it's the X.

P90X. I've been borrowing my brother-in-law's workout DVD's and getting some major strength training done. I tried their nutrition program in the spring and really liked it. Summer wreaked havoc on my fitness motivation, but I'm going strong again! I'm averaging 4-5 days a week that I either go for a 1.6 - 2 mile run or do a fitness DVD. My goal is 6 days/week, but only because it gives me no excuses to skip :)

Anyway, I absolutely loved my workout this morning because the DVD has the option to turn off the music so you only hear the instructor (he's a little weird) and not the background music... so I opened up our Girls In Shape blog and turned up the volume so I could work out to the cool songs on our playlist! So here's a shoutout to everyone who helped contribute their favorites to make our playlist rocking and eclectic! ** Be sure to comment with your most recent fav's so I can add them to our songs! **

My most recent adds have been Short Skirt, Long Jacket and Love You Madly by Cake; Tik Tok by Kesha; Wind It Up by Gwen Stefani; Starry Eyed Surprise by Oakenfold; She's a Rebel by Green Day; I Believe in a Thing Called Love by The Darkness.

Check them out!!!

back in the saddle... *again*

Hi girls! I feel like I'm giving a confessional, but here goes... Summer really took a toll on my fitness. I was in such a good place with my exercise routine, was totally motivated to stay consistent, heck, I even looked forward to going for a run (gasp!), and was improving my nutrition in major ways. And then came the heat. The vacations. The vacation food. The sleeping in. I've decided too much freedom is self-defeating for me, since I am a procrastinator by nature. I need a deadline, a specific time that I absolutely must workout at or else I won't get it done, in order to be successful. So I was looking forward to going back to work so my daily schedule would be more consistent. And then, tragically, the principal cut my hours drastically with the intent to eliminate my position. AARGH! (He just doesn't want to pay me an hourly rate when he can make a salaried teacher do all the extra work without having to pay them more). Whatever. It threw me off. So I'm finally back on a schedule and it's going okay... I just need to keep it up so I can get to the level I was at before. I'm walking 2-3 mornings a week at the lake with a new friend, which is fun because we have a lot to talk about, and the time goes by fast!

Today I decided I was tired of Level One of my 30 Day Shred workout, so I did Level Two, and boy did it kick my butt! But I totally finished it- yay me! I'm really proud of myself and I'm not looking back- I really want to make it to Level Three!

Increasing my protein and decreasing calories is what I'm starting to work on again, but it's so hard to get past the carbohydrate cravings right now.

How are you doing??

Do-It Yourself Boot Camp

Do you ever watch your kids playing in the park and think, "I remember when I used to do that all day long"? Have you ever wanted to join a boot camp exercise group but have been stymied by the cost or the schedule?

Well, welcome to DIY Boot Camp!! I'm going to show you some exercises you can do in your local playground, park or garage. This is just a quick workout to start. You can do as many rotations of the moves as you have time for. If people want to see examples of more exercises, just let me know.

A well-rounded fitness program is composed of three things: aerobic exercise, strength training and stretching exercises. This workout will have a little bit of everything. Most things you can do with your own body weight and playground equipment, but you can also add a jump rope and a ball (a basketball, for instance). You will need a watch with a second hand or stopwatch, also.

Let's begin!

Start by walking or slowly jogging for five minutes to warm up.

Okay, now let's go to work!:

With each exercise, remember to do things slowly and deliberately, letting your body weight give you resistance. Keep your abs tight. This will help strengthen your core. Do each rotation for three minutes, unless otherwise stated. That means that you repeat the rotation if you finish in less than three minutes.




10 triceps dips/10 pushups--that's the goal. Use a park bench for the dips. If you have to stop and rest after a few, that's okay. Just keep going. You can do the pushups "girl-style" or "guy-style" or against a wall or other stationary object, as shown. Alternate the dips and the pushups for 3 minutes.

Run/walk x 3 minutes

10 crunches alternating with 10 back extensions x 3 minutes. When you do crunches, make sure that you're not bending your chin to your chest. Keep your neck long and straight and your head neutral, fingers touching the sides of your head. You can mix it up by bicycling your legs while you crunch, doing a reverse crunch by lifting your hips, or by alternating touching your elbow to the opposite knees. Back extensions are done while lying face-down, arms straight above you like Superman. Then contract your back muscles as you raise your arms and legs--slowly and deliberately up, slowly and deliberately down.

