Jazz on the Strip

Lucky for me, I was in Vegas for the 2011 Jazz on the Strip convention, so I didn't really have to worry about fitting in workouts. 

Although the convention only lasted for two of my four days in Vegas, we worked out so much those two days, that I didn't feel guilty about taking Sunday and Monday off. 


Before I left last Thursday, I hit up a cardio kickboxing and yoga class at the WAC at home.


Friday's workout was in the form of the Jazzercise Peek Show: Live Routine Taping. 

Myself, Steve, and Rachel ready to work out

Jazzercise Inc. sends out DVD's to it's franchisees (AKA me) five times each year. These DVD's contain the routines that we learn and teach to our customers. It was so awesome to be a part of the taping of one of these DVD's and to get a sneak peek of the upcoming routines.  

Before the actual workout started, we got a chance to check out the new Juniors routined, performs by the juniors themselves. 

After the taping, we snapped a group pic with Judi Sheppard-Missett, the founder & CEO of Jazzercise Inc. and Shanna Missett-Nelson, her daughter and the President of Jazzercise Inc.

Then, there was a meet and greet session. The rest of my group snuck out of the taping early, but I sure did not. I was a little disappointed in their lack of enthusiasm for the event. I was pumped, and jumped in line for meet and great! How exciting to get a chance to meet the people that I see on my DVD's every month!

Emily (Junior Jazzercise Coordinator), Myself, Rich and Jenet (Taping Team Members)

Myself, Nancy, Young, Chere, and Michelle (Taping Team Members)

With Judi & Shanna!

Bummer that I wasn't wearing my Jazz on The Strip shirt that I purchased, so we could all match! ;)


Saturday meant Jazzercise all day ... whoo hoo! Class #1 was called "Crazy Boys & You" and was taught by Jazzercise Taping Team Member Rich Mundy and VIP of International Sales and Marketing Kenny Harvey.

Kenny (left) and Rich (right) were a blast!

They chose a bunch of awesome songs for their set, including a few by Cher. Consequently, they were joined on stage by Cher impersonator, Chad Michael.

They were also joined by two sexy Italian instructors ...

who I managed to snap a picture with after class.

Things were getting sweaty already!

Can't you tell from Steve's shirt?

I couldn't resist a few photo-ops while waiting for the next class to begin.

Class #2 was called "Pure Muscle" and featured Jazzercise founder Judi Sheppard-Missett, taping team member Chere VanLigten, and director of training Carol Schmidt.

As you can see, they were joined by some very attractive men ...

... who turned out to be from the Thunder Down Under show.It's a little bit challenging to focus on your workout with these bodies on stage. ;) 

There were a couple of partner activities in which the boys were sent down to choose a partner. GUESS WHO GOT PICKED? ;) Picture to come later, hopefully. It's not on my camera, because I was a little busy chatting with this guy ...

Back row ... ponytail ...

Yum, I think he's winking at me ;)

Whew! After I re-cooperated from this experience, it was time for Tim Robert's "Vegas Club Mix" hop hop class.

Nice outfit, Tim.

Tim Robert's classes are always some of my favorites, because he teaches us hip-hop routines. As a dancer, I love this! After we learned the combination, he kindly asked for all the men the room to come forward and perform. Men are much harder to come by than women at a Jazzercise convention, but they do exist!

Go get 'em, boys!

Check out Steve, Colleen's husband and Jazzercise instructor, front and center. He's the bomb! The song that they danced to was Beyonce's Run This World, which was ironic and hilarious. Hehe!

After his class, Tim Robert's cooled us down with a nice stretch and featured a video montage of himself and all of the Jazzer-babes at various conventions and events. 

I am actually in this photo, but it's too complicated to explain where. I'll let you play Where's Katie? Hint: I'm on the left-hand side. Look for Steve. I'm two people o the right of him.

After hip-hop, we were off to have lunch on our own. (For a complete detailing of my Vegas eats, click here.) Then it was time for Pilates instructor Sara Luna's "Showgirl Stretch and Strength" class. Before the class, she performed for us.

Sarah dances in the Giordano Jazz Company in Chicago. Although I have taken a liking to Pilates lately, her class wasn't my favorite. Honestly, it wasn't anything against her, I just thought that it brought down the energy of the whole convention. 

It took me a few songs to get back into high energy Jazzercise mode during the next class, which was my absolute favorite. It was a burlesque-themed class led by Jazzercise President Shanna Missett-Nelson and her "Jazzer-Dolls" (many of the instructors from her two Jazzercise facilities in California).

This class was amazing! Shanna is definitely one of my idols. She is an awesome dancer with a fabulous body (even after having two kids!). Plus, I got a chance to chat with her at the pool while I was in Vegas (while the whole time my heart was racing and I was thinking "ohmyGodIamtalkingtoShannarightnow!"), and she is super down to Earth. 

After this class was over, Judi came out to conclude the convention.

What an inspiring woman! 


All-in-all, I had a great time Jazzercise-ing in Las Vegas! I made the most of every moment of the convention, and I'm so glad that I did!

How do you stay active on vacation? This time, it was easy, but that is surely not always the case.

Vegas Eats

Hello again, everyone! I sincerely apologize for my lack of blog posts in the past week. I got back from my trip late (as in landed at 1am, flight was delayed, don't get me started late) Monday night and then spent the past two days nannying and catching up. 


Obviously, I can't sum my entire Vegas trip up in one blog post, but I will share bits and pieces when it feels right. The first thing I thought that I would blab about was all of the delicious food that I consumed while I was there. I can't promise that all (or even most) of it was healthy, but this blog is about being honest. I was on vacation and ate whatever sounded good at the time. 


