Thoughts While Working Out: March 5, 2013

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Do I waddle when I walk? People always stare at me when I first walk in the gym.
OMG they NEED to put a curtain or something around the scale in the locker room. Naked lady overload.
Why must the women suffer by having to walk through all the snow/sludge/wet spots since the locker room is downstairs and the mens locker room AND gym floor are upstairs? #sexist
I think I’ll do 10 minutes spin THEN row THEN run.
I am already sore from the deck of cards workout I just did at home. I hope I can get through 30 minutes of cardio.
Oh Shit. Do we have BBQ sauce to go with our dinner tonight? I think I’ll risk it- I don’t want to go back to the store.
Baggy crotch on the bike. How annoying.
The Following is a pretty good show.
Jax Teller.
Did I seriously record that TLC show Myrtle Manor? Yes, yes I did,
I kind of want to drink tonight. I can because I’m unemployed and I might as well enjoy this time off while I have it. But people will judge me. If I tweet something about it, I know at least one person out there is going to sigh and think “ugh, what a lucky alcoholic”- actually, that’s a compliment(?)
I miss my friends. How have I been here an entire year and still not made friends like those I have back home?
I hope guys don’t want to watch me wiping down each machine I use because that’s pretty perverted- especially when I’m cleaning the handlebars.
GUY IN SPANDEX SHORTS!!! AHHHHHHH OLD GUY IN SPANDEX SHORTS
I hope I get a job soon.
Camel toe when using the row machine.
Why does 10 minutes on the row machine feel longer than 10 minutes on the bike? Physics? Probably not.
I’m pretty excited to go to Costco this weekend. Debating whether or not to buy the economy pack of their version of cookie butter. I mean, there is some serious baking potential with that stuff.
Isn’t eating paleo a little more calorie-dense? Almond and coconut flour..
Oh, it’s Tuesday? I thought it was totally Wednesday.
I think this couple walking the indoor track is taking approximately 47 seconds per lap. Crap, Jen, don’t think about that! It’ll make the 10 minutes go by even slower.
Do I look jacked using the row machine? Probably not.
The guy on the treadmill in front of me was totally next to me on the treadmills yesterday. And he had GAS.
Speaking of foul smells, is my dog here or something? I think I swallowed someone’s burp-air or something.
Should I run the entire 10 minutes or do sprint intervals? Hmmmm…..
I hope I have a text message or something on my phone when I’m done. I am way too dependent on social media though.
WHY DO WE HAVE A DIFFERENT MAIL PERSON EVERYDAY??? Inconsistency at its finest.
People must think I have a circulation problem. (I removed my navy nail polish this morning, but the essence of blue is still on my nails)
I’mg glad I planned out my workouts for this week. It totally helps bridge the gap until the next round of Best Body Bootcamp.
Haha, Lisa Vanderpump’s dog name is Jiggy.
Hey, this run is way easier than I thought it was going to be today. But my glutes are tight!
“Shine bright like a diamond……..”
Phew. Glad I ordered the wedding invitations today. They look so pretty. I wonder how many people will actually come. Ugh I hope I still fit into my dress. I hope people have fun.
How many calories did I burn?
That guy looks constipated carrying those weights.
Phew! Done!

So I had about 36 thoughts during a 30 minute cardio session. 36 thoughts that I can SHARE. Bwahaha

Burpee Love

Posted on February 6, 2013 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

The last two nights have been fun. Why, you ask? Because I did TONS of burpees. Yes, I am now officially obsessed with them. Only took about 9 years. As soon as Biggest Loser started on Monday night (I watched it at 6pm since it was a New England broadcast) I got right into the strength portion of my Best Body Bootcamp workout. I told myself that during every commercial break of the 2 hour long show I would do 10 burpees. So, on top of getting my designated lower/upper body workout done, I also managed to get 100 burpees done! (And I had run for 36 minutes earlier in the day on the treadmill).

(Source)

Then, yesterday, I managed to bust through a 20 minute circuit workout I originally posted here. Once Bachelor (part 2) started, I did another 100 burpees- this time with an audience- then went to the gym for an AWESOME 30 minutes of HIIT on the bike.

