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Working Out Six Days a Week. Lessons in Perseverance.

October 8, 2012 in Fitness with 8 Comments

I found this photo on Pinterest, from (www.fitfabcities.com) the other day.

It was just the motivation I needed!

I’m on a steady workout routine six days a week for a minimum of 1 hour a day.

Some days it’s easier to find the time for a whole hour workout than others.

Busyness tries to pull us away from the daily discipline of exercising…

Just remember this great quote,

“If you worked out when you were first thinking about it… you’d be done by now.” 

So true, right?

I am always trying new exercise ideas to help me stay motivated.

Today my workout looked like this: {1 1/2 hour}

  • Warm up – Stair master 10 minutes
  • 3 Sets of the following:
  • 100 jump rope
  • 10 push ups
  • 15 lateral/side raises (2) – 5# dumbbells
  • 15 bent over rows 20# dumbbell (each arm)
  • 15 skull crushers 20# barbell
  • 15 bench press 20# barbell
  • 15 squat, curl, press, rack, squat (2) – 8# dumbbells
  • Flip over big tractor tires across the floor and back 6 times
  • 2o hops onto the tire
  • 5 Sets of the following:
  • Run on treadmill 1 minute
  • 15 Dead lift squats 20# kettle-bell
  • 50 jump rope
  • 10 minute Abs
  • 25 minute bike
I’m committed to stay on track with my fitness routine.
Some days I’ll admit, I want to slack off.
The first 90 days were hard at the beginning of the year…
Now it’s been 10 months.
Maintaining the self discipline to keep it up has proven to be a huge lesson on perseverance for me.
“As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered…”
~James 5:11
30 Days of Hope: Day 27  
Have you been exercising lately?  I would love to hear about the workouts you are doing!
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Weight Loss and Fitness: Don’t lose Hope

September 3, 2012 in Enjoy Life, Faith, Fitness with 6 Comments

30 Days of Hope: Day 3

 

As with anything, it is easy to start a healthy and fit lifestyle.  It’s a lot harder to stay focused and committed to the lifestyle changes.  Over the years I have started and stopped my fitness journey.  However, this year has been different!  Yay!

Here are a few things that have helped me stay the course, motivated and hopeful.

  • Just Keep Going.  Life has many different seasons.  Some are more overwhelming than others.  It can be tempting in the stress of busyness to make other things in life a greater priority than workouts or healthy eating.  I have a six day a week exercise routine.  That is my goal, but if my weekly schedule is too hectic than I workout for shorter times or cut out one or two workouts that week.  I keep going, even if my weekly workouts are modified staying committed to a weekly routine helps me stay motivated not to quit.
  • Change It Up.  There are so many different ways to be active and exercise.  I challenge myself to try new classes and experience new workouts.  Cross Fit, Interval Training, HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), Kick Boxing, TRX workouts, DVD workouts, Hiking, Swimming, Biking, Running, Yoga, Pilates, Weight Training, Dancing, Jump Roping… and the list goes on and on.  I used to get into workout ruts, but now I am always looking for new exercises to learn.  Finding new ways to keep my body moving helps me stay hopeful and encouraged to continue.
  • Get Back Up.  Lapses or set backs are to be expected.  No one is perfect.  It’s not a reason to quit.  Set backs are learning opportunities for future success.  Whether it’s a set back with diet or workouts, I don’t let them discourage me.  I get back up and don’t lose hope.  I remind myself that I am in training – the training process is never perfect but if I stay disciplined during the process, the rewards are wonderful.

Bible Verse:

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.  Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. ~ Hebrews 12:11 

Prayer:

Lord, thank you so much for giving me life ! And this body to live in!  Please help me to continue to learn self discipline so that I will live a healthy and fit lifestyle and take care of the body you gave me.  ~ Amen

Linked to Seedlings In Stone    WLWed

Why Use A Pedometer?

June 8, 2012 in Fitness with 13 Comments

If a person works out regularly, do they really need to use a pedometer to count their daily steps?

I used to think the answer was no.

My perception of pedometers has changed.

Before, I saw pedometers as something that people might use if they are not working out regularly, to make sure they are getting in at least the minimum of 10,000 steps a day.

Now I see them as a great motivation tool, even for people who have a weekly workout routine.

I have been working out six days a week for almost six months now.  I was curious to find out how many steps I take a day including my workouts.

I wore a pedometer to find out…

I took 17,035 steps. (including my workout)

I’ve set a new goal of a minimum of 20,000 steps per day including workouts.

Hey, let’s face it ALL movement counts!

And with these last ten pounds sticking on me like glue, I am ready to “step” it up in every way I can.

I bought one for my hubby and he is counting his steps too.

What are some of your thoughts about pedometers?

 

Linked to Fitness Friday

 

Healthy Lifestyle Tips: Setting Goals

June 1, 2012 in Fitness with 12 Comments

A healthy lifestyle  is a life long journey… it doesn’t have a shelf life.

