Shop, Sip and Barre

Last week Annette and I paid a visit to one of my personal favorite shops Research and Design in Orchard Park. Barre Centric hosted a free Barre class {class was about 40 minutes long and they provided yoga mats for you} and you could shop new arrivals and get 15% off! Free cocktails and water were served as you shopped the barn. I've been seeing on social media a lot of local boutiques hosting a barre or yoga class and offering a unique, one-of-a-kind shopping experience. If you have the opportunity try and attend one of these "private" events. Its a great chance to visit a store you may not have gone to yet and receive a discount off. It also allows you to take an exercise class you may not have taken before for free. Its a good way to know if you'd want to come back again and sign up for more classes at the exercise studio.

-B

{Women Who Move Buffalo} Queen City Roller Girls

Queen City Roller Girls began in 2006 by two best friends who were inspired by the A&E series “Rollergirls.” Sissy Fit and Flotorious built the group from the ground up. Rainbow Rink in North Tonawanda was receptive to their efforts, allowing them to recruit at open skate and eventually hold private practices. Since the beginning, the mission of Queen City Roller Girls was to make a group where women can live out that alter ego, continue playing sports into adulthood (or discover the joys of training and competition for the first time) as well as make lasting friendships and improve the surrounding community.

Last week I had the opportunity to meet several strong, intelligent and athletic women from the Queen City Roller Girls. Head Huntress (from Suicidal Sauces and Lake Effect Furies), Ivana LeiHerOut (from Nickel City Knockouts and Lake Effect Furies), Blackrock Bruiser (from Devil Dollies and Lake Effect Furies), Brutali-Tease (from Devil Dollies), Bang GRRrang (from Alley Kats), Kryptonfite (from Alley Kats) and Toxic.

These women amaze me! Most of them joined or got involved after attending a game and seeing first hand what roller derby is all about. The Queen City Roller Girls is a full contact sport that women can play. Its mentally empowering, fun and encourages you to be yourself. There are no limitations and its a sport that offers women to express themselves. Their are over 150 members to date and anyone can join as long as you have health insurance.

Not only do these women volunteer their time, they also train multiple times (3-4 times) during the week, volunteer in the community, host fundraisers to try and cover the cost of their equipment and travel expenses because that is paid for out of pocket by themselves and all while going about a normal life -with full time jobs and families. Coaches and referees also volunteer their time as well.

People think this is "sensationalized" and not real, but its all to real! These women train hard and put in a lot of time and effort. When I sat down and met with this group I went in not knowing a lot about the sport of roller derby. I've heard of the Queen City Roller Girls, but had never attended a game, I didn't realize it was a volunteer commitment and didn't know they have a travel team, multiple home teams, a junior league and a queens court {ladies in waiting}. There is so much more to this sport than people know.

The best part is these women love this area, if they didn't they wouldn't put in all this effort. They love the culture in the area, the eclecticism and the weather. They also enjoy participating in events that encourage young women and boost their self esteem.

If you've never been to a bout before you can check them out this Saturday {February 22} at Rainbow Rink {101 Oliver St. North Tonawanda}. Enjoy food and beverages while you're there. For tickets click here.

For more information or to be a sponsor follow them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or their website.

{ I can't wait to attend their bout on April 5! }

"It was love at first skate"

-B

My Snowboarding Adventure #BuffaloStyle

One thing I've wanted to do was learn to snowboard so over the weekend my friend Annette {a veteran snowboarder} and I went to Holiday Valley. I have never had any experience in any winter sports, the most I've ever done was gone tubing, so I was all sorts of emotions, anxious, nervous, scared, excited - you get the point. We started off making a pit stop at EBC {Ellicottville Brewing Company} to "warm" up - meaning have a drink or so in me, so I wasn't so tense.

{ The Blueberry beer is my favorite their }

Then it was onto the slopes. We arrived at Holiday Valley around 4pm and purchased the night time pass for $33. Then a friendly gentleman {employee} showed us to where we could get our rental equipment. We both got boots and boards for $26.

Next it was on to the lesson...

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After that short five minute lesson we stopped to take some photos {its all about the documentation} and then it was on to the bunny hill.

{All ready to go}

Once we got on the ski lift, {I don't know how Annette didn't push me off} I must have panted and rambled and almost cried the whole way up the slope, I was so scared { I don't like heights as it is so this was a huge step for me}. Once we got to the top I fell {LOL} off. The first time down it took about 45 minutes and then the second time it took around 30 minutes. I fell, but got back up and I did have some moments where I had the hang of it, it was just when I felt like I was going to fast or thought I would hit a tree that I plopped back down.

{ We took a photo break on our second time down the bunny hill }

{ Its a little blurry, but believe it or not that's me! }

{ Go Bills }

{ We took a drinking and eating break inside the lodge }

{ Live music from Jay Mcdonell }

After our little break I was ready to sit by the fire and relax, but Annette convinced me to try the big hill, so here we went out into the much lower temperatures and up the big slope. Once to the top - I chickened out {LOL} I was tired, it was a much longer way down and it was a lot colder, I took the ski lift back down where Annette {who snowboarded down} was waiting for me. While I went back into the lodge to warm up, the friendly gentleman who showed us to the rental equipment earlier in the day came up and asked how my first time riding was and also asked if I lost my friend.

