Category Archives: workouts

A Few Things

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A few things. (I always say ‘few’ when I’m teaching a class, “c’mon guys, only a few more pushups!” when really I mean 10. Or 20.) But this time I really only mean a few.

1. Check out this hilarious video. It’s the Gangnam Style music video…without the music. I still can’t decide if that makes it incredibly hilarious, or seriously creepy. You be the judge!

2. Oh man. I saw this on The Pioneer Woman‘s blog this A.M. and got addicted…immediately. Kendra Scott jewelry. (Kysha, Katie..go look at this site. There are some serious contenders for wedding jewelry!)

3. Taught Barbell Blast tonight. Except, since I subbed it last minute, I didn’t know that it was Barbell Blast. So guess what, we did Barbell Blast without barbells. Hahaha. I had one lady leave 5 minutes in. She totally had a look on her face that was all “awwww hellls no”

 

Not a super glamorous shot, but the next class was about to start so I had to be quick. And the next class was PARKOUR. Umm, what? The YMCA offers jump-off-the-roof classes? Now that I think about it, I should have stayed to watch. Drats. Well, that’s what YouTube is for, I guess.

Favorite moves from tonight’s class:

-Decline bridge chest press. It’s kinda like this picture:

 

(Source)

Except, I had the class rest their heels on their steps. I also had them alternate between the chest press and flys 2 times- without coming out of the bridge pose. Then had them go immediately into weighted bridge dips and single leg dips. Bwahaha

Other favey was the Arnold Press combined with tricep extensions (done 2 times through) To be extra challenging, I had them do sets of medicine ball pushups immediately after. Bwahaha².

I ran into one of the women in my class in the locker room afterwards and she told me she liked my class because I went so slow. Not sure if that was a compliment, but I guess I’ll take it? I told her it was to ‘feel the burn’. Quick thinking.

******

See, that was only a few things. I kept my word. 🙂

All Systems Go recap

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So the second class from the fitness retreat was All Systems Go, again by Mindy Mylrea. As if blasting my butt with her just before this class wasn’t enough- she did it again, this time HARDER.

The whole deal with this class is to incorporate a lower body move with an upper body move, core, and conditioning. But it isn’t meant to do 4 SEPARATE exercises- instead, she builds on one exercise to incorporate all four target zones.

For example: We started with a curtsy lunge using the Gliders. (While holding a body bar. Curtsy lunge with left foot behind right, holding bar in the middle with your left hand)

 

Then, we would continue with the lunge, while simultaneously engaging in an overhead press with the bar.

Then, we would continue with the lunge,  and complete the press with a twist (for core).

For the conditioning bit, it would be all the above -with a hop- if you are able. In unable, participants can incorporate all the moves as a speedier rate.

(This is just an example of how she used progressions to incorporate all four target zones)

Some of the moves we did were so awesome. Rather than focusing on the number of reps- where class participants can lose correct form as a means of completing reps- Mindy focused on having us either complete quick bursts (since everyone can justify going all out for 10 seconds) or she would have us work in pairs- where we would subconsciously compare/beat our partner with the exercise.

The best exercise we did with partners was with this band:

 

We would slip our feet between each end and stand in a wide squat-making sure the band is really tight. We would be facing our partner, and when Mindy said ‘jump’ we would try to jump higher and open our legs wider (dirty) than our partner. She would have us do just one, then a set of three, and so forth. Is was more about challenging ourselves and our partners than getting in a certain number of reps.

And these things:

 

I can’t even begin to describe how these challenge your balance. Try spinning these, rotating your arms in large circles while spinning these, all while in a Brazilian lunge. Youch. Balance? Check.

…and this class was done immediately after lunch. My advice: don’t engage in this type of workout immediately after lunch.

******

My workout last night starred the infamous TABATA. Here’s how it looked:

(FYI: Tabata’s are 20 seconds of all out work, 10 seconds rest, repeated 8 times for a total of 4 minutes)

Tabata: Bender ball lunge jumps 4 right, 4 left (Placing the bender ball behind the right knee and raising the heel to keep the ball in place- engaging your hamstring. Swing the right knee back, then drive it forward while simultaneously hopping off the left foot)

Then, I did an upper body series where I completed 3 sets of 12 reps of the following 3 exercises

  • bicep curls
  • overhead press
  • tricep kickbacks

Tabata: Tube Jumps (These were what I explained above. I used the dog as my partner, and I totally jumped higher than her) Keep in mind, these are continuous jumps- always leading with your butt. It’s not jump-squat-pause-jump-squat-pause; it’s jump-squat-jump-squat-jump-squat. You should be dead by the end of this tabata.

