Father's Day...A little late!

Sunday was Father's Day, and while my husband's FD dessert was baking (photo below), and while he was cooking himself a delicious flank steak, I did my resistance workout.  I did three rounds, and I was (again) amazed at how important it is for me to have salt.  I wasn't even through round two when the headache and nausea hit, so I stopped to drink 1/2 tsp of salt and chug some coconut water.  It definitely helped, although I need to be more diligent about taking it earlier because I would have liked to have done four rounds, but just didn't have it in me.  Well, that and I wanted to eat FD dinner with Brian and his daughter, and I wouldn't have been able to if I had done another round.

 Here I am doing some pushups.  They are boy pushups, even though you can't see my feet.

 Below is Brian's Father's Day dessert; a paleoish Apple Crisp that was SO yummy and very healthy too!

 This is Brian's fabulous flank steak...

 Which I use to make a delicious flank steak salad with blue cheese crumbles (just a bit), sliced almonds, and olive oil and white balsamic vinegar for the dressing.  SOOOOO yummy!

Hooray for awesome husbands who are great dads too!!!

Hitting a Rough Patch

Today, I hit a rough spot on this road to better health.  This morning, Brandon and I went to one of my offices and packed up my stuff, and I think that emotionally, this transition is taking a bit of a toll.  We got home and I made him lunch, then I took a brief nap, and then started working on another psych report.  The problem is that my mood is in the toilet, and even Sunday's workout, which was really good, didn't help my mood much.  Not sure why I'm feeling so crappy lately, but I'm SURE it has to do with hormones!!

I didn't work out yesterday because Sunday night was the worst night I have had in a long time.  I had a hard time falling asleep, and then I woke up roasting and had to turn on the AC at 12:30 am.  After returning to bed, I had the most horrible nightmare that I can remember having in a really long time, after which I didn't want to go back to sleep for fear that I would start having the same dream again.  Needless to say, getting out of bed early Monday morning to exercise is what I should have done, but I didn't.  I already had after work plans to go have a drink with my colleagues, and then I had to fetch Brandon at the airport, so I didn't get home and in bed until after 10 pm (hours past my usual bedtime!).

Today, then, was no better.  I didn't feel like working out, but I also didn't want to throw my whole challenge away because of today.  And I guess, really, it wouldn't be throwing it away because the whole point of the challenge was to get me moving more frequently than I had been, which I have certainly accomplished.  Regardless, I am shooting for 18 workouts in 24 days, and skipping today would have killed that chance--so I compromised.  Tonight Brandon and I rode our bikes to the park, shot baskets for about 25 minutes, then went on a 20ish minute bike ride.  While I did not even so much as break a sweat, here is what I did accomplish:
I got out of the house when I didn't feel like it.
I did something with Brandon that he enjoys, at his request.
It was physical and it was outside on a cold, but not rainy, day.
I rode my bike, which I have been wanting to do more.

So while I did not work my butt off, break a sweat, or exhaust myself, what I did do was better than if I had done nothing at all, and so I am counting it as a "work out."  We did have so much fun that Brandon and I are going to go on a longer ride tomorrow evening, which should be nice because it is supposed to be MUCH warmer tomorrow evening.  AND I am going to get up early in the morning to do my TRX workout, which also (always) makes me feel good.

Sweatiest Workout Ever!

...And not because I worked so hard either.  It's 80 (hallelujah!!) outside, so today's workout was intensified by the heat.  Don't think heat intensifies things?  Try Bikram Yoga--oh baby, that's a workout!

Just to catch up, I did a great workout on Thursday that ended up being a mini-training session with my favorite trainer, Brian Rager.  :)  I am struggling with my form on the sandbag clean, so we ended up working on that for about 20 minutes at what became the end of my workout.  My two favorite toddlers in the world came to see me, so I cut my workout short so I could babysit.  So much more fun that working out, but glad I got to it before they got there.

Yesterday, Friday, was the last day of school for teachers.  I got home early but was so emotionally wrung out that I laid down on the couch and slept for 90 minutes.  Yes, it was bliss.  I then declared it a rest day and did some finish work from my actual job.  I was looking forward to today's workout so much I wore my workout clothes all day until it was go time!

I recently (like in the last 2-3 days) realized that I was getting bored with my TRX/Resistance rotation, and that there were a lot of workouts that I used to do from Bodyrock that I missed.  Today I made my own workout using some oldies but goodies, as well as some new stuff I have picked up.  It wasn't my hardest workout ever, but it was a good one nevertheless.  Especially because of the heat--boy, did I sweat today!