Let’s see, burpees have been my life as of late. Other than that, I have been napping or hanging around the house, so there really isn’t that much to share. I DO have some new music that I’ve recently added to my playlist:

And I DID take Layla to the dog park yesterday to stretch her legs.

I have a new recipe that I’m trying for dinner, so stay tuned to see if I post it (totally to be determined by their outcome!)

Here are some other recipes that I’ve bookmarked:

1. Um, anything and everything CAN be made with sriracha, or ‘rooster sauce.’ This post has 50 healthified recipes that include the stuff.

2. Although there is no chocolate in this recipe, it caught my eye. PB&J is always a winner.

3. Yet another way to make quinoa.

4. Gluten Free cheddar cornbread. Yum

I have also been looking through tons of recipes that use alternative flours, etc. Some are paleo, some are not. I’m not leaning towards eating a particular diet, I just thought it would be fun to play around with different ingredients! Any suggestions?

Wednesday W’s

Posted on January 30, 2013 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

What I ate:
My parents and I returned to Rock Hill Bakehouse for a late lunch. I guess since its my last full day in New York I can tolerate both lunch and dinner with them today (oh and I can’t wait to tell you about dinner, even though we haven’t even had it yet!!) Anyways, this Bakehouse always has such delicious daily specials

I opted for the salad special- with a cup of the vegan split pea soup. Bother we’re so delicious and I am now incredibly full and burping raw onions.

Wedding:
Chose the hotels for our wedding. One of them wanted us to block 30 rooms! I was all ‘helllllls no.’ I talked to the curator of the property where we are having the ceremony/reception and she recommended 2 particular hotels that offer a free shuttle and great discounted rates since they often get wedding guests from their particular property. Doesn’t hurt that both are within about a mile of the location as well!

I was wandering the house as I was speaking to various hotels on the phone and I came across this little gem:

That would be me when I was about 3 years old. The daughter of friends of my parents was getting married in Beverly Hills and I just so happened to be an adorable blonde-haired little girl that they knew! Lucky me. ~~My resources~~ mom tells me the guy she married (who I was totally afraid of because he was so muscle-y) owns a ton of Gold’s Gyms throughout Southern California now. Had I not recently moved to Canada, I would so be on the phone with him inquiring about personal training jobs. Could you imagine? Training rich, tan people in California? Ugh. I can’t think of it because its making me ~~mad~~ jealous.

Workout:
Oh yes, this is a great workout. I don’t know why, knock on wood, but lately I have been in love with my workouts. This is partly because of Best Body Bootcamp, part because of the new home equipment I have acquired over the past few months, and part because of my mentality towards each workout.

For the strength portion of today’s workout, I slightly modified some moves from BBB. The idea for the circuit was to run the clock for 15 minutes and get as many rounds of 3 exercises in as you can. I don’t want to give away the moves (it wouldn’t be fair to all the hard work Tina does with the program. If you’re interested though, click the link above to find out when you can sign up for the next round!) but the 3 exercises in each round focused on lower body and chest/shoulders. After completing the first round, I danced around to loosen up for a few minutes, the got right into round 2 for another 15 minutes of 3 different exercises.

The schedule also planned for some cardio intervals. I haven’t really been loving the gym here for my cardio workouts, and I have exhausted the option of using my parent’s treadmill everyday, so I changed this to my own AWESOME cardio bit:

You see that? I did Tabatas! (Tabatas are 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest repeated 8 times for a total of 4 minutes.) In the above picture, I alternated between two moves for each tabata. I also hopped on the treadmill for a quick 1/4 mile run before getting into the next tabata. All these, combined with the strength circuits really kicked my tush. And I loved it.

Edited to note: I actually subbed the 1/4 mi sprints with 10 stair runs between each tabata set. More sweat, more work! That’s what happens when you post about your workout before you actually do it! Never again, Jen. Never again.

And now, I leave you with Weird:

Stuffed rhino head

My 4th grade self.

Question: What exercises do you currently have on heavy rotation in your workouts?