The staff was very friendly and the fact that, that employee came up and asked how my first experience was, made it even better. Its because of that extra effort he made that will make me want to come back again. While I am no pro I was happy that I faced a fear and accomplished something on my bucket list, all while doing it with one of my closest friends by my side. It's definitely a memory I will always remember and I can't wait to get back on the slopes {after my butt heals from all the falling}. Oh and the other nice thing- I got multiple compliments on my Buffalo Bills hat! ;)

{ Me running off the ski lift }

{ Photo credit by Annette }

{The end}

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Don't let fear stop you from trying new things, you only have one life, so make the most of it!

-B

Beauty Barre at BikeorBar

With Valentine's Day on Friday, the ladies at BikeorBar on Elmwood hosted a Beauty Barre event on Sunday. If you paid for one of the services {Eyelash/hair extensions, spray tanning, waxing, facial or massage} you received a free Barre class. The event in my eyes was a big success. There was a crowd of women who filled the back room and for some {like me} it was my first time taking a barre class. After class they offered the services and while you waited they had wine, mimosas, sushi and some sweet treats. It was a nice event, made you feel pretty, do something for yourself and all in time for Valentine's Day. -B

{$20 for a service or 3 services for $45 (great deals!)}

#BuffaloLinks

Its the second day in the new year and with that comes a lot of people {hopefully} still sticking to their New Year's resolutions. Some of the common ones are losing weight, being healthy or being more organized. I think some of the links this week can help you stay on track with your resolutions.

1. Black Dot Record Boutique - I don't know what it is, but I enjoy record shops and boutiques. Something about the "hipster" and "old-school" feel makes me enjoy looking around at what music they have to offer.

2. I am a big list person - I have lists of multiple things - goals, to-do lists, etc. One place on the must check out list this year is going to Vera Pizzeria. I've heard multiple reviews some good, some bad, so I want to check it out for myself and see how it is.

3. I will be the first to admit {& so will my family and friends} when I say I have to learn to relax a little bit more. With that being said I want to incorporate more yoga into my exercise. I tried it once last year and thought it was ok, but I definitely want to check out Bikram Yoga in Williamsville, I've heard a lot of positive things about this place.

4. Let's face it, we probably all could be a little more organized in our lives, whether its paper documents, clothing and shoes, pictures or toys having the right storage and organization system would help us alleviate time we take to search for things and do things we would rather enjoy doing. Creative Storage of Buffalo has a variety of services and organization tips to help any of us get more organized in 2014.

5. Another goal of mine {& maybe yours as well} is to run a little more this year. I ran my first 5k race last year and I would love to complete a half marathon this year, so a great website to help me prep for this is Buffalo Runners. They have a list of races {from 5ks to marathons} that will help me prepare for my goal this summer.

Whatever your goals or resolutions are this year, I wish you the best of luck to sticking to them.

Have a great Thursday!

-B

{Women Who Move Buffalo} Em Jay Fit

 

Today's Woman who moves Buffalo is one of the toughest ladies I am lucky to know, Em Jay Fit. Em Jay (also know as Morgan McNerney) is a personal trainer who specializes in extreme weight loss. You may know Em Jay from the ever so popular BikeorBar where she teaches the popular CrosSpin.

Em Jay started her business because she herself was overweight as a teen. For her 15th birthday she asked her parents for a gym membership and a personal trainer and with her trainers help she was able to shed 90 lbs. Its then that she realized she wanted to show others that they could lose the weight to and turn their lives around.

" I love the hometown feel of Buffalo. All the Mom n' Pop stores and restaurants. I lived in Phoenix for a bit, which was great, but every single store and restaurant was a chain. Nothing like the feeling of a home cooked meal, even when you're out to eat."

-Em Jay

Em Jay is amazing! Every time I take a class she teaches I know I'm going to 1. be sore the next day, 2. get an amazing workout while cursing and maybe crying (no not really, just kidding) 3. learn new exercises that I can take with me to continue to do on my own time 4. SWEAT a lot and 5. Do Burpees. :)

Em Jay specializes in personal and group training so if you want to make a change in your life you can contact her through a variety of ways. You won't be sorry you did!

Email } Emjayfit@gmail.com

Facebook

-B

{via}

{ If you know Em Jay, you know you'll be doing burpees }

Lets get ready to Run

Nothing is better than taking a run to clear your head and take in some fresh air. This past weekend instead of going to a park or the gym, I went back to my high school's track, man how time flies. While I haven't moved away its still been years since I've been on the school grounds. It was nice to see improvements that have been made and to think about the memories of when I was younger.

I'd love to know, where are some of your favorite places to run in Western New York?

-B

Oh and good luck to all those participating in the Corporate Challenge today!

Half Marathon Here I come

One of my goals that I made for 2013 was accomplishing a half marathon (13.1 miles) at the end of May. While I've been training for this for a month now, the last time I ran a race was 10 years ago back in high school track. Just the thought alone of completing 13 miles seems impossible after such a long time, but I'm determined to complete it. With temperatures being mild lately, I decided to take my workout outside to get my body used to the different weather conditions that take place in WNY. Buffalo has some great running paths, one of my favorites is Delaware Park. The streets of Elmwood Village, Clarence Bike Path, and Stiglmeier Park have some great trails to name a few. If you want to stick to the inside, UB North's Campus has a nice indoor track inside their Alumni Arena, so does ECC's Burt Flickinger Center and Buffalo State College. While this may physically be one of the hardest things I have done to date, I find a certain excitement and determination through the whole process. It makes it a little easier knowing I'm doing this with one of my best friends too. -B