My Workout Essentials

Hola!!! 

Okay, so. Most of you know that I'm torturing myself by training to run a half marathon in about 3.5 weeks. In addition to running 3 days a week for my training, I've been spending time lifting weights and cross training 3-4 times a week. Over the past few months of workouts, I've found that there are a few things that I just have to have.

1. Dixie cups. Yes, you read that right - dixie cups. Fill those puppies up with ice and pop em in the freezer. Use them when you get joint pain or shin splints - take them out of the freezer and massage your sore areas with the cups until the ice runs out. This has worked wonders for me. I can thank my little brother's girlfriend for this idea!

2. Polar FT7. I seriously cannot work out without this thing. I love that it monitors my heart rate and tells me how many calories I'm burning during a work out.

3. Good shoes. This is of the utmost importance, especially if you're running. Go to a specialty running store and get fitted for some good shoes. If you aren't running and are just lifting weights, make sure you've got shoes that fit well and offer support.

4. Hydration belt. Again, this is more for running long distances (or hiking, if you live near mountains), but it's been a lifesaver. Total necessity. Mine holds tissues, 20 oz of water, my stun gun, snacks, and my cell phone.

5. C9 Champion Tech Tee. This shirt is great - before I found it, I couldn't wear shirts with sleeves while working out. This shirt changed it all, though - it keeps me cool and dry and wicks sweat like no other.

6. C9 Sports bra. Again, AMAZING! Look, I know I've gone from a D cup to a B cup in a matter of months, BUT either way, this bra holds the girls in nice and tight, and... if I get chilly, no one knows, if you know what I mean.

7. Good socks. I like these ones (I promise this is not a sponsored post for Target). When you're wearing them, it feels like you're walking on a cloud. Basically, you want your feet to be taken care of.

8. Headband. I need to keep my hair out of my face while working out, and a headband never fails.

9. Protein. I'm just getting into this, but you can't go wrong mixing a scoop of this whey protein shake with almond milk, ice, and a banana. BOOM. Delicious - thank me later.

10. MOTIVATION!!!! This can come in the form of awesome music, a workout buddy, or a goal that you're trying to meet. You won't work out if you're not motivated to do so, so download an awesome playlist, find a friend, or sign up for a race or competition. Nothing can be done without it.

What are your workout must-haves? Anything I missed? 

MONEY!!! EXERCISE!!! MONEY!!!

Heyyyy guys!! 

Happy Hump Day!! I'm so stoked that this week is halfway over. I seriously can't wait till the end of this semester.

So. As many of you know, I'm sort of addicted to exercise and working out. I've always been the type of person who would rather spend time at the gym than go out and get crazy (yes, even in my partying days). So when Deidre came up with the idea of a My Fitness Pal Challenge with a $10 buy in where winner takes all, I decided I wanted in.

Because, you know, it's money. Money that I can WIN for doing something I already do anyway. And we all know how competitive I am (or maybe you don't since many of you have never seen me play Settlers of Catan or throw my cards down during a heated game of Hand and Foot, but I digress)... Sooo my question to you is this:

ARE YOU WITH US?!?!?! 

If you've been trying to work out more regularly, if you've been watching what you eat, if you've just had a kid and want your body back, if you want to be happier, healthier, and schmexier, if you want to WIN MONEY - whatever your reasons may be, you should join us. The more people there are in on the challenge, the richer I'll be when I win the winner will be.

If you think $10 is a lot, think about the last time you ate Chipotle or Noodles and Company and quit complaining - it's nothing.

If I've got you interested, here are the nitty gritty details (stolen from Deidre's blog):

Everything will be based on a point system. 1 Point for Tracking in MyFitnessPal, 1 Point for staying within calories decided with accountability partner, 1 Point for 45 minutes amount of working out, 1 Point for no treats, and 1 Point for drinking 8 glasses of water + reward points based on how you do throughout the week.

The challenge will run March 17th through June 1st and the winner will be announced on June 2nd! So what are you waiting for? Join in. Sign up. And let's all do this together!

That time of the Week.