It’s not something we can have for a season, then put it on a shelf and expect to pick right back up where we left off.

If we want to avoid the cycle of starting and stopping over and over again, it’s important to learn new things and stay motivated!

Set Goals

Goals keep us looking ahead.  They challenge us to step it up.

I have learned that these four things make a goals more effective:

1) Make the goal Personal. Sometimes we can be motivated by others or situations around us, but if we are not personally invested in our goals then its going to be a lot harder to make the daily choices needed and effectively achieve the goal.

2) Make the goal Reasonable.  I am all for dreaming big, but it is necessary for our goals to be reasonable especially when it comes to health and fitness .  For example it’s not realistic or healthy think we will lose 20 pounds in 1 week.  Can it be done?  Maybe… but there is not a  Healthy or Reasonable way to do it.  Why set yourself up for failure?  Instead set goals that will lead to success.

3) Make the goal Specific.  If the goal is too vague then it will be difficult to know if you attained it.  I found that setting multiple, smaller goals at the same time helps to be more specific and directly target the area that I want to improve.

4) Make the goal Measurable.  Quantities and time frames help with this.  Example: Amount of water to drink every day, calories to eat, types of nutrients to increase, hours of sleep and exercise.  If the goal is measurable it is easier to track and celebrate!

What are some of your health and fitness goals this week?

 

Linked to Fitness Friday

There is More to Fitness Than Just Losing Weight and Looking Good

May 24, 2012 in Fitness with 12 Comments

I’ve lost a lot of weight.  People notice and compliment me on how good I look.

I feel like I look better than I have in over twenty years, but there is so much more to fitness than just losing weight and looking good.

It’s about health.  And health is something you can’t always measure by looks or a number on the scale.

Oh sure,  it’s been exciting to watch the numbers drop on the scale and the clothes sizes I buy.  It’s nice to be complimented and feel more confident about how I look.  But… feeling healthy, physically fit and free from my destructive eating patters is better than all the compliments and any new clothes I can buy.

Most everyone can tell you that a combination of good nutrition and exercise is the way to getting fit.  Both are essential and they each played a huge role in my weight loss.   Today I want to focus on the importance of  physical activity.

The US surgeon general recommends a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate/intense exercise every day.  We should be clocking a minimum of 10,0o0 steps every day.  Studies show that most Americans don’t  even come close to half of that.

The Cooper Institute did a study were they calculated the daily steps of men and women in an Amish community (The Amish don’t use any of the modern conveniences we use today) The study showed that the average steps per day for men – 18,425.  And the average steps per day for women – 14,196.

I am not suggesting that we should get rid of all of our modern conveniences.  I enjoy them way too much! But, if we aren’t going to get our physical activity in the old fashion way, we need to find ways to put exercise into our lifestyle.

Other studies show that people who are not physically active are just as likely to die an early death of cardiovascular disease as a person who smokes.  That’s right, this study shows that a sedentary lifestyle is just as unhealthy for your heart as smoking is.  Additionally, being moderately/highly active can add 6 -9 years to your life.  These facts hit home in a very personal way for me recently.  My mom was only 65 years old when she died of a heart attack last month. She was at work on Monday and on Tuesday morning she was rushed to the ER and emergency heart surgery.  She died only a few hours after the surgery.  Heart disease is life threatening and very serious.  A regular physical fitness routine can reduce the risk  of heart disease dramatically.

Resting metabolism is the energy your body needs just to maintain life; heart beating, lungs breathing, stabilizing body temperature ect… Your resting metabolism counts for 40% of the total calories your burn per day.  Digestion counts for 10%.  The other 50% of calories burned everyday depends completely on us and how active we choose to be. 

Here’s some of the ways I burned the other 50% this week…

Monday- 2 hours: Boot camp style interval training and cardio (elliptical and bike)

Tuesday – 1 hour: Treadmill workout and some strength floor exercises. (plank, ect..)

Wednesday – 1  1/2 hour: Boot camp style interval training and cardio (elliptical)

Thursday – 2 hours: Kick boxing and spin class

Friday – will be another Boot camp style interval training and cardio

We are all at different places with our physical fitness, whether we are a couch potato or a jock – it’s always good to be reminded of how very important our fitness is and then, challenge ourselves to step it up, even if it’s just a little.

Do you have fitness plans for the other 50% of calories that need to be burned in your day?

 

Linked to Thought Provoking Thursday  Fitness Friday

 

Fitness Product Review: Bit Timer iPhone App

May 11, 2012 in Fitness, Reviews with 4 Comments

I recently downloaded a great new iPhone app called the Bit Timer.

It’s an interval training timer that you can set to create your own personal interval training workouts.

You choose how long to make the work per set and how long you want to rest per set and then how many times you to repeat it.

