Author Archives: Theodora Blanchfield

Lenovo Yoga 3 Review + GIVEAWAY!

Lenovo Yoga 3 

Things you may not know about me: I used to work for a legal technology magazine, covering consumer technology for lawyers with lots of disposable income. I also used to try to master the tech beat at the political magazine where I worked, figuring if I didn’t know all the history of politics like my political junkie colleagues did, I could get a leg up on the new technologies campaigns were using. (Like that crazy social media stuff. Who knew it’d stick around?!) So needless to say, I love gadgets and can’t live without my phone or my laptop. Between work, writing a blog, doing volunteer work, I’m always on the go and I’m always connected. (Uh, for better or worse.) I’m primarily a Mac girl, so I was excited to try one of these fancy Lenovo Yoga 3s. Also, as a blogger, I was so excited about LIVE WRITER. I was so excited to use the program loved by bloggers everywhere that helps you publish your posts far more intuitively than any other software. Lenovo Yoga 3

But what’s really cool about the Lenovo is its form factor. You can use it as a regular laptop, and at just 1/2″, it’s SUPER thin. (My Junior League binder is thicker.) It also weighs in at just 2.5 pounds, so while I can’t lift weights with it, I can definitely throw it in a bag without being weighed down. The computer itself is a little yogi; with its 360-degree hinge, you can bend it any which way, using it as a traditional laptop, a tablet, tent or stand.

Lenovo Yoga 3 Foam Roll

The touchscreen is also really cool and intuitive. I know sometimes I’ve wished I could just move things on-screen with my fingers to illustrate a point, and with this computer, you can.

Lenovo Yoga 3 Foam Roll

And the tent = all the better to watch foam rolling videos! 

Want to enter to win your own Lenovo 3 Yoga Pro, valued at $1,499? Enter below. (See official rules here.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Week of Workouts: April 6-12

I’m back, bitches.

Screenshot 2015 04 13 20 53 51

 

Yup, it’s the return of the DailyMile training reports. 

While I no longer care about hitting arbitrary mileage goals or getting validation from strangers on my training log (duh, that’s what Instagram is for), I like these little reports.

So, this go-around, Jess is sending me a list of workouts for the week instead of scheduling them on certain days. Since I sometimes attend workout previews for work or this li’l site, sometimes my workout schedule can get a bit unpredictable. The schedule consists of: three “key” workouts (a long run, a tempo and an interval/track workout), an optional easy run, one day of strength and one day of HIIT. 

Here’s what I got into last week:

Monday: Rest day. I know it sets the tone, etc, for the week to work out Monday, but damn, sleeping in Monday feels awesome. (Especially since I do usually work out both weekend days in the morning.) Oh, you’re all getting a jump on the week, etc? Cool, I’m just catching some extra zzzz’s with my furball.

North River Company Lobster Boat

Tuesday: Can’t say I mind a little alliteration: Tuesday Tempo: 2 miles warm-up, 2 miles tempo, 1 mile cool-down, goal pace for tempo miles: 8:00 – 8:10. Can’t remember the last time I did a tempo, so I fired up my favorite new Spotify station (but I have a gazillion recent favorites, so I’m going to do a post on that soon) and rolled out. It was drizzly, but after running a half in the rain, it seriously didn’t faze me in the least. Oh? My face is wet? Cool. 

Wednesday: I couldn’t sleep Tuesday night, and I ended up sleeping right through an Uplift class. FAIL. My day never got better after this, either, and all I wanted was a good night’s sleep and to chill the eff out, so I booked a yoga class on ClassPass at Studio Anya in my ‘hood. I didn’t love (or hate!) the class — the inside of the studio is a little odd and I just couldn’t get into the vibe — but I walked out much more relaxed, so it “worked.”

Thursday: Rest day. I don’t remember now why?

Friday: Two-a-day! AM run. I was supposed to do speed, but I just couldn’t bring myself to for whatever reason, so I did 4 easy miles. // PM: Peloton

New York Junior League Run Club

Saturday: NYJL Run Club / long run

P.S. (I’m running the NYC Marathon with the NYJL to raise money for underserved women and children in NYC — please consider donating here!)

I had 8 miles on my schedule, so I ran up to the park and ran around a bit to get to 4 before I met them, and then ran 4 with them. We’ve been having some special guests come speak to us lately, and Saturday’s guest was physical therapist Wendy Winn. She runs her own practice, is also a runner (so understands runner’s needs), and was super sweet. I have no injuries right now (I HOPE I DIDN’T JUST JINX MYSELF), and Finish Line is closer to me (and I am moderately lazy), but I would go to Wendy in a heartbeat otherwise.

Sunday: I should have done my missed speed workout on Sunday, but I’d booked a Soul Cycle class with HALLIE (who just started teaching there, and I was dying to try her class), and I decided to just do that. Well, Hallie’s freaking killing it at Soul. Go take her class if you can!

I’m reading Gretchen Rubin’s new book, and I’ve been thinking about my own habits. Meditation is something that always makes me feel better, but that I don’t prioritize. Same with working my core. I am perpetually unhappy with how it looks, but I don’t do anything about it on my own. New goals: 5 minutes of meditation, 5 minutes of core work — both at night and in the morning. I can certainly find an extra 10 minutes for both of these things on either end of my day.

Oh, and to prioritize ALL of my running workouts this week, especially the speed ones.

Tentative plan: Tuesday Tempo, Thursday Track, Saturday 5K/10K. Strength, Friday; Black Fire, Sunday.

What’s your week of workouts looking like?