Time for the weekly update. I'm holding myself accountable through this here blog, and so far that's been pretty good motivation. I can't have people watching me fail. :)

Tuesday: 
-30 Day Shred

Wednesday: 
-30 Day Shred

Thursday: 
-30 Day Shred

Friday: 
-Walk 3.5 miles

Saturday: 
- Oops

Sunday: 
- Oops

Monday: 
-30 Day Shred

Hips: 40.75" (down .25" from last week, 1.75" overall)
Waist: 29.5" (down .5" from last week, 1.5" overall)
Weight: 159 lbs (down 2.5 lbs from last week, 34 lbs overall)

Today will be Day 20 of the 30 Day Shred, so that means progress pics. I'll post them next week. Hopefully the results are noticeable! :)

Someday I'll Have a Real Post

I know what you're thinking - Ugh, ANOTHER freakin' workout update. Get a life and blog about something I CARE about, alreaady! 

I know, I know. But seriously. We were gone AGAIN from Wednesday to Sunday (this time in Sioux City visiting Mike's parents), so I'm proud of myself for getting anything done. And once you scroll down to the bottom, you'll know why!

Tuesday: 
-- 2 miles with C25K
-- Day 1 of the 30 Day Shred

Wednesday:
-- 2 mile walk
-- Day 2 of the 30 Day Shred

Thursday: 
-- Day 3 of the 30 Day Shred

Friday: 
-- I suck.

Saturday: 
-- Day 4 of the 30 Day Shred

Sunday: 
-- I smell like fish.

Monday: 
-- Day 5 of the 30 Day Shred
-- 3 mile walk

Waist: 30.25" (down .75")
Hips: 42.25" (no change from last week)
Weight: 164.8 lbs (down 2.2 lbs from last week, 3.2 lbs overall - I weighed the same both yesterday and today, so I'm guessing it's pretty accurate)

I will have you know that I lost that weight even WITH eating BBQ three times, Mexican food (a HUGE burrito), and lots of cookies. Working out really does wonders, people! I can't imagine what my results would be if I was actually paying attention to what I eat! I've heard that breastfeeding helps, but I hadn't really lost too much weight before I started working out, so I don't know how much I believe that. Everyone is different, though, so there you go.

Oh, and this is pretty embarrassing, but here are my "before" pictures for the 30 Day Shred (ignore the messy house, please... we still haven't figured out how to hide those hideous cords!). I really want to see how much of a difference this program makes! I will take pictures on Days 10, 20, and 30 so that I can see results as I go.

Week One - Taking it Off

Happy Tuesday!!! 

We are leaving for Utah today, so I'll let you all know how that goes. Just wanted to pop in and update you all on this plan to lose the weight. I haven't had the chance to weigh myself just yet, but I'm hoping to be able to next Monday, and hopefully I'll see some results.

I'm happy with all that I was able to accomplish as far as working out this past week, but I know I can do better. We'll see if I'm able to stick with it all while we're out west (hopefully the extra elevation won't totally kill me). No pictures because I'm just here to keep myself accountable and keep track of what I've done.

Monday: 
-Walked 3.2 miles with Elsie and a friend
- 30 normal squats, 20 wide leg squats
- 4 sets of 20 leg lifts (2 sets on hands and knees, 2 sets laying on side) on each side
- Week 1, Day 1 of C25K with Michael and Elsie (1.7 miles)

Tuesday: 
- Walked a mile
- 50 normal squats, 20 wide leg squats
- 2 sets of 20 leg lifts on each side

Wednesday: 
- Walked 3.3 miles with Elsie and a friend
- 55 normal squats, 20 wide leg squats
- 2 sets of 20 leg lifts on each side
- Missed C25K today, plan on making up on Thursday

Thursday: 
- Walked 2.2 miles with Elsie and a friend
- Week 1, Day 2 of C25K with Elsie (Mike mowed the lawn instead... that's definitely a good substitute) 1.6 miles
- Rest day for squats & leg lifts

Friday: 
- 60 normal squats, 20 wide leg squats
- Walked 3 miles with Elsie

Saturday: 
- 60 normal squats
- Drove to Sioux City/Wichita, so didn't have time to walk or jog. :(

Sunday: 
- Walked 1.5 miles with family

Monday: 
- 90 normal squats
- Walked/jogged 2.7 miles (about 1.5 miles total jogging... YAY!!!) --> I'm counting this as week 1 day 3 of C25K because the longest amount of time walked was 90 seconds.

Total miles logged: 20.2/avg of 2.5 miles per day

Oh, How Pinteresting. Because I forgot to get dressed. That's a Lie.

Hiiiiiii frans! 