For example the setting I used in this picture is for 40/20/20 = 40 seconds of work with 20 seconds of rest, 20 times.  Using this setting I can create a quick 20 minute interval workout.

Example of a 10 minute interval workout:

40 sec. mountain climbers / rest for 20 sec.

40 sec. plank/rest for 20 sec.

40 sec. burpees/ rest for 20 sec.

40 sec. right side plank / rest 20 sec.

40 sec. kettle-bell swings / rest 20 sec.

40 sec. left side plank / rest 20 sec.

40 sec. jump squats / rest 20 sec.

40 sec. crunches / rest 20 sec.

40 sec. dumb bell press / rest 20 sec.

40 sec. bicycles (abs) / rest 20 sec

You can make your workout as long or as short as you need depending on your schedule.

I used this app a couple of days ago to plan a 30 minute workout.  I combined some cardio, abs and strength training.  I loved it!  It eliminates all the counting because you just  do the work based on the timer rather than reps.

The app cost .99 to down load.  It was the best .99 I have spent!

 

Linked with TMT  Fitness Friday

Plank A Day

May 1, 2012 in Fitness with 12 Comments

Exercise has played a huge role in my recent weight loss.  A lot of exercise!

Cardio and strength training of all kinds will continue to be a very important part of my life as I lose more body fat and then ultimately be a big part of a maintenance plan.

There is one exercise that I do everyday… the plank.

It is a painful… umm I mean very effective torso/core/stability exercise.  By description, it would seem easy to do because absolutely no movement is required.  You simply hold this position for as many seconds as you can…

The first time I did a plank my entire body was shaking at between 20 – 30 seconds.  Now, I can hold a 2 minute plank.

This is definitely not a very flattering picture.  It might not be pretty… But here’s the proof, I’m doing it!

I found a great way hold to myself accountable to do a plank everyday.   I tweet with the hash-tag #PlankADay and the @PlankPolice will actually call me out on twitter if I miss a day.

How about you?  Have you done your #PlankADay today?  No?… Why not start right now.

Happy Planking!

 

This Post is linked with OYHT   WFMW and We Encourage Welcome Wednesday

Some Things I’ve Learned About Fitness

April 25, 2012 in Fitness with 7 Comments

On January 13, 2012 I started a fitness challenge and since then I’ve lost 25 pounds.  My goal is not just to lose weight, but to attain and maintain a healthy body fat percentage.  I’m about 10- 15 pounds away from reaching that goal, closer than I’ve been in over twenty years.

For the very first time I know without a doubt that I will achieve that goal.  In the past, I have been hopeful that it would happen only to have that hope turn to disappointment because I returned to old patterns and fell short.  But now, I know it will happen.  What’s the difference this time?  I have changed.  Along the way to finding this freedom I’ve learned so many things about fitness.  Here’s a few of them…

  • The most difficult muscle to train is my brain.  Sore arms and legs are nothing compared to the complete overhaul that my mind needed.  I had to change my relationship with food and my understanding of exercise.  I had fight the urge to fall back into old mindsets.  I had to be willing to train my mind right along with my body.
  • Keeping a consistent and honest food/exercise journal is an important key to success.  Every day, every meal, every calorie, every workout even the mistakes and mess ups, each one logged and learned from.  Most of us know the basic science to losing weight (create a weekly deficit of calories that are consumed versus calories burned) the food and exercise journal help to make that a reality.
  • My body is capable of intense exercise.  Working out 6 days a week and averaging 14-16 hours of workouts per week.  My body can be trained to do things I never thought I could do.  Variety in exercise is a good thing.  Cardio, kick boxing, interval training, cross fit and strength training.  I am looking forward to discovering new ways to workout and continuing to improve on the base I have.
  • Drinking enough water and eating small, healthy combinations of proteins and carbs regularly throughout the day stabilize blood sugar and prevent headaches and hunger.
  • I’ve learned that there is still so much to learn… but even applying the smallest amount of education will produce results if you don’t quit!

 

This post is linked with WFMW

Don’t Settle

February 9, 2012 in Faith, Fitness with 2 Comments

Since the very first day of the 90 day fitness challenge I have written myself a note and put it on the refrigerator to motivate and encourage myself along the way. At the bottom of each note I write the count down of how many days are left in the challenge. Today there are 63 days to go.

My note to myself today says,

“Be encouraged with the steps taken forward and with every small victory. But, do not be satisfied to settle for less than what your called to!”

Yesterday’s note said,

“Partner with God as He completes His work in you! Do not settle for unfinished results!” Continue Reading…

You Can Find Me At The Gym

January 27, 2012 in Fitness with 2 Comments

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Two weeks ago today I was sitting in this capsule to measure not only my body weight but to determine exactly how much of my weight is fat and how much is muscle. It’s called a Bod Pod. It’s available at my gym, Afterburn Fitness

Continue Reading…

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