If there’s one hyphenated word to aptly describe NP YOW, it would have to be “no-nonsense”. If there’s a string of words to describe the writers of this blog, it would have to be “enjoys any excuse for alliteration regardless of its relevance, hence the title of this blog”.
…anyway, moving on to our workout highlights this month!
Workout Highlights
WEEK 1 – Getting Crabby
Our days in the stadium were limited, and we may have gotten a touch cranky about this. Or day I say… crabby. But we’ll get to that in a minute. First – the workout. Simple. Elegant. Easily reproduced if you’re looking for something fun to do with two friends (or strangers) on this rainy day.
We split into groups of three and each group was given three exercises to do. You chose the order and number of reps – with the only “rule” being that each person is doing a different movement so that all three assigned exercises are being done at any given time. While one person did stairs, another may have held a plank, and the third may have done squats. Or lunges. Or push-ups. Or burpees. You get the idea. Thankfully (because 31 minutes doesn’t exactly fly by when you’ve been assigned burpees and push-ups), we continued to swap out the exercises that were assigned to each group. We’re so generous that way. And thoughtful. And modest.
Arguably the best part of this workout though was the crab race. The SPOOKY crab race. We could explain it here, but it’s probably better if your imagination does the work.
In case you couldn’t tell, these are some shockingly fast crab walkers ^^
WEEK 2 – The power of 11
This week, we honoured the important 11s in our life. Not only did we celebrate NP’s 11th anniversary, but also the one – the only – Alfie (#11 in our programs and #1 in our hearts) was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Amazing, right? Who would have thought this guy would be coordinated enough to make it to the hall of fame??
(This guy also made it).
These momentous 11s were honoured with a blackjack inspired workout. Your fearless co-leaders were your dealers (and by dealers, we mean frozen finger fumblers). Those who tried their hands at the blackjack table (and by table, we mean the ground of the stadium) were dealt cards and aimed to get a hand of 11 points. The winner of each round was rewarded with a plank hold for 1:11, while the others completed the exercise of the winner’s choice. Oh, and if your cards totalled more than 11, you got to do 11 penalty burpees. Both Alfies were contacted for comment – both responses sounded like Swedish to us but we think they approved of the workout.
WEEK 3 – Balls in the Air
… and our FIRST SNOW DAY and FIRST WORKOUT OUTSIDE THE STADIUM this fall.
We know you’ve got a lot of responsibilities to manage. A lot on your plate. Candles burning at all ends. Balls in the air. Other metaphors for being busy. So, naturally we thought we would add some balls to your burning plates. After running a loop, you found a co-leader or a co-workout buddy with a tennis ball and completed the exercise written on the ball. Then found another partner with a different ball. Or brought your ball to a new partner. Then there was more running. And more balls. And more running. And more balls. And, well, some people may have gotten slightly distracted…
This is how you do lunges… right?
Snowy smiles all around!
WEEK 4 – World Cup
This week we changed things up and met at the Supreme Court in preparation for the Canadian men’s first world cup appearance in 36 years! Not only did this workout challenge our bodies physically, it actually PREDICTED which team would win Group F! Not accurately, mind you, but still.
You split into 4 teams – Canada, Belgium, Croatia and Morocco – and each person on the team was given a number. Leaders stood in the centre and the teams lined up like spokes in a wheel. As exercises were completed, Rebecca yelled out numbers at random and the person from each team with that number ran around the complete circle and dashed into the centre to earn a Canadian flag. The team with the most flags at the end was declared the winner. Things may have gotten slightly intense. And slippery. And fun.
Then came the Dizzy bat shoot out! But why tell you about it… when we can just show you.
Teams Canada, Belgium, Croatia, and Morocco coming together in dizzy bat harmony
WEEK 5 – TODAY – PR Day!
Our winter PR days may not include stairs, but they still make you question your life choices in the best way. Congrats to everyone who came out this morning and got a PR. Congrats to everyone who came out this morning and didn’t get a PR. We’re just glad you came out. And that you brought your dogs.
A few last things…
Our Bedazzled Frisbee winner(s) this month:
For pushing the pace with a smile on their faces (unintentional rhyme, but it’s out there so there’s no going back), congrats to TOM and WREN on a phenomenal effort this morning. Thank you for being a part of our community week in and week out. We are so glad that you’re here.
BIRTHDAYS
We had a few of those this month…
Mckenzie (Nov 1)
Tamara (Nov 7)
Danielle (Nov 13)
Rebecca (Dec 4) – okay, not a November birthday, but it was a November BOOM so it counts
….BOOM!!
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- OFFICE HOURS – Thurs Dec 1 (TOMORROW) – 7pm @ Louis’ Pizza (181 McArthur in Vanier)
- SNOWGLOBE is coming to Ottawa, Feb 9-12, 2023. Stay tuned for more info. And/or come see us tomorrow night at office hours to chat about it!
That’s all for now. Thanks for reading. Thanks for showing up. Thanks for making running up and down a hill repeatedly seem like a really good idea.
Sole-fully,
Rebecca & Becca
