An Eventful Day with a Lululemon Store Review!

Started today Lithe Method.

We arrived in the city kind of late and I took a brisk walk (about a mile) , hoping to get there in time. I passed Lululemon on the way and briefly considered skipping the workout and just shopping without interruption bahahahha. Then shook myself out of that lapse in judgment and continued walking.

 I would have been five minutes early were it not for the snails pace of the THREE elevators, all stuck on floors 19, 25 and 15. I must have waited for five minutes at least. And no, I'm not taking the stairs four flights LOL. That's child's play!

The space is as I imagined it. Very similar to Barre 3 in it's clean, peaceful vibe, but only housing one actual studio, with a common area and locker space with showers and the prerequisite Method soaps (fresh mint, love and need this hand soap). I guess the lack of studio space is to keep the classes exclusive and the early sign-ups coming, as I imagine that having one class an hour makes everything fill up quickly. I can pick up what they are putting down.

I signed a waiver and had to fill out a maddeningly long survey about myself (hi, I'm Julia, i'm out of shape but I've done A LOT of Pilates over the past few months, please like me!) I don't think anyone will be able to read my survey as I was scribbling frantically with only a minute or two to spare. After a locked up all my things, I headed to a mat. I noticed the resistance bands hanging from the ceiling and got super excited.  I do find the studio kind of...cramped? But it is light and zen in there, and, I don't know if this is my imagination or I am just really toning up, but I looked seriously GREAT in the mirrors. They must be trick mirrors. They MUST.

It's definitely an interesting and innovative workout.
Our instructor was literally lithe. A toned blonde tall drink of water. I was super jealous. She explained some of the basic principles, like breathing (check) and good posture (check-ish?). She explained that a lot of moves require tucking the tailbone (a.k.a.clenching the butt) and that seemed easy enough. We started with an ab sequence using three pound weights and a squishy ball between our knees to help with form, just like in Pilates. This series was pretty tough, and we moved through everything without rest, so even more challenging. We then did some arm work while still crunching our abs, and I was reminded of Barre 3, as the weights are very light, but the movements make them feel like they weigh a million pounds. I know that all the literature states to lift heavy, and I do, but I think there is something to low reps, too. Shouldn't be part of a gym routine, but definitely useful to get a full body workout in a barre class.

We continued on into the push-up series, and the goal was to do ten of an interesting and unique pushup. You position your knees at the ends of the mat (left and right) so your toes point inward, and you also tuck your tail bone, which goes against the natural pushup as your back is no longer neutral. You keep your eyes pointed forward as well, unlike pushups where you turn your gaze downward (well, at least I do that haha). You can do this on your knees or toes as well. From there you go into to what I heard as "sea salt" but was probably "see-saw" series. In this move, you hover your foot over the other in a pushup start position, than lift that leg high up and keep your arms as straight as possible, kind of like a yoga pose. Oh, and you do this in "stiletto" which means the toe with the weight on it should be pointing as if on...a stiletto! This was a pretty tough move! The next move was a tricep pushup where the arms come closer together and the elbows are supposed to head towards the back of the room. I was generally no bueno in this move. Then another set of pushups.

Finally, we started with the bands, and I was super confident that I would rock that shit out. Even though she said gloves were required for band classes with 101's the only exclusion to this rule, I figured that since I have been lifting, I would be just fine. NO. Not just fine. LOL.

This is the set of bands and the way she (the creator of Lithe) is holding them is with a thumb and finger grib, not with all of the fingers.

This makes it SERIOUSLY tough.

The instructor warned that the hands might cramp up without gloves, but again, I was positive I would be fine. My hands cramped up within maybe three minutes. It was insane.

We did some moves in squat positions with tailbones tucked and untucked (this looks obscene LOL) and then some cardio cheer moves with jumping and moving our arms. I actually loved the cheer parts and think they would be a great way to get the blood pumping. But gloves are definitely a must for that. It is also sometimes hard to follow and welll...I am no cheerleader, although it is fun to pretend.

We finished out the class at the barre, and I positioned myself next to an unnaturally endowed redhead for some crazy leg lift work as well as lunges and squats. This kind of class would probably kill me, but be very effective.

Overall, I think it's a step up from Barre 3. More high paced, a cooler vibe and probably addicting. I was certainly sweating but pleased at the end.  I'm kind of glad the commute makes regular classes impossible, but I wouldn't mind taking a class every other week, although they encourage three classes a week (they would lol). 

Oh, and the location is pretty awesome and close to Walnut Street, which I love to visit. 

I jetted over to Lululemon while my husband finished up some business. I wanted to find as many things on my "maybe" list as possible before he got there. My goal was to not reveal to him exactly how much I was bringing into the dressing room. I succeeded! 