Then I did 3 sets of 12 reps (for both right leg and left leg) single leg dead lifts.

Tabata: For this last tabata, I rotated between two moves. For the first, I did 2 sets of left curtsy lunges using the gliders, 2 sets to the right, then 4 sets of planks using ONE glider (get in plank position, place the glider under your left foot, place your right foot over your left, ‘pull’ the glider up to your chest, and push it back out to plank position- switch to other foot halfway through)

To finish, I did 200 crunches.

Anyone have a favorite exercise they like to do with Tabata training?

Booty Camp recap

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Hey guys. Happy new week! I gotta make this post short and sweet AGAIN because school started today and I am SWAMPED already. Basically, the next 11 weeks are going to suck BALLS because these courses are crazy intense. I am starting out nice and organized with binders and tabs and notepads and what-not, so hopefully that will help out!

So, this fitness retreat I was telling you about. It was awesome. I am so incredibly sore today and have been hobbling around running errands all morning. Yet, I am really excited to get in a workout today with all the new methods, toys, and knowledge I gained from the weekend.

I got to the retreat center around 8pm after hitching a ride from some of the other instructors. Of course, there was an ice-breaker that determined our ‘color’ based on our responses to particular questions. I turned out to be a Green (detail oriented, independent, blah blah blah). If I was doing this same course at a retreat with my Boston gym friends I would have totally been an Orange (wild, outgoing, woo woo woo).

Our cabin were nice, minus the bunk with practically no mattress that I had to sleep on. So I got roughly 45 minutes of sleep the entire night. The next morning was super weird- BLTs were served for breakfast! I opted for rice crispies with soy milk (thank god for that).

I got into all 4 classes that I wanted, which meant I was going to be in interactive classes for 6 hours. Interactive= sweating.

The first class I took was Booty Camp with Mindy Mylrea. She gave us a handout with the information she would presenting us with over the course of 90 minutes. She started with about a 10 minute lecture, then got us up on our feet moving and grooving and sweating and eventually crying in agony. Good stuff.

This lady really means business. She was so energetic and happy and awesome and awesome and awesome. Of course, there were points where I was screaming bad words to myself, but I really did love it. In fact, I was that person who threw the bender ball across the room by accident.

 

The purpose of this session wasn’t for OUR workout. It was to educate us on how to target muscles in our lower half that we don’t normally target. Ladies have strong quads, men have great butts. She had us using the bender ball for exercises that would really get those hamstrings and glutes so that we could have awesome man-butts. (Yes there were men in the class, and she praised them for their behinds. She also made a joke right off the bat- as we were squeezing the ball between our thighs- that men have great butts because they’re always carrying their balls around, so we should do the same.)

Oh, and tabatas. We did a tabata of jumps. Just JUMPS. And I died. She had us put the balls on the ground in front of us (not really to use, but as a point of reference to GET LOW on every jump). The first two rounds were squat jumps, 3&4 were staggered on the right, 5&6 staggered on the left, 7&8 back to jump squats. I was ready for a nap, but I had about 4.5 hours of exercise to go for the day.

I ended up buying all the equipment she had because

  1. It was an excellent price
  2. I wanted more options to have for my at-home workouts

 

I am going to have to recap these classes in different posts because I really have to get back to my homework, but in other current events:

  • I went through one of those automatic car washed this AM. I have never been the driver of a vehicle through one of those things. I was screaming with delight just like I did when I was younger. How lame.

  • Then I had to bring my car to be assessed for hail damage from a storm that happened over a month ago. Turns out, the repair cost was only $200 less than the value of the car, so I don’t get to have it written off. Instead, I get to bring it back next week for repairs and have a rental for a few days. Another first for me.

Hey, anyone want to do my homework?

 

Gangnam Style

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I made another new-to-me dinner last night, and it was pretty good.

Couscous with veggies and bacon. Pretty self explanatory. But the secret was in the dressing! After you cook the couscous as directed, sautee any veggies you have in the fridge (I used red pep, zucchini, and an onion from the garden), and sizzle up about 5 pieces of bacon, toss them all together in a bowl.

