3 Workouts To Try

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

I’m going to give you a piece of free advice: If you see a hill, go up it. I don’t care how- run, walk, bike, crawl. Just do it. (Sorry, Nike). It is a fantastic glute workout and really gets your heart a-pumpin’. Added bonus if you’re at insane altitudes.

Take, for instance, this hill:

The photo really doesn’t do it justice. That hill is so steep, you have to crane your neck to see the top.

Anyhoo, as soon as I spotted that sucker, I decided Layla and I were going to get up that thing. As we started the climb, I saw a biker up ahead of us stop and sit down. He was seriously out of breath. I thought to myself ‘Ha! He is so out of shape! I am going to get all the way up this hill easy peasy!” Umm, right. Well, No sooner did we pass said wheezing dude that I, myself started to wheeze. Holy shnikeys, this hill was for serious. But, we made it with no stops. And the view, my God it was beautiful. Again, the pictures really don’t do it any justice whatsoever.

Layla celebrated our accomplishment with a massive victory poo. Don’t worry, there are no pictures of that joyous occasion.

So there’s advice for a simple little glute workout. On to the next!

Have no time or equipment? Are you tired, rundown, listless? Do you poop out at parties? Are you unpopular? The answers to all your problems are in this little bottle….

Whoops, started asking so many questions I dove right into some I Love Lucy dialogue. And sweet Jesus if you don’t know what I am talking about. The vitameatavegamin episode. Seriously, guys. Catch up on your black and white sitcoms.

Back to the no time or equipment thing. Here’s a quick 10-minute crossfit style workout I found on Fitsugar.

The workout is a combination of cardio and strength straining that can be done in only 10 minutes.

See? I liked it so much I did it for an extra .2 seconds. Overachiever is my middle name.

If you don’t want to click on the link above which provides a video demonstration of this workout, I’ll write it here:

1 minute of shuffle squats
1 minute of alternating front lunges
1 minute of bicycle crunches
1 minute of mountain climbers
1 minute stretch
REPEAT

It’s only 10 minutes. That’s it. Go do it.

3rd workout I will tell you about is The Fitnessista’s Schweaty May Workout. I also did this one yesterday and I love love love it.

She goes into detail for the moves, but I’ll summarize below:

5 minute warm up

3 sets of 12-15 reps for the following (3 sets on each side, if applicable)

squat to overhead press
reverse fly and leg lift
curtsy lunge with bicep curl and lateral raise
stability ball pushup
stability ball back extension
stability ball leg lifts

optional: 20 Minutes of HIIT with 1:30 minutes easy and 30 seconds HARD.

I love this workout!

There ya have it. 3 different workouts you can do today.

See ya later.

Weekend roundup and a tabata quickie

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Friday: worked out. A lot. Like, ran those dang stairs in downtown for an hour. Did you miss my photo on instagram? Probably. So, here’s a pic of my new office

Fast forward a bit, and this is what I surprised Tyler with

Homemade sangria, STEAK, grilled portobello and baked taters.

Hi, doesn’t that look delish? Ok, bye.

Saturday: I did my hair and put makeup on. But that’s not all!

Tyler took me downtown for lunch. We also walked around a bit and enjoyed the wonderful sunny day.

Saturday night: I finished my book, we drank weird beer, and played scrabble.

Sunday: breakfast of champions, lunch (more like snack), sunny walk and burgers

;

Lots on the agenda today. BUT, I leave you with this:

Feeling sluggish? Have 16 minutes laying around? Way to feel awesome and maybe sweat a little bit?
(hint: the answer should be yes to all of these. Unless you dot feel sluggish… Then good for you!)

Try this 16 minute tabata workout!
tabatas are 4 minutes sets where you work hard for 20 seconds, rest for 10 and repeat 8 times
1st set: jumps- not just your run-of-the-mill jump rope. I want you to jump HIGH
2nd set: weighted plié squats- get LOW
3rd set: stability ball crunches- if you don’t have a ball, do regular crunches on the ground with your legs straight in he air..FEET FLEXED
4th set: overhead press… You’re only doing this for FOUR minutes (with breaks) so grab a heavier set of weights and really push yourself!

Feel better? I do just typing this. Hasta luego!

Fantastic Friday

Posted on May 11, 2012 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Well hello there.

This Friday morning has been just as grand as Monday morning.

I got in a quick interval workout at home, watched The Pauly D Project, and took Layla for a hike at Nose Hill Park.

My glutes, quads and Hammies are super sore from yesterday’s burnin’ workout, but this hike really helped. It was a little chilly, but after a few minutes at a brisk pace, I was ready to peel off some layers. We saw lots of deer too. Actually, Layla didn’t…which is good because I would have probably lost my arm once she took off after them.

Another reason why today is good: I am now 5 days clean of sweets. Pretty awesome if you ask me. If I have a craving, I satisfy it with strawbs or mango…sweet, but not stick-to-your-hips sweet. Phew.

3rd reason: Im on my way downtown in a few minutes to get all my paperwork done for the Y then I am meeting with my Wednesday afternoon co-instructor and we are going through a mock workout. I have two different ones planned- we’ll see what she goes for!

4th: I really really really want a pair of these

Like, seriously, I really want them. Talk about a conversation starter.