The first thing I beelined for were the Ebb to Street pants. There were a few people congregating by them already and that does not surprise me--they are mostly sold out completely online.  They were absolutely gorgeous in plum and inkwell, but my size was not available so I sized down to the second size I can wear. 

I walked by the Scuba hoodies which I had never seen in person. They had the midnight iris print and the angel wing slalom stripe, both sold out online. I was not impressed. They felt kind of cheap and rigid. I will probably be passing on Scubas indefinitely which is ok. One less thing to desire is good with me. They kind of remind me of something sold in a Billabong or Pac-Sun. Youngish somehow. No offense to those who love them of course. I prefer the Nice Asana, although they are rather basic zip-ups. Forme still wins over all.

Made my way around the store, overwhelmed with all the stuff I was finally seeing in person! It was nice to get that hand feel. Some things I had loved online, I did not love so much in person. The midnight iris print, especially. Some of the pieces in MI are just so...shiny. 

I didn't find or remember to look for the Trouser Pants, but did come across the CYB, the CRB (angel and hyper stripe black) and Wunder Under Power Luxtreme crops.  I also picked up the Scoop Neck in a ziggy print, the Skinny Wills in herringbone (everyone wants these) and ziggy and...I think that's it. I didn't find the Run for your Life in plum, or the "superhero" pants as my hubby calls them. Also asked about the newly marked down Liberate tank in fresh teal, which they didn't have either. Didn't remember to check out the Formes in person. Probably for the best!

Now for the results: I thankfully passed on mostly everything!  The Skinny Wills looked terrible on me, as expected. I didn't even bother to try on the herringbone. Sure, they are comfortable, but the fabric is just not for me. Patterns on my lower half are especially not for me.

The Wunder Under power luxtremes are actually really wonderful, but since I just bought a pair of Speed tights, Run Inspires and a used pair of Yoga Smoga crops, I figured I was stocked up for at least half a year. Really nice though, and not at all see through. Fit about the same as my Yoga Smogas actually, with a nicer material. Sorry yoga smoga hahahah. I just love typing that brand name.

The C.Y.B. was also a pass. Back fat as expected, sadly. The color was pretty but washed me out. This is still a goal top of mine. Would love to be able to wear this and show of a back with no fat.

   

The CRB's....Ok. I do get it. The have a nice feel to them. A great length. Simple, classic and to the point. They apparently hold up quite well, so I can see this top being a staple in all kinds of seasons. I just can't commit to them for now. I loved the colors I tried on, and even layered both. Looked cute enough. Maybe someday.

The Scoop Neck was also not as matronly as I thought, I just got it in the wrong size as the built in bra was very tight in my ribs. I think it would have been a keeper in a size up. I do love the print. This kind of flattened my boobs too, but again, might have been a sizing issue. I almost walked out with this one, truth be told, but the fabric was kind of light and not compressive. That's not terrible but for a tight tank top, I like a little compression or for it to be slightly flared and more skimming. 

    

 Credit goes to lulumum.blogspot.ca! 

Eventually my husband showed up and started pacing outside the dressing room, asking me if I was done. I had one last top to try on, and I considered ignoring it and changing back into my clothes. But, it called to me. It was a beautiful light color, and something I really admired online. 

What did I walk out with at the last minute?

The No Limit Tank in blue moon/ ziggy. I LOVE it. So flattering!

  

I'm in love with a tank top!

I'm so glad I didn't love anything else. Praise be to fat thighs!

We enjoyed the beautiful day with a nice walk and had a wonderful lunch at Morimoto. I splurged on my own order of rock shrimp tempura that comes with amazing aioli sauce and we shared some delicious sauteed mushrooms. In the past, I would have added two rolls of sushi to my lunch, but not this time. We finished off with pumpkin ice cream with marshmallow swirl. The first bite was shockingly pumpkin-y. Almost as if eating a canned pumpkin pie filling. But with each bite, I fell more in lust with this ice cream. It was a sexy situation.

We got back to the office to find our second entrance door locked, keeping us from getting inside. I tried to kick in the door as they do on TV. I guess my legs aren't strong enough :(. But, my husband tried as well and no go either, so..TV IS A LIE. He began chipping away at the door frame with two screwdrivers (!!!) and making a terrible amount of noise. I decided to look up how to unlock a door on the internet in the meanwhile and found a credit card jimmy trick with illustrations. Pulled out an old T.J. Maxx card and went to down, wiggling the door handle around while my husband discouraged my efforts. Finally, I felt the door jab give.

It worked! I felt like a super spy. And I left my husband scratching his head, too. He insisted he had helped with his technique, but I truly feel we would have been there forever had I not been so damn practical.

 Just call me Bond. Julia Bond.