Observations, Pvbody update and a Workout

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Observations at the gym

Wear shoes with laces. Keds never have been and never will be acceptable at appropriate gym attire.
Same goes with tank tops for guys. Especially if I can see your nipples.
Please don’t wear perfume/cologne. I don’t want to be on the bike and you walk by reeking of Abercrombie. But DO please wear deodorant. THAT can be scented.
The cardio and weight floor should not be immediately next to the cafe. Especially when smells of coffee and cookies are present.
Teen night is stupid. It allows teens to congregate around machines I need to use. And they’re probably infecting the machines (and each other)
There should be an appropriate distance between each individual in the stretch area. I do not need you to do squat holds 6 inches away from where I am doing core work. Especially if you have gas, which you probably do.
Please control your toddlers in the locker room. Also, you don’t get free reign in there just because you came in with babies.
Speaking of babies. I think going to the gym during normal business hours is really good birth control. I cringe when I see a room full of those brats in their Spiderman outfits with dirty hands and a screechy laugh.
NO SNACKS!
I can see you when you flex in the mirror.

Perhaps those aren’t observations, but more like what annoys me. Anyhoo….

Now back to pv.body (yes, I’m pimping it again)

They started the new year with a 30 day challenge- and you can take part! Hint: THERE ARE PRIZES INVOLVED!

The pv.body 30 day challenge provides you with your own personal dietitian and trainer to help you meet your fitness and health goals. Everyday, our pv.body babes will be given a new challenge that they can share with friends! Challenges include workouts, recipes, meal plans, group activities and more!

You can update your progress through Pins, Tweets or Instagrams by using the hashtag: #pv30daychallenge

(In case you haven’t heard of pv.body yet- and I don’t know how you haven’t since it’s all over the blogging world- they are a monthly subscription service that send you one athletic/workout top and bottom each month. The best part is that they are high end quality brands that retail for significantly more than what you pay for the subscription- only $49! BUT, you can get 20% off that price if you sign up through me!)

Here’s how to take advantage:

1. Sign up here through my link and receive 20% off: 20% off through Nutcaseinpoint

2. Take the pv.body 30 Day Challenge here to kick start your New Year resolutions and receive tons of fun prizes: Challenge

(IMPORTANT: Please note that you will not receive the discount though the ‘Challenge’ link; you have to sign up through my link above to receive the 20% off.)

Not only am I going to write about what bugs me at the gym AND provide you with a sweet hookup for some awesome activewear and prizes, but I am also going to leave you with a sweet workout!

WORKOUT

Cardio: your choice. Incorporate INTERVALS. >It’s only for 20 minutes< Go at a moderate intensity with rest periods, then shorten the rest periods and increase the intensity. Before you know it, you’ll be huffing and puffing, but you’ll be DONE.

Strength: Lately I have been concentrating my strength workouts to specific areas (upper body, lower body, core), but this workout will be a total body one. You’re welcome.

Single Leg deadlift (using body bar)
Standing hamstring extension (same leg)
Single Leg deadlift with overhead press and hamstring extension (building on the original moves)
Bosu ball weighted squats (I do these for the length of a song- incorporating different counts to change up the effectiveness of the move. For example: 4 count on the way down, 1 up; 8 count down and up, 2 count each way, etc…)

Go through set with other leg

Stability ball concentration curls (10) and half curls (to fatigue)
Overhead presses
Tricep Kickbacks
Arnold Presses

Go through set again with curls done on other arm

Plank up-downs with toes on bosu ball
Side plank hip dips
Single Arm over head press and reach with side knee crunch

Done 3 x thru

Phew! All this fitness talk makes me want to go to the gym now! 😉

Weekend Catch Up. And free lululemon!

Posted on December 11, 2012 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Ok, I think I can get back to normal now. School is over and grades are in. 2 A’s to finish grad school! My cumulative GPA is 3.751. Not. Too. Shabby. I am really glad it’s over. The other night, I dreamt that I hadn’t finished all my work. But I also dreamt bears were chasing me, so I couldn’t take it too seriously. I finally checked yesterday morning and had to refrain from hooting and hollering because Tyler was still sleeping.