5th: Since I will be teaching an outdoor bootcamp AND I have been out for long hikes and walks with Layla, I really want to get something that’s easy to carry all my necessities in (phone, keys, chapstick)

I can’t decide between a Spibelt or and Armpocket. Does anybody have either of these? Any input would be really appreciated!

Last, but not least, my new tunes for the week:

(Only two explicit songs! I’m so tame)

And on that note, I am going to whip up a smoothie and hit the road….Jack.

Bust Your Booty Workout

Posted on May 10, 2012 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Here’s my morning workout for today:

10 minute HIIT warmup (any cardio you choose, I did the elliptical)

180 degree jump squats (12)
Lunge progressors (12 reverse lunge, 12 reverse lunge w/high knee, 12 reverse lunge w/high knee and calf raise, 12 reverse lunge w/high knee, calf raise and hop)
10 lateral raise, 10 front raise
x2

60 second jump rope

kettlebell swings (10)
single leg squats (10)
10 overhead press, 10 raise combo
x2

60 seconds of jacks

bridge crunch (12)
side plank w/dips (12)
leg lifts (12)
x2

60 seconds of plank jacks

Head to toes (12)

Thread the Needle (12)

(got these from the latest issue of Fitness magazine)

Cardio Series:

10 jacks, 10 mountain climbers (4x)
10 double hips, 10 side kicks (4x)
10 skiers, 10 sec plank hold (4x)

10 min HIIT cardio

That should do the trick! As for me, I have an afternoon hike scheduled with the doggie-poo, then another 30 minutes of kix at home. I HAVE SO MUCH ENERGY!!!!!!!!

Grilled Naan Pizza, Donuts, and the Stairs of Death

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Yesterday was full of more delicious eats. I just kept that good Monday going!

Lunch was a spinach salad with tomatoes, mushies, leftover grilled carrots and nonfat greek dressing.

Followed by a few slices of this wonderfully sweet fruit (Mango- if you didn’t want to play the guessing game)

It was a B-E-A-Utiful day out, and I think I still had a ton of energy from that Razor Blast Powder 8 that I took the pup for a 90 minute hike. Usually, girlfran can be found on her bed…or our bed, but yesterday, I found her out front. Lounging.

Pretty soon we were running up and down the hills, soaking up the sun and beautiful view

An hour and a half later, we both returned home….struggling. That hike combined with my intense morning workout really wiped me out. And Layla is just a fat pig, so anything would exhaust her.

Not gonna lie, I thought I killed her. I must have crouched down on the floor a dozen times to make sure she was still breathing. Last thing I need to add to my resume is dog-killer.

Once I was satisfied she’d survived, I went on the porch to soak up a little more sun

I’m gearing towards being the official Lululemon-branded tan. Seriously…I went to go find a pair of shorts to change into so that I wouldn’t have a terrible calf tan, but then I realized I didn’t bring a single pair of my shorts with me from Boston. Gah. I wasn’t out for too long though- I noticed some creepy dude walking up and down the street and stopping just across from our house and staring at me. So I went inside and locked all the doors. Much to my relief (or should I be scared?) A cop car patrolled the block for the next hour or so. Looks like some other housewifey-lady such as myself got spooked a little more than I did and called the cops.

Dinner.

Tyler is a pizza freak. I swear to God, if he were the decision maker for meals, we’d have it every night for dinner. And to be honest, the pizza bug has worn itself onto me. To change it up a bit, I decided to grill up some Naan pizzas for us.

I got the toppings all ready (pepperoni, chicken, peppers, onions, feta cheese. Not pictured: Homemade sauce and regular cheese for Tyler)

We fired up the Barbie, brushed olive oil on either side of the Naan (I use the term ‘brushed’ very loosely. I didn’t have a brush, so I used a paper towel instead. Messy, but the job got done) and tossed them on the grill. After about 4 minutes, we flipped the bread, added our toppings, and let it grill for another few minutes.

The result:

I only used Goat cheese on mine, and it still proved to be too lactose-y. Insert tummy grumbles here. But whatever, it was T.A.S.T.Y.

I decided that I was going to go without sweets for the next two weeks- just as a personal challenge. And I have already found my sweet-reward once this challenge is over: Jelly Modern Donuts. For some reason I have had a huge craving for donuts lately, so what better way to ‘earn’ one than by abstaining from sugary treats for a couple weeks?

This pic is on their website, and I had to wipe the screen of my drool

I want the Maple Bacon and the Bourbon Vanilla and the Salted Caramel….I wouldn’t mind trying all of them. If I had to.

Stop looking at the donuts and finish reading this post!

Today’s workout was going to be a no brainer. 40 minutes on the elliptical, 10 min of strength intervals and 10 minutes of abs. Bing, bang, boom and I’d be done.

I dressed up in my all pink attire and got to walking to the gym

Looking chipper as always for a 7am workout

Get this: 5 of my last 7 workouts have been at 7am! Pretty great, if you ask me. I get the rest of the day to do what I want, I have more energy, and I have been more inclined to make healthy eating decisions. Golf clap now, please.

I mentioned this on Facebook yesterday, but I thought I’d throw it on here as well: I am teaching my first boot camp in downtown Calgary next week! I haven’t been able to teach since I moved a couple months ago, so I am REALLY excited. The best part: It’s going to be outside! The bester part: It’s going to be by these stairs: