Calling all Portland SWAT sisters! Finally we have a bootcamp for you!
Swimsuit season? Need to get out of the house? Just want to look and feel your best? Whatever your motivation SWAT’s Portland fitness fancy, Lauren Green, has prepared a 1.5 hour bootcamp that is designed to be fun and effective!
This class will be held outside at Wallace Park (NW 25th and Raleigh) on Sunday Mornings at 10am starting June 13th. (This date can be moved up if enough interest is generated).
Warning: endurance, strength and even your dancing skills may be tested! But remember: This class is designed to make you have a little FUN while sweating out those calories!
Price:
First class is free! After that:
$10 drop in fee
$45 for 5 classes
$85 for 10 classes
Refer a friend and get $5 back for every referral you make!
Please email lauren@swatpdx.com to sign up and to get meet up details!
Hi everyone! Just a quick update on bootcamp classes for the month of May. I hope more of you can continue to make it now that we’re back at the park, and please continue to tell your friends, family, and coworkers about our classes… we really appreciate it!
WHAT: An hour long class consisting of cardio drills, core exercises, functional full-body exercises, and flexibility training that results in maximum calorie burn and amazing strength, endurance, agility, and overall conditioning improvements. Modifications to everything will be shown to accommodate for all fitness levels. Bottom line – if you consistently attend these classes, you will quickly see and feel dramatic results! Class sizes are kept small so you receive personal attention to make sure you use proper form and are pushed to perform your best.
WHEN: Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6pm and Saturdays at 9am. May 2010 class dates: 1, 4, 6, 8, 11, 13, 15, 18, 20, 22, 25, 27, 29.
WHERE: Pacific Community Park on the corner of 18th St. and 172nd Ave. (next to the dog park)
COST: $104+tax for an all month pass (13 classes), $80+tax for a 8 class flex-pass, or $15 drop-ins.
Pound! Pound! Pound! My feet hit the concrete. Each foot is pushing hard to get past the other. Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh. The cold air rushes past my face. Thud. Thud. Thud. I can feel my heart pumping. Ahh yes…. Now I remember why I do this. The exhilaration! The momentum! The adrenaline! I FEEL ALIVE!
Flashback to a few hours earlier, and I was hating my alarm for having the audacity to wake me up. It was the crack of dawn on a Sunday morning- and I’m not a morning person. I hadn’t been running lately and I was making excuses. I was wondering why I had signed up- and paid money- to run an 8k when maybe I should just do it at some other point in the day… You know… when my eyes didn’t feel like I had to prop them open with toothpicks?
But as I descended onto Naito Parkway with thousands of others that morning, my tiredness quickly disappeared and excitement started to take its place. Music, beer and good cheer filled the air. The buzz of positive energy was contagious. I could feel it running through my veins. “Oh right… Now I remember why I like this,” I said to my friend Jessica with a smile. We were running together: she the seasoned veteran, myself the amateur newbie.
“Racers are you ready?!” I hear the RJ (race jockey?) yell into the microphone as he blasts 70’s funk music into the air. I snap to the present. All at once myself and swarms of other runners are crossing the starting line. The race has begun. I hear the SWAT girls call our names from the crowd “Lauren!” “Jessica!” We turn around and give them a wave.
Mile 1: I feel like I am struggling to keep up with Jessica. Her pace is faster than mine and I am pushing myself to keep up. To keep my head in it, I try to concentrate on my breathing. “In and out.” “One foot in front of the other.” “You can do it.” “Push yourself.” These are the mantras I am playing in my head.
Mile 2: A guy with nothing on but a gold thong and green paint all over his bare body passes me. That is enough to distract me from the hill I am climbing. Thank you gold thong!
Mile 3: I am utterly caught in the moment: the trees, the fresh air, the people cheering us on from the side lines, the chance to run free through the streets of downtown. It’s a completely different way to see Portland- and I am loving it.