My workout for today was:
5 minutes of jumprope
3 rounds of 45/15: Sandbag clean with press @ 45lbs and Jump Lunge with Ugi Twist
5 minutes of jumprope
3 rounds of 45/15: Pullups and Sandbag back lunge with kick-up
5 minutes of jumprope

Abs: Core split (about 20, I lost count)
Mason twist with Ugi (until I was tired)
Leg raise (not enough)

It wasn't a terribly long workout, but (again) I'm going with the heat for my excuse!  Tomorrow is supposed to be cooler so I'll endeavor to get in a longer workout.  Next time I will add two more rounds of intervals that I just didn't have the stomach for today due to the heat.  And in the future, I am going to alternate a resistance or TRX workout with an oldie from BR.  Variety is a necessity for me, and now that I am getting into better shape, it doesn't daunt me to consider mixing it up some more.  AND, I start running again next week!  Brother gets here Monday night, so Tuesday or Wednesday we will start running.  Whoo Hoo!  I can't wait!

Here I am doing the mason twist with Ugi.  I think that if I were doing this correctly, I would be looking straight ahead, but sometimes I forget important details like that.

I wasn't going to put in one of these pictures, except that I noticed my neck and shoulders.  Check out those traps!  Holy cow, that's crazy!

And yes, for the record, I do feel a little like a douche-bag interrupting my workout to set the camera.  However, blogging this little challenge has helped me stay more accountable and on track, so I will just be okay with feeling like a d-bag from time-to-time.

I'm Not A Quitter!

After yesterday's really awful workout, and a hard day of work today, I was a little worried that I might end up bagging today's workout.  But I made a good plan: Go home, have a cup of coffee, then work out.  That was a winning plan!

For today's workout I did the TRX workout, but since I didn't get started until about 6:45, I didn't have enough time to do two rounds, so I did one good one and added 30 seconds of jump rope between each exercise set--man I love the jump rope!  It really gave the workout a great boost, and next time I will plan to do two rounds and include the rope.

I am finally starting to feel like I am in getting into shape again, and I love that feeling 10 minutes into the workout when you realize that you are going to rock it because you feel great, and doing the work feels great too.  Makes me excited to see how much more I can do, or how much further I can push it.

Here, then, are today's pictures:  These pictures are of the pistol squats.  The first photo is me midway down in the squat, the second photo is me at the bottom of the squat.  I hope to someday be able to complete them without needing to hold the TRX straps, but for now they are a big help; otherwise I'd go down and not be able to get back up!!

These pics are of the single arm row with a dumbbell.  Great for abs and arms, they are one of my favorite exercises!

I also realized today why I don't eat grains, they make me super gassy and I hate that!  Back to the mostly paleo-diet for me, just because it's friendlier to my system.

For tomorrow: I am going to leave work a little early because I need to get home to exercise before my favorite girlies come over while their parents go out.  Babysitting the girlies is a favorite way to spend my evening, but I want to make sure I get the workout in first!!!

Allergy Shot Hangover

Whoa.  I had no idea how significantly my allergy shots impact my system until today.  Yesterday I had the usual allergy-shot fatigue, which I attributed mostly to the antihistamines, but maybe that's not all of it? Today I was up bright and early, out of bed by 4 am, and started my workout just before 5 AM.  Not even halfway through round one, I was thinking, "WTH?  This feels horrible!"  Long story short, it didn't get any better, and I was only able to struggle through two rounds of my resistance plan today in 21:59.  My time isn't horrible, but given that I did this workout two days ago and cranked out four rounds like it was a picnic, while bettering my time by about 10 minutes, today feels like a real blow.  Blah.

Since there is a silver lining to every cloud, I will focus on the positive; and the positive is that I WORKED OUT!!  Generally I would have just blown-off a day like this with a "Oh who cares?"  Well today, even though I wanted to quit after one round, I pushed through a second.  And as that one poster says, "A '21:59' minute workout is still better than a 0 minute workout!"  Now I will take some extra time to stretch this morning, since I have quite a bit of it left!

May tomorrow be a better workout day!

Bah! Allergy Shots Day!

I am 1 day behind in my blogging.  Yesterday I did my TRX workout nice and early, before church and shopping, because I needed to get it done so I could go to church and shopping (duh!)!  It was a great workout, and I continue to be impressed by how versatile the TRX really is.  So after a really hard workout, for which I was up before 7 am on a Sunday morning (whoo-hoo!), Brian and I went to the farmer's market in Tigard for some fresh veg.  We got three heads of lettuce, three bundles of spinach for my morning smoothies, onions, asparagus, and a 1/2 flat of Hood strawberries.  Yummers!  Okay, downside of supporting local economy?  Washing all the freaking veg!  It took me 90 minutes to wash and prep everything.  Ugh.  Oh well, I kept telling myself it was better for me and persevered.