First off, I decided to pack a box of chocolate chip Clif Kid Z-Bars, a small bag of trail mix, and a few apples. These came in handy for breakfast and snacks. The food in Sin City certainly wasn't cheap, so I tried to save a few bucks by only purchasing two meals per day.


I left for the airport on Thursday afternoon. Before hopping in the car, I decided to fuel myself with a chocolate banana protein smoothie with the usual mix of ingredients. On the plane, I had a complimentary chocolate chip cookie and snacked on some Chex Mix. 


After checking in at the hotel and checking out the pool, my friend Rachel and I headed out in search of some dinner. 

We ended up at a restaurant inside the hotel called Max Brenner's where I enjoyed the "sandwich of the seas."

It was served with waffle fries, dusted in something special (I forget what).

It was plated in a neat way and tasted good. 

I also enjoyed a Blue Moon with my first meal in Vegas.

Friday morning, I woke up and headed straight to the Jazzercise shopping extravaganza. Afterwards, our group headed to another restaurant on site, Serendipity, for an early lunch.  I chose an egg white omelette with avocado, spinach, and swiss cheese. 

 It was served with sweet potato fries (unpictured). Interesting, but delicious combo.


We didn't go out to dinner until almost 10pm, so I snacked on some trail mix in the evening. Dinner was at a French restaurant called Mon Ami Gabi.

I was in the mood for something simple and affordable, so I ordered the caesar salad and added chicken.

The chicken was pounded out into a flatter piece of meat and seasoned. It was tasty!


Saturday was jam-packed full of Jazzercise all day, so I grabbed a Clif bar and an apple for breakfast on the way to class. During our lunch break, we ran to the food court to satisfy each of our individual cravings. Since the food court was packed, I made my decision based on the shortest line and chose a pulled pork-stuffed baked potato. 

It was not a bad meal for such an impulse decision. 

I polished off every last bite (and even had a few bites of my friend Colleen's salad, since salad was what I was initially craving).


Somehow, dinner ended up extremely late again on Saturday (and Sunday actually). We wandered into the nearby Imperial Palace hotel and looked for something to eat. A sign for the restaurant called Hash House A Go Go caught my attention. I knew I had heard of it before, but couldn't remember where. Still, I suggested we try it out. Apparently, Saturday was the day of the pork, as I settled on a crispy pork sandwich after the waitress' recommendation. The portions at this place were HUGE! 


Check out my "sandwich:"

Served with a "side" of bacon cheddar mashed potatoes:

Here's a shot of the entire meal:

What's the point of the bun?

The majority of it was still left when I was done eating -- and I shared bites with everyone.

Colleen's late night breakfast:

Notice the smiley face we designed ...

The pancake was ginormous! 


Rachel's chicken sandwich:

Just a little slice of bread

Steve's one-pound burger:

I left that meal in a slight food coma. 

But it was lots of fun!

After the food was served, I realized where I had heard of the restaurant before ... on Man vs. Food!


Sunday, I woke up and headed straight for the pool with a Clif bar in hand for breakfast. A fellow Jazzercise instructor was raving about a drink she had, so I decided that I had to try it. 

The "Eric Special"

$20 later ... yes, drinks at the pool were $20! However, it may have been the most refreshing cocktail I've ever had, so I let it go.


We had lunch at the poolside restaurant (called Snackus Maximus). I chose the club sandwich, served with french fries.

It was actually insanely delicious for pool food!

Lunch was late (almost 4pm!), so I wasn't hungry for dinner right away. We ended up purchasing tickets for the show at the hotel, which ended around 9:30pm. Afterwards, Rahel and I wandered the strip and ended up at the Hard Rock Cafe Las Vegas for dinner. I had been craving ice cream the whole trip, so I said "what the heck!" and ordered the ice cream sundae as my meal! :)

Eat me! Before I melt in the 87 degree late night weather.

You better believe I polished off every last bite!

Sorry for the low quality pictures. My camera took a poop that night, so I had to rely on my flash-less phone.


No surprise here: Monday morning, I had a Clif bar for breakfast. Then, for our last meal in Vegas, Rachel and I decided to search the hotel and adjoining mall for a good restaurant. We settled on Planet Hollywood after checking with the concierge an receiving a coupon for a free appetizer. The coupon was good for the "World Famous Chicken Crunch" which really just tasted like chicken tenders to me. I was unimpressed and forgot to take a picture.


I indulged in the Pina Colada that I had been craving for the entire trip. It was called the "Legally Blonde," so I obviously couldn't resist.

For my meal, I chose the Margarita Pizza. I hate half and boxed the rest, thinking I might want them as a snack before the plane ride. I forgot to take a picture of the whole 'za, but snapped one of my leftovers.

They did come in handy, especially after our flight was delayed, and I enjoyed the rest for dinner. Look what else I found at the airport:

Eat me, before I melt! Oh wait, we're inside now.

Fro-yo! I chose a swirl of the strawberry and white chocolate mousse flavors. Yum!


Finally, on the flight home, I finished off my baggie of trail mix and, of course, couldn't pass up the warm cookie!


All-in-all, my trip to Vegas was filled with good (not-so-healthy) eats! Still, being at a Jazzercise convention, I got some quality exercise in and did not allow myself to feel guilty. 


Honestly, however, all the travel followed by two days of craziness with little A has left me feeling exhausted. More later!


What are your favorite foods to indulge in on vacation?