Mile 4: A guy dressed as a woman, including wig and belly shirt passes. He is holding his tape player from the 1980’s and blasting tunes for the rest of us to jam to. Oh yeah! Pump that jam! I feel like doing a little dance as I run.
Mile 5: Shots of beer are being offered. We are running down hill and the end is near. The crowds below are becoming louder. I can see the finish line. Jessica starts to pick up the pace again and I am pushing myself to finish strong.
I have been asked by (soon-to-be) members if Strong Women Active Together (S.W.A.T.) is for “young” girls, for single women (meaning no other attachments), or for women who are extremely fit. These are questions I thought worth considering. My initial thought is, “How would my answer affect their decision to be involved or to start a S.W.A.T. lifestyle?” I must admit, I am single, in my 30’s (young at heart and believe you are only as young as you feel), and practice a balanced lifestyle consisting of different activities. And though I have not always been a health conscious person (I used to be a “social smoker”), I am in better shape now than in my 20’s. Perhaps it comes down to life experience and making wiser decisions, or maybe age has forced me to be aware of what my body can or cannot handle (beer doesn’t go down the way it used to).
In any case, is S.W.A.T. for young, single, fit girls? My answer is yes, yes, and yes. And for every woman who feels herself worthy of a balanced, healthy, connected and vibrant life. I believe the real question is: Is this something I can vibe with? A valid question and I can’t guarantee it. However, what I can guarantee is you will be welcomed with open arms by women who value and respect themselves and their community and if that’s something you can get behind — well, we look forward to meeting you.
My belief is it all starts with intent and action. They go hand in hand. Having good intentions with no action gets you nowhere and having no clear intent with action gets you everywhere but where you really want to be.
Our intent with S.W.A.T. is to create a community where we support, encourage, appreciate, and live with purpose. We connect mind, body, and soul.
It’s never too late to live your S.W.A.T. life.
Cheers,
Liz
Have any thoughts or comments? Please leave it here!
Hi S.W.A.T. Girls! Liz and Lauren again. We are having a ton of fun planning future events and volunteer opportunities for you and to show our appreciation for your support we’ve teamed up with Lucy’s Activewear in Portland, OR!
About the SWAT Rally: If you are running/walking/supporting the Shamrock Run (Sunday, March 14th) join us for our rally Saturday March 13th for Runner’s Yoga 8:30am to 9:30am.
Store opens at 10am for 30% off Lucy Active gear for S.W.A.T. members.
Goodie bags for our S.W.A.T. girls representing us on Sunday for the Shamrock. Way to go ladies!
Lucy Activewear raffling off Lucy clothes! Oh yeah.
Good times, great people, and awesome work-out clothes!
Yours truly will be teaching the morning yoga class. Limited space available, please RSVP Liz@SWATpdx.com (we can fit about 10 girls).
WHAT: An hour long class consisting of cardio drills, core exercises, functional full-body exercises, and flexibility training that results in maximum calorie expenditure and fast strength, endurance, agility, and overall conditioning improvements. Modifications to everything will be shown to accommodate for all fitness levels. Bottom line – if you consistently attend these classes, you will quickly see and feel dramatic results!
Class sizes are kept small so you receive personal attention to make sure you use proper form and are pushed to perform your best.
WHEN: Monday and Thursday evenings at 6pm.
February class dates: 1, 4, 8, 11, 15, 18, 22, 25, 29
WHERE: Columbia Dance Studio in downtown Vancouver. 1700 Broadway St.
COST:
$90+tax for an all month pass (9 classes)
$72+tax for a 6 class flex-pass
$15 drop-ins.
PROMOTIONS: If you refer a friend who signs up for a month pass, you receive a $20 credit toward your next month’s classes! If they sign up for a flex pass, you receive a $10 credit!
It’s a dimly lit room. There is a man in the corner playing a piano. Candles are on the table and there is a fire burning in the back of the room. Im holding a delicious cocktail in my hand, perusing the menu. I look across the table. I smile. The stage has been set for romance and love. Im excited for this beautiful evening to begin. Just then the waiter comes over to the table and asks “So what will it be ladies?”