I had forgotten that I had an allergy appointment this morning, to see the doctor and to get my shots.  Shot days kick my proverbial ass (as well as my literal one) because of all the antihistamines that I have to take before.  So even though I was awake early this morning, I didn't exercise because I was so groggy/drowsy from the drugs.  I thought maybe I might be able to work out this afternoon after work, but it's a fight I just can't win on shot days, so I gave myself permission to let this be a rest day.  I am at 8 workouts out of my goal of 18, so I am doing really well.  I will get back in the saddle early tomorrow morning with a morning resistance workout, and I will remember to put in a pic!

My diet has been bugging me today.  I have been craving carbs like crazy, which either means that my period is about to start (possible, since it's always a surprise these days), or I have been indulging in carbs too often--probably the later, but time will tell.  So my goal for tomorrow, and for the rest of the week, is to keep my eating clean with only "real" foods (meaning, no chocolate) and nothing processed.  Since I just bought three heads of lettuce, and a bunch of other fresh veg, I think I can probably do it.  My focus will be on nourishing my body, not satisfying cravings.

Day 8

Holy Cow.  Today I went to the office from 9-1, making it home around 2 pm.  I had a little snack then went to sleep for a three hour nap.  Whew!  After nappy, at 5 pm, Brian and I got Chipotle tacos for dinner, and I confess, I splurged on the tortilla chips tonight!  So by the time I ate and let my iced tea caffeinate me, I didn't start my workout until 7:45.  No biggie, when you sleep for three hours of the afternoon, it kind of puts you behind schedule.

Regardless of the late start, I blew today's workout out of the water!  Check out these stats:
I did 4 rounds of Don's Resistance Workout.  The last time(s) I did 4 rounds of this workout, here were my times:
5/8/12 47:00
5/10/12 49:50
5/15/12 51:46 (included 1 extra set of squats)
5/21/12 49:05 (included 1 extra set of squats and pushups)
6/9/12 39:02

I pulled an average of 10 minutes off my average time!  WTH?  AND, at the end of round 3, I felt great and thought, "Well, I really don't have an excuse to not do another round."  Holy buckets....I guess I am getting into better shape!

My picture for today is me doing the dips.  I hope to someday be able to do these without the weight assist, and I am getting stronger doing them, but I fear it will be awhile yet.  Oh well, I will just keep on keeping on and wait to see what happens!

My second photo is of my awesome new kicks!  This shoes are amazing, and may just be the reason for my amazing work out times.  :)  They are Salomon trail runners (I can't remember the specs and don't feel like going to look at the box) and they are like heaven for my feet.  So comfortable!  I keep saying that I am breaking them in, but they don't need any breaking in; I seriously don't think that I will ever buy a different brand of tennie-runners again!

Footgasm with every step.

Rise n' Shine!

Life happened to me yesterday.  I had to work late, stop at Whole Foods on my way home, and get new shoes at REI.  Had to.  The result was that when I got home, at after 6 pm, I hadn't worked out and my husband, who is normally at my beck and call, declared that he was not hungry and would not be making dinner.  Ugh.  Work out, or dinner?  Well, if I don't cook dinner then I don't have anything to eat for lunch the next day, so I cooked.  The logical consequence, then, is that I had to wake up EARLY today to work out before work, because I have a date with my hairstylist and a hard pear cider after work.

So get this, I went to bed at 8:30 last night (Yes, lights out at 8:30, except that it was still light outside.), and bounced out of bed at 4:15 this morning.  WTH?  I'm going to say this for my little challenge, I have noticed an amazing amount of increased energy since I started this, and I am sleeping better too!  Who knew?  Anyway, workout started at 5:05 AM, and I have to tell you, jumping rope at 5 am is really hard.  I think I beat myself black and blue with my rope today, and I wanted to quit SO badly, but what doesn't kill you (or in this case, maim you) will only make you stronger, so I persevered.

Today I did Go Kaleo's Playground Workout.  I did the first two rounds, and had to stop because I ran out of time and need to get ready for work (typing manically fast here).  So here is my proof photo, and here are my thoughts about this photo:
1) I looked funnier with the red eyes.
2) Brian took about 5 photos, and all the other photos had a very noticeable camel-toe; which means that I must sport a total camel-toe whenever I workout in these pants.  Awesome.  Well, I guess that's just another great reason to work out at home.
3) I sort of jump rope like a fairy.

Well, kudos to me for keeping this little game plan up!  Pear cider for me tonight!!!