So... I thought about writing some inappropriate thing about how I didn't get any pics for WIWW because I walked around naked all day, but that was a lie, and not blog appropriate, so I decided against it.

Instead, I wanted to share some of my favorite recipes from Pinterest with you guys. That place has become my cookbook - I turned to it when I made our monthly meal plan, and so far I've been happy with almost everything. Here are my top five choices from the past two weeks (except the sesame chicken - I already shared the link to that one here).

1. Crockpot Broccoli and Beef

Source: laaloosh.com via Alyx on Pinterest

2. Crockpot Chicken Taco Chili

Source: skinnytaste.com via Alyx on Pinterest

3. Mexican Pizza

Source: traderjoesrecipes.net via Alyx on Pinterest

4. Slow Cooker Breakfast

Source: justapinch.com via Alyx on Pinterest

5. Crispy Southwest Chicken wraps

Source: melskitchencafe.com via Alyx on Pinterest

OH!  One last thing - I made a pact with Kristen to wake up ridiculously early every morning this week and work out. Yesterday I made it to cycling at 5:30 (and then almost fell asleep at work a grand total of one million times). And... the husband and I went on another short bike ride after dinner. I feel like posting photo evidence, just for my own sake - as sort of encouragement to myself.

Note: that's a "2" for "day 2," not a peace sign. sheesh. I may do duck lips, but come on - even I have limits.

What It's Like to be a Giant. Oops.

Yo. 

So I hope you all are fabulous. And yes, I did wake up at the butt-crack of dawn to go to cycling yesterday. And yes, the husband and I did play sand volleyball by ourselves for half an hour then go on a bike ride (hey, 5 miles is better than nothing). I'm back in the game (because, you know, getting back in shape is a game - it makes it more fun).

And yes, that is me all sweaty and disgusting with a duck face. I needed to document the first day back to working out.

Because I've been so busy working and stuff, I may or may not have decided to use one of my posts that ran on Kim's blog yesterday. Sorry. I promise you will laugh at my misfortune, though, so read on.

You guys, I'm a giant. 6'1", to be exact.

 I feel like it should be in my blood to slam dunk, spike, and high jump like no other mother.

I feel like I was born to be a star volleyball or basketball player. I feel like I should be collecting medals at the Olympics right now.

The only problem? I'm less coordinated than a friggin' chimpanzee. Okay, that's actually an insult to chimpanzees, because have you seen those guys? They're talented.

via

How about... a hedgehog. Yeah, I'm more clumsy than a hedgehog (note: I googled "clumsy animals," and those poor hedgehogs were at the top of the list).

via

Anyway, I feel like I should give you proof, so... STORY TIME!

I was the tallest girl in my high school at one point, and the volleyball coach tried to recruit me. We did some one-on-one coaching over the summer, and things went well.

I showed up to the first day of tryouts feeling pretty confident.

via

Then my graceful side decided to crash the party. Within an hour of tryouts starting, I had sprained my ankle. It was bigger than my face.

That, my friends, was the beginning and end of my olympic dreams.

Okay, let's be real - I never had olympic dreams. I just had dreams of being able to walk down the hallway without falling on my face.

Someday, someday. 

In other news, how bout them ladies on the USA gymnastics team?? They're the exact opposite of me. Short, strong, and very graceful.

Have you been watching the Olympics? I sure as heck hope so, because they are the bomb dot com.

Crazy Good (and Quick) Workout

Get your mind out of the gutter.

This workout is AWESOME. I've done it a few times now, and thought it was good enough to share. It's something that can be done anywhere, and is quick and effective.

100 jumping jacks
90   crunches
80   squats*
70   leg lifts**
60   jumping jacks
50   second plank hold
40   squats*
30   leg lifts**
20   power jacks***
10   minute jog

* I alternate wide-leg and normal squats in 10s (so 10 w-l, 10 reg, etc.). For added difficulty, I do a couple of the sets of 10 with my 15 lb. kettlebell. It makes a BIG difference.
** I alternate leg lifts by day. One day I will do these leg lifts, and the next I will do whichever one of these suits me at the time.
*** You can see how to do power jacks here.


Believe me, once you get to the 10 minute jog, you will want to fall down dead. Not even kidding. This workout usually takes me about 35 minutes with stretching, and you will WANT to stretch. Otherwise, you might not be able to walk for a couple of days (I learned that the hard way).

Hopefully some of you try it, and let me know what you think!

--M&A