That’s right. This Valentines my girlfriends and I weren’t with our boyfriends or husbands … nope! We were out celebrating the true love we have for one another.
Some didn’t have a “lover” in their life- but we all had each other- and that was something worth celebrating. Nights like this is why SWAT is bringing a Valentines dinner full of love and womance to you this Sunday, February 14th 6pm at Noble Rot Restaurant and Wine Bar.
We think Valentines is more than just a couples holiday. So come join us for some TLW (tender love and womance!)
What: Cocktails, dinner, and dessert with your girls!
When: February 14th at 6pm
Where: Noble Rot: 1111 E. Burnside, Fourth Floor, Portland, OR
A few weeks ago, my friend Jessica (a gifted photographer) asked me to be a part of her boudoir portfolio. I was ecstatic at the idea…at first. My fantasy of my dark hair going from plain ponytail to big, sexy, “bed head” gave way to the reality of life: I was in the middle of moving; I had no idea what I did with my curling iron; I had trimmed my bangs recently and they were too short; and what was I going to wear! What I came to realize was this: I was making excuses because I wasn’t feeling sexy.
Maybe you, too, have lost touch with that confidently — female part of yourself. Where has that bold, fearless woman been hiding? It’s easy to forget your inner vixen if you’re not making time for fun, add work, mothering, family and friends into the mix, and it is no wonder we lose touch. However, by shutting down your sensuality, you cut off a vital, intimate part of yourself. Wouldn’t you rather experience your full capacity for pleasure and acceptance, and the ability to relate to your femininity on all levels? The ability to let go and strip away layers of ourselves is both liberating and necessary for us to expose the foxy, vulnerable, ravishing beauty within.
And what better way to experience this unraveling of your inner goddess than picturing yourself in the best light possible…literally. This is exactly what Jessica did for me. She made sure I was comfortable in my own skin enjoying my moment of freedom from self-criticism. In that moment I instead turned to self-acceptance — loving my almond shaped eyes, the curves of my hips perfectly designed to bare children, the thickness of my thighs, the intricate shapes and lines my body made, and the contrast of my dark skin on white sheets.
Recently, I saw my slide show — picture after picture, the layers peeled away and underneath a strong, playful, sexy woman was revealed. I can guarantee your inner hotness is dying to get out, she just needs a nudge. The next time you’re in front of a mirror, let her know you’d like to reconnect and say: “Hello sexy. Hello sexy. HELLO SEXY!” Trust me, she’s waiting for the call to strut her stuff.
Post written by Liz Suchinda in regards to her Photo Shoot, January 23, 2010 with Jessica Daniels at The Nines Hotel in Downtown Portland. Please visit The Modern Pin Up Facebook for more info.
I am definitely a lover of a cold pint of beer (the N.W. has amazing breweries) and though I like my wine from time to time, I must admit: I am clueless. However, I do know when I taste a glass of wine I like, boy is it good! So, I decided what a great way to meet new people, get the girls together, and sample some wine. If this sounds like something you can get excited about (who wouldn’t be?!) then let’s all meet up!
About: SWAT is thinking about creating “Wine Wednesday’s” as a recurring monthly Womance event. We hope it will be a time you can get away with the gals – and learn a little something about wine, while your pallet explodes with deliciousness!
To kick off our first “Wine Wednesday” we will be in Vancouver on the 3rd day of February. Come be a part of the fun!
This is one of our favorite runs because it is non-competitive, silly, and green everywhere! See for yourself…
Like last year, we are registering as a team and qualify to receive a discount. If you have never walked/ran a marathon this would be a great one to start with: well organized, lots of friendly S.W.A.T. faces, and supports Doernbecher’s Children’s Hospital!
When: Sunday, March 14th
Time: Depends on what race you enter! You can register as part of our team and choose any race you desire.
This is one of our favorite runs because it is non-competitive, silly, and green everywhere! See for yourself…