Run/walk x 3 minutes or jump rope x 3 minutes

20 squats/10 walking lunges. If you have a ball with you, find a sturdy wall. Stand about 3 feet away from the wall. Squat holding the ball at your chest. When you stand up from the squat, throw the ball at the wall like you're passing it to someone. Catch the ball and squat. Throw/catch/squat/up. Throw/catch/squat/up. When you do the walking lunges, step forward firmly onto a flat foot, front knee in line with the front ankle, back knee tries to touch the ground. R/L = one lunge. You can sneak in a core exercise by holding your ball in front of you with your arms straight and twisting towards the right when you step out right, then the left when you step out left (does that make sense?). If you have knee problems, walk or run x 3 minutes.



Walk/run x 3 minutes

10 pull-ups and 10 hanging crunches. This may be the trickiest part of the workout. You can start by trying jumping up to the pull-up. Modify the hanging crunch by hanging with the knees bent at 90 degrees for as long as you can. Work up to it. You can do it!



Walk/run x 3 minutes

Now it's time to stretch. Make sure you stretch just to the point of tension and hold the stretch 20-30 seconds. You worked your arms, legs, back and abs, so take the time to gently stretch everything.


Let me know if you think this was helpful/not helpful/full of crap, or if you want to get together sometime for a run-through.

Have fun!! Diane

HCIATBTP.

That stands for "Holy Crap I Am Tired But Totally Pumped"

I just ran 2.0 miles. Without stopping. Without walking. (My warm-up and cool-down are an additional .1 miles each).

I had a small window of opportunity to exercise today, and I took it! The old Heidi would not have even thought about it. What? Workout at night? Um... I've got more important and relaxing things going on... (Such was the excuse I gave myself when I didn't workout Tuesday and Thursday- aargh!)

But this knees-aching, lungs-burning, heart-pumping, fat-jiggling, shoulder-twitching, sweaty-hair activity has made me feel better about myself, and feel healthy, and strong. I have a renewed sense of determination. Trust me, it was only determination that kept me jogging after sprinting up a steep hill!

Something else I have noticed is that I like to be very eloquent as I relate my exercise experience to Jason as soon as I get home, which I suspect he does not fully appreciate. He is very supportive, however, and gives me high-fives. I can't ask for much else :)

let's party... with celery?

Okay, week 2 has concluded. And I worked out another SIX consecutive days! I have exercised 12 of the last 13 days! (Sunday is my day off). I am seriously blown away that I'm meeting my goals. This week was harder than last week because my mood was lower, but now that it's the weekend and I'm looking back at what I've accomplished, I have hope for the future. And hope for a new pair of running shoes- my feet are SORE!

I have figured out what happened to my mindset to actually get my butt in gear. At stake conference last weekend, one of the speakers was talking about the importance of keeping the commandments, and he said "there is a difference between wanting to be righteous, and wishing you wanted to be righteous." The former takes action, even though we are not perfect- we put forth effort. The latter thinks about it, wishes they would take action, but that is really an illusion. To me it's similar to worrying about something. Worrying, thinking, fretting- subconsciously I feel that it gives me more control over a situation- but it's all in my head. It really accomplishes nothing except increasing my own anxiety. So I have finally somehow flipped the switch in my head to want to exercise, instead of just wishing I wanted to. And that really makes it easier to get it done, don't you think?

The next step is to flip the nutrition switch in my head. I still only wish I wanted to eat healthy. But with the move coming up, we are trying to eat what we have in the cupboards, which really limits the indulging. I did get some carrots, celery, and broccoli, (and I'm wishing I would eat them, but they are hidden in the vegetable crisper), and I've been eating more apples and bananas lately... I still love my big comfort bowl of cereal, though!

So I'm off to peel some carrots! Yay for me!

this is how I feel!

Five days. FIVE days. Soon to be six! That's how many days in a row that I've exercised. Can you belive it? I hardly can. What in the world has gotten into me? I think I finally hit rock bottom after having four Mondays of motivation, then slacking the rest of the week. I've been kidding myself each time that this time will be different. Yeah right. It's the story of my life since my metabolism slowed down. I'd much rather curl up with a book than get all hot, sweaty, and sore. So what changed this week? A combination of going back to work (ie- being forced to get my butt out of the house before 8am), good weather, extra pounds from the holidays, and prioritizing exercise and park-time for Emily above email, dirty dishes or a good book.