Made me feel even better about getting this puppy from Tyler as a graduation gift:

I have already made a batch of chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies and biscotti. The chocolate chip recipe that was my go-to recipe has been officially taken over by a new recipe that came with my mixer. Tyler and I agreed that this batch was the best because it wasn’t as sweet. I thought they were chewier, too. Makes them last longer (or not). I am still on the hunt for a savory dish to make with this. But why rush, when the obvious thing to make during the holiday season is tons and tons of cookies?! I loaded up on sugar, flour, brown sugar, powdered sugar, eggs, BUTTER, and food coloring in preparation for the madness that will be my kitchen in the next few weeks. PS: If you have any cookies recipes you’re dying to share..PLEASE DO!

Saturday was a busy day. It was a FUN day! And, after two weeks sans makeup and normal clothes, I got myself dressed.

I rocked some red corduroys, brown leather boots, a plaid long sleeved tee, and my wool scarf from Zulily. If you haven’t heard of Zulily, I highly recommend you check out that link I provided. There are some insane deals on there! (The girls got their bridesmaids earrings from there!)

We had a Groupon for Fatburger that was due to expire this week, so we decided to make the trek to the NE for some fat-kid food.

The voucher was for the standard burger, fries, and soft drink. A meal that is totally out of my norm. I managed to finish most of the burger which was OK, and a couple of fries. Had to force feed those, since I am NOT a fry person. The best thing I can say about that meal was that it wasn’t greasy. So I didn’t feel like a tub-o-lard that I planned on feeling like.

While eating the meal, I spotted a Bulk Barn across the way. I had never been to one yet, and I really wanted to sneak a peak on what goodies they had to offer. Yup, it was heaven. I was surprised by the variety of things they had- coffee to spices to baking ingredients to candy to nuts to….everything.

I managed to restrain myself, and we walked out with only a couple of goodies:

Irish cream coffee beans, hot tamales, corn nuts (for Tyler). and silver sugar pearls. I was entirely too excited to see the pearls because I remember my mom always having them in the cupboard, ready for baking. I guess the store we went to stopped carrying them or they were discontinued because we couldn’t find them for the longest time. Tonight, we will be definitely using them to decorate christmas cookies- made with my new mixer 😉

We also stopped by this shop that was within the same neighborhood- and we got a home brewing kit! Tyler and I LOVE drinking beer, and Tyler has been interesting in making it at home. We ended up getting the kit and a box of wort for mexican cerveza.The guy at the store said it was more like Dos Equis than Corona. As soon as we got home, we got right to it!

I can’t wait to see how it turns out. We have already been looking into other ‘flavors’. I’m rooting for Apricot!

After the beer was all set (it is currently still sitting in the basement fermenting. Or doing whatever it does), we got to our gingerbread building. I opted for the traditional house, while Tyler mixed it up and got the tree. I think they turned out pretty good. Mine included red and green fondant that I had to roll out and shape myself. I now have a new respect for wedding cake bakers. But I’m still going with cupcakes.

We rounded out the evening with Caesars and Home Alone.

And Layla drooled all over us. Typical.

Sunday was nothing unusual. Except for the fact that I wasn’t bogged down with homework! Tyler watched football while I did laundry and napped and snuggled with the pup. I was feeling pretty blah and didn’t want to go to the gym, so I did a pretty quick- but effective strength circuit:

50 left reverse gliding lunges
50 right reverse gliding lunges
50 overhead presses
50 shoulder presses
100 stability ball situps
50 right single leg deadlifts
50 left single leg deadlifts

Yesterday’s workout was Workout A from Best Body Bootcamp– 6 rounds of tabatas, with each alternating between two moves (this is my favorite series for arms, because I have seen immediate results after both last night’s session and last Monday’s session. Score!) I also got to the gym and did a 30 minute treadmill interval workout.

I think that makes me sufficiently caught up. What’s going on with you?

PS: Don’t forget, if you’re looking for a fitness-related gift for you or someone you know, check out the monthly fitness apparel subscription box from pv.body. If you click here, you can get 20% of regular price! AND IF YOU SIGN UP BY 12/13 (THIS THURSDAY) YOU WILL GET A FREE $25 LULULEMON GIFT CARD!!!!!!! (You can thank me later. Or now. Or send me cookies/lululemon gift card)

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