Thursday, February 28, 2013

CXWORX + Body Pump

STILL not feeling the workout love this week. What gives? All I want to do is go home and curl up with a book. Unfortunately, that's not going to make my abs any prettier, no matter how many veggies I eat. Sigh. I can't wait to get out of this slump. Thankfully my gym offers other people that are completely willing to kick my ass for me; off to BodyPump...

Apparently I had plans to keep track of my weights and 'go regularly', but that hasn't happened. But I'll still post them here, since I believe I changed them a bit as compared to last time. 

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 2
Sore Areas: Enh.
Yesterday: No exercise. Beer drinking.
Environment: Indoors.

Workout
Warmup: 5:00 Stationary Bike
Equipment: resistance band [orange], small barbell, plates: 5kg x4, 2.5kg x2, 1kg x2
Work Time: 90:00

CXWORX: 30:00, various core exercises
BodyPump: 60:00, full-body workout

Muscle GroupWeight [plates = total]Increase/Decrease?
Warmup - All2 x 5kg = 10 kgno
Legs/Gluts4 x 5kg = 20kgIncrease
Chest2 x ( 5kg + 2.5kg) = 15 kgno
Back/Hamstrings2 x (5kg + 2.5 kg +1kg) = 17 kgIncrease
Biceps2 x (2.5 kg +1kg) = 7 kgIncrease
Shoulders2 x 5kg = 10 kgno

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Stretch Time: 5:00
Total in-Gym Time: 2:00:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 1
Sore Areas: Upper back


Comments
Actually felt better after my workout - yay! Funny how that sometimes happens. Sometimes being the operative word. I know everyone's always like 'exercise is so good for your mood all the time yay!' but honestly, if it isn't a good workout, it isn't going to make me feel better. See: Monday's failure.

I also had a mini epiphany today. See, I always berate myself because I put weights on the bar that I can do no problem outside class, but then during class I'm lifting them and DYING. It's most noticeable during the bicep track -- I usually toss on the 5kg plates and try to power though, with running commentary in my brain along the lines of "5 kg per side, that's like 11 pounds per arm.  YOU CAN LIFT 11 POUNDS YOU WIMP. WHY ARE YOU DYING ALREADY? WE JUST STARTED! 11 POUNDS!!". And then today the instructor made an offhand comment about how excited he was about the brand-new weight set the gym just got in for the class and how the new bars might be a bit heavier than the old bars, and it hit me: THE BARS HAVE WEIGHT TOO. I don't know exactly how much, but they are solid metal so I wouldn't be surprised to learn its in the realm of 10 pounds or so. Which means my 11 pounds? Not 11 pounds! Probably more like 15 pounds! Which I have less trouble admitting will kick my ass after a minute of solid curling. Horray! As a result of my epiphany I downgraded the weight on the bar, and lo and behold I made it all the way through the bicep track. Who'da thunk it. So now my goal is to work back up to using the 5kg plates (and beyond)!

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

ZCUT #1

For Valentine's Day boyfriend got me a whole slew of healthy-themed things off my Amazon wishlist, one of which was Zuzana's 'ZCUT Power Cardio' DVDs. Since there are a whole buncha things I wanted to accomplish this evening, not least of which was get to the grocery store AND cook dinner, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to check out my new workouts.

I was first introduced to Zuzana a maybe a year ago (ish?) when she was still part of the bodyrock.tv crew -- I can't remember who or what pointed me in that direction, but I became a tentative fan. BodyRock's whole thing is at-home, short, super intense HIIT-style workouts. Exactly up my alley; lord knows I hate spending more than about 6 seconds doing any one thing. Plus, these people were CUT. Clearly what they're doing is working. Probably. I hope...

So I really wanted to be a 'bodyrocker', but I had some issues with their system. As bodyrock grew in popularity, their workouts changed -- they went from being primarily body-weight, no equipment needed workouts to needing to have some weird-ish things on hand. They were still at-home workouts, but your home had to have a sandbag, a dip station, some weird ball... basically a bunch of things I didn't feel like purchasing and couldn't be found in my Gold's Gym. I tried to fake it for awhile, using dumbbells instead of a bag and that sort of thing, but I wasn't really 'getting it'. Apparently several of the hardcore bodyrockers felt the same and they were always suggesting going back through the archives.

And here's where I really fell out with bodyrock -- their website archive was a DISASTER. The search function was nearly non-existant and the filtering was a joke. And what was filtered was usually a lie -- using a sandbag does not mean equipment-free! So I gave up entirely. Sorry bodyrock - I wanted to love you, but it just wasn't meant to be.

So how did Zuzana's DVDs end up on my Amazon list if I stopped visiting her website? Well, I can think the Fitnessista for that. Apparently sometime last year Zuzana and her man Freddie broke up and there was a thing and blah blah moral of the story she's no longer with bodyrock and is now doin' her own thing over at zuzkalight.com. And part of her new thing is this DVD set, which the Fitnessista bought and reviewed favorably. And since it appears to harken back to the early days of bodyrock, where things were fast and furious and devoid of accessories, I figured I'd give it a try (especially if someone else bought it for me!).

The workout is comprised of a 7 minute warmup followed by a series of exercises done for time. While I won't go into exact details because I don't want to infringe on her product, the exercises involved were burpees, jump tucks, burpees, jump lunges, burpees, crab kick-ups, burpees, low jacks, burpees, and more burpees. Fucking burpees.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: Enh.
Yesterday: A sad excuse for a cardio workout.
Environment: Indoors, at home. Dog looking at me like I'm crazy.

Workout
Warmup: dynamic 7:00 [squats, lunges, pushups, etc]
Equipment: None!
Work Time: 10:00

ZCUT #1 - total time: 9:43

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Stretch Time: 0:00
Total in-Gym Time: 0:00!

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 2
Sore Areas: Quads, a little

Comments
I kept up! I didn't think I was going to since Zuzanna is super fit, but while she owned me on the many (many) burpees I managed to catch up during some of the other moves. Those crab kicks are maybe one of the hardest things I've ever tried to do -- my shoulders at not flexible enough for that shit.

Monday, February 25, 2013

Blogilates - Abs + 20:00 Bike

Catching up on posts, so not a lot to say today!

Today I was feeling a little 'meh' and overwhelmed by the task of having to come up with workouts for the week. So I had a mini ephiphany -- why not actually follow one of these calendars all these fabulous fitness-minded people put out? Crazy, right? The only effort I'd have to put in was the effort to do the workouts. Genius!

But which calendar to follow? Well, considering I gave myself a massive bruise at kickball yesterday which hurts every time the skin of my thigh moves, something low-impact. Blogilates it is. According to the calendar for 2/25, it's ab day.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: Bruised thigh.
Yesterday: Sunday funday!
Environment: Indoors

Workout
Equipment: none!
Work Time: 50:00?

Blogilates - FeelFabFeb 2/25
** Didn't get through everything - gave up after the 'Love Handles Exterminator'

Stationary Bike
Level: 15
Minutes Intensity: RPM Total Distance (mi)
0:00 - 5:00 ~751.3
5:01 - 10:00 100+ [:20]
40- [:10]
x10
[+ 1.55 =] 2.85
10:01 - 15:00 ~75[+ 1.32 = ] 4.18
15:01 - 20:00 100+ [:20]
40- [:10]
x10
[+ 1.57 =] 5.75
Total: 20:00
5.75

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 2
Stretch Time: 5:00
Total Time: Way too long.

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 0
Sore Areas: n/a

Comments
Straight-up, this workout sucked. I was unmotivated, