPass and will link to the new Fast Pass+ system.

The My Magic+ system has an app and personalized online account for making reservations for dining along with Fast Pass+ planning. Wristbands come in multiple colors and sizes and are able to be customized much like Disney pins customize lanyards. This is going to be a massive industry for Disney World and will also give a better understanding of crowd flow and park statistics.

Fast Pass+

With Fast Pass+, guests no longer need to run from ride to ride getting Fast Passes after their current pass runs out. Instead, you can use the kiosks located throughout the parks, your My Magic+ page at Disney.com, or the mobile app attached to the My Magic+ system to schedule all fast passes up to 180 days in advance. Fast Pass times can also be changed depending on changes in your day at the park. But, one of the most exciting aspects of this is that every park guest can only have three fast passes per day.

When Fast Pass was debuted over a decade ago most of the complaints were about increased wait times in the stand-by lines since so many Fast Passers were slowing things down. Now, Fast Passes will be much more limited, allowing for wait times to come back down to a normal level. Disney World's goal in this is to make visiting the parks a more enjoyable and easier experience for all guests.

Festival of Fantasy Parade

The Festival of Fantasy Parade in Disney's Magic Kingdom will be replacing the Celebrate A Dream Come True Parade that had it's last run a few weeks ago. This new parade looks to be an epic addition to the Magic Kingdom park and will be released in mid-March with lots of new floats celebrating some of Disney's newest movie additions. This parade will have a focus around the movies "Sleeping Beauty", "Tangled", "Cinderella", "Pinocchio", "Peter Pan", and "Dumbo".

Although most of the floats have not been debuted yet, there have been a few that we get sneeking glimpses of. The float that I am most excited about would definitely have to be the steampunk Malificent dragon float. This float looks quite incredible and is pretty well timed with the new Malificent movie starring Angelina Jolie. Other floats that we know of so far include a Tangled float and Cinderella float.

Avatar Land

Avatar Land has been a years in the making project associated with the James Cameron movie and the Animal Kingdom Park. Up until a few months ago, many believed that it would not happen; then, Disney moved Camp Minnie Mickey to it's new location in Animal Kingdom Africa. Now, ground has been broken for Avatar Land and the project is well on it's way. Although the actual area will not be open until 2015, there are some exciting aspects that Disney will be releasing throughout 2014.

In a recent press release, Disney executives acknowledged fact that Animal Kingdom is not seen as a one-day park, but a park you visit for a few hours during your trip and wants to change this. The new Avatar Land will have a big part in that change with at least two new rides and aspects that can only be seen at night. As we get closer to the opening of this new land, Disney will be adding new shows and longer park hours that keep Animal Kingdom open after dark.