Then- the best part- coat the mixture with dressing made up of:

  • Juice of one lime
  • 3 T olive oil
  • 1 T honey
  • 1 t paprika
  • Dash salt
  • Dash pepper

It was a really nice dish. Only complaint from Tyler was that it was too sweet. He probably would have enjoyed it more if there was a higher ratio of bacon. I would suggest tasting the dressing before coating the dish to make sure it’s to your liking.

******

Yesterday’s workout came in three parts.

Part 1: Strength Circuit from Best Body Bootcamp. For the workout I chose, she had us doing 5 sets of each exercise before moving to the next exercise. Each set was supposed to use higher weights, but since I didn’t have much choice from working out at home, I made sure to do variations for each set to incorporate muscle confusion. For example: with bench presses- first set was with feet flat on the ground; second set had my legs in ‘table top’; third set my legs were fully extended; fourth set I did on the stability ball; fifth (and technically sixth set) I did single arm presses.

I’m not sore today, but I definitely felt the challenge as I progressed.

Part 2: 45 minute walk with Layla. I wore a jacket, but hot dang I was a sweaty mess by the time we got home. I chose a route that was very hilly so I could work those glutes just that much more 🙂

Part 3: Cardio. I buzzed on over to the gym for a 25 minute interval run on the treadmill and 10 min HIIT on the elliptical. Ummm, it’s been over 3 months since I have been on the elliptical. How did that happen?

Today’s workout will be at the Eau Claire YMCA downtown. I am co-teaching HEAT (indoor bootcamp) then going over some kickboxing stuff with the fitness director to see if I am eligible to instruct an upcoming class. Then probably some sweating on the treadmill.

I leave you with my current favorite jam/dance/I will be breaking this out at the retreat this weekend:

If you scroll to 1:27, that might be what I look like while instructing my class this afternoon. #justsaying. Gangnam Style.

Recipe: Chili. Workout: Strength

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If I just want to wish you an average Thursday, do I just say “Thursday?” Instead of ‘Happy Thursday!”

Thursday.

Pardon the headache and grumpy mood.

Today started cheery and bright with the puppy. She got her morning cookie out on the patio. She’s too cute.

‘Mama, just gimme the cooooookie. I sit real nice this this”

“Look, mom. I even give my paw. I’m a good puppy”

And then, I somehow managed to take my favorite picture of the day

I absolutely love that face.

So I took her for a super long walk. She, of course, led the way.

I kid you not, I looked a wreck on that walk. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t even wearing a bra. Disgusting.

You can even see my flyaways in this shadow pic

We ended up walking longer than expected and Layla needed a shade break

Oh right. Before the walk, I did two things

  • I made chili
  • I worked out

The chili was sort of a throw-together meal, so I can’t really give you EXACT amounts, but it went like this

Ingredients

  • 1 large zucchini
  • 1 red pepper
  • 2 medium yellow onions (from our garden!)
  • 1 can of corn
  • 1 can of black beans
  • give or take 10 mini carrots

(chop all that stuff up)

  • 1.5 lbs ground beef

(brown the beef in a skillet)

  • paprika
  • cayenne pepper
  • chili powder
  • onion powder
  • salt
  • pepper
  • parsley
  • basil

(to taste)

  • 1 big ass can of tomato sauce
  • 1 small can tomato paste

Directions

Throw it all in a crock pot. Cook on high for 2 hours, low for 2 hours. EAT.

It was soooooooo good. I can’t wait for leftovers.

On to the workout…

My leg felt a bit better when I woke up this morning, but I didn’t really want to take any chances with high impact stuff in case it made it worse. So I stuck with strength (ps: last night I couldn’t go without doing any kind of workout, so I did 200 situps on the stability ball. phew)

I did 5 ‘sets’ of exercises. Each set I did 2x through. If you need me to further explain moves, let me know!

Set 1

  • weighted lunges (12 each leg)
  • weighted squats (12)
  • weighted split squat (12 each leg)

Set 2

  • Donkey kicks (16 bent knee, 16 straight leg toe taps, 16 crossover knee)
  • Double leg glute squeeze (video shows the exercise on the ball, I do these on the floor)

Set 3

Set 4

  • Concentration curls (8 full, 8 all the way down-halfway up, 8 all the way up-halfway down. each arm)
  • Tricep pulls & extension (8 each)
  • Chest press & Flys on the stability ball (8 each)

Set 5

  • Behind your back pulses (12 count)
  • Overhead press- palms in (12)
  • Lateral extension (12)

Time from this cranky pants to hit the hay.

Night!