So Monday I walked to the park. No big deal. I always am motivated on Mondays. The trick was to work out on Tuesday, too. Tuesday is my day off. No reason to get up early. So I enlisted support and got Cheryl to walk with me and we took the kids to the park by her house. I'm already ahead of the curve! Wednesday is tricky. I worked until 9:15, had a doctor appt. for Emily at 9:30, then Music Makers at 10:30. After that is naptime. And then it's only a few minutes before my day is suddenly over and Jason is wondering what's for dinner. So after the appt, we only had 10 minutes to get to Music Makers, so we walked the short way to get there on time, then I walked the long way home to fit in my exercise. I was so proud of myself! I even did it all in jeans, not having time to change clothes. Thursday I made the mistake of trying to finish a book during our morning routine. Before I knew it, it was 11:00 and nothing was done, except the book. I could feel the cloud of gloom descending. Then, miraculously, Cheryl called to say she was at the park in my neighborhood! I threw Emily into the stroller, jogged the short way there, then took the 2-mile route home for a great workout! Hallelujah. I took a nap with Emily that day, facedown with my shins hanging off the side of the bed. Today I walked around the lake (4 miles!!) with some friends (picture a stroller brigade), and I got my butt kicked by the double umbrella stroller I used for Brady and Emily. It is heavy, with no forward momentum whatsoever. Now that was a full-body workout. I had to jog while pushing it to attempt to keep up with the other girls' walking pace and their oh-so-nice double jogging strollers. (Yes, I'm green with envy!) Tomorrow I have Brady again, so I'll get another nice workout battling the double stroller to make DAY 6 of the most consecutive days I've exercised since my junior year of high school!

So what do you think? Will I be able to maintain my girl-power attitude over the weekend into another week of awesomeness, or will my inner slacker dominate?

How do you deal with conquering the slackerness once it takes hold?

breaking news!

Drumroll, please... we're moving to a new apartment! TWO whole bedrooms and *a dishwasher.* It's in the same neighborhood, so we'll still be within walking distance of the park. And guess what is waiting to kick my butt? The long steep hill where our new complex is situated right in the middle. I might have to put an E-brake on Emily's stroller :)

Although I can't blame my not-so-flat abs on Emily, I joined the Self.com 'Reach Your Goal' free online program, which has four customized plans to choose from. The 'Finally Lose The Baby Weight' plan sounded like the best one for me, so I'm looking forward to the "fast, flexible, kidproof sweat sessions."

The other three plans are 'Drop 8 Pounds this Month', 'Tone Without Cardio', and 'Run 3 Miles With Ease'. The program has an online food diary and workout log, which automatically calulates the calories consumed and burned. There's also a buddy list, so if anybody out there signs up, we can "help one another stay motivated by sharing your achievements and swapping inspiring messages."

We'll see how long I stick with this... I'm feeling extra-motivated today after my hour-long workout in our apt. complex fitness room. I like using it since it has good equipment, but since Emily started running around, I can't bring her there. This is our last week of vacation, but once Jason goes back to work I'm going to see if any of the girls I know in our complex want to trade baby-sitting so I can work out there once a week. It's also how I keep up with the latest music videos on VH1 since we don't have cable :) Today I switched between Katy Perry's Hot and Cold and a Frasier rerun (the one where Niles and Daphne get married).

Anyway... has anyone made any New Year's Resolutions (fitness/nutrition oriented or not)?

can I get an air-five?!

Okay, after sitting on my keester today for twelve hours in the car eating grapes, cookies, reading a great book (The Adoration of Jenna Fox), and wiping up Emily's car sickness... we finally made it halfway to Omaha (visiting the in-laws for Christmas). We checked in at the hotel (shout-out to Greg H. for letting us use his Marriott points!) and after a long hot shower, I went down to the fitness room and exercised for 45 minutes on the treadmill and elliptical. It felt GREAT! And I am so proud of myself. Can you tell?! So now I am justified in bringing my running shoes and I won't feel guilty for not using them on our trip. For once my good intentions of working out while on vacation came to fruition :) I'll report back to let you know if I use them again- hopefully this will help motivate me!

The Christmas Shopping Interval Workout!

Get your shopping done while getting in shape!

- Where sneakers or other comfortable shoes
- Park in the furthest corner of the mall parking lot
- Take the stairs: avoid escalators and elevators
- Walk fast for at least 2 minutes in between each store you visit
- Make 1 trip to your car for every couple of gifts you buy
- Stay hydrated by bringing a large water bottle
- Bring healthy snacks to eat throughout the day

Just Do It!!

I have finally realized that the feeling of success upon completing a work out is wonderful! It is completely worth it and not to mention the hour away from the kids benefits them and me. We always leave the gym happier than we arrived. So the advice for myself and for you is...no matter the complications of starting the day with little ones.... make it to your workout! Whether at the gym or in the neighborhood, the endorphyns you release will make the smile come a little more easy across your face after you've done this for yourself! So Just Do It!!! Even if you're an hour later than you wanted to be....Just Do It!!

Now if I could figure out how to quit sneaking treats here and there.... Sometimes Colten or Noah will say to me, "mom, I smell something." I say, "what do you think it is?" They answer, "chocolate:)".... I have a mouth full of sweet tooths!! Anyone feel my pain??