Keeping the Fires Burning

The work stress is really setting in (7 more school days), but I am keeping my priorities aligned and not letting work derail my fitness goal.  Today, upon waking this morning at 5, I just wanted to go back to bed for the day, and felt that way for the better part of the morning.  Fortunately, through a turn of events, I got to go home early, drink some caffeine, and then moved into my workout--no mental head game, I just did it.  There is beauty in habits that are good for you, your body starts to do them automatically, even when your head may be arguing.  Although I had intended to do 4 rounds of the routine, I was happy with three because I was exhausted and felt like quitting after two.  Here is my proof pics, doing a sumo squat with the ole' sandbag.  You gotta love my gym.  :)  Today I was too lazy to move the car out of the garage, and I also realized that "Hey, I only need half of the garage to do this anyway," so the car stayed.  Tomorrow, a new workout, and for Friday??  How about a rest day, celebrated with a haircut (that will, quite frankly, exhaust me), and end with a pear cider?  I say, "Yes, please!"  

Won't it be great if my abs are ever defined, in a shape other than round?  Haha!

Days 3 & 4

Well, I am pleased to announce that I am at WO #4, and still doing pretty good.  Yesterday I did the resistance workout, 3 Rounds, in 33 minutes (give or take a few).  It was a good workout, and I felt good completing it.  The blurry picture below is me doing pulse lunges with my 10 lb Ugi Fitness Ball.  I love my Ugi, but I totally underutilize it.

Today I did two rounds of the TRX workout, and I really believe that this baby is going to sculpt my back and inner thighs because both are SO sore!!  I did the abs too, but I forgot to take a picture, so you will have to take my word for it.  I am afraid, however, that the stress of the day may have negated my positive workout gains because I felt totally "compelled" to eat a bunch of chocolate covered almonds afterwards. I know, not the worst splurge ever, but that, combined with the amazing hamburger patty I had for dinner, might have undone my work.  :)  An occasional night of splurge, however, is unlikely to set me back too far.

So I have two more days to go in this week's challenge.  Tomorrow I am doing 4 rounds of the resistance work out.  I am almost ready to add another 5 lbs to the bag, but I want to do at least 1-2 days of all 5 rounds before I bump it up.  For Thursday, I am thinking of doing the GoKaleo playground workout in my garage, just to switch things up a bit.  Then Friday, REST DAY!

And really, the true celebration is that there are only 7 more days of school left in this school year.  Thank goodness!!!

Day 2 of 24: The Challenge Continues

Today was TRX day, and I did it.  The whole workout, for the first time.  It was a killer, and really took me longer than it should have, but whatevs--I got it done and that is what counts!  Here is my "proof," two photos of me doing Slalom Crunches with the TRX.  Speaking of Slalom, I bought an awesome new pair of trail runners for this weekend, Salomon brand.  :)  I can't wait until they get here, and I can't wait until I get to wear them camping in July!

If any friend wants to come and work out with me, I'm happy for the company!!

On tap for tomorrow, Don's Resistance Work Out, three rounds or better.

Regaining a Sense of Self with Goal Setting

In honor of finding myself and setting my priorities straight, I have set a goal for the next three weeks:

18 workouts in 24 days

This is a big challenge for me because, at best, I work out 4 times a week, and not consistently.  My goal is to not look at the whole sum of the challenge, but to take each day as it's own and just accomplish today's work out.  I will post a photo of each workout as a journal, and at the end of the month, I will post "after" pictures with my before pictures from January 1 as a comparison group.  Getting stronger and having bigger muscules is a priority for me.  :)

6/2/12: Workout #1: Don's Resistance work out, 2 rounds @ 28:23.  It's been since 5/21 that I did this workout, and I really felt it today.  The last time I did it I completed 4 rounds + 2 exercises in a 5th round, but today just doing the two rounds was a push--but it's a (re)start!  The photo is of my second round of pull-ups, which I do using a pull-up band that provides about a 75 lb weight assist.  I am getting stronger!  When I first started, even with the band, I couldn't do 3 pull-ups, and now I am able to do 9 without stopping for a rest, and then I gave myself a little hop for the 10th on both sets today.  That is also an improvement, because I used to only be able to do 7 before stopping for a breather, and I had to give myself a leg up on the last three, in addition to the band!  Once I get to where I can do 5 rounds with it (so 50 pull-ups total), then I will purchase the next smaller band and start again.  My goal is to be able to do unassisted pullups, ideally by the time I am 40.  Whoo hoo, how cool would that be?  A 40-year-old doing dead-hang pullups.  

And since I only did two rounds, I did all of my push-ups from my toes, no knees.  That's 40 boy-pushups, but I do have to take a couple of 2-3 second breaks toward the end.  

On tap for tomorrow?  My new TRX workout, with ABS!!  I swear I will do abs tomorrow, and not skip them like I usually do.  Proof tomorrow will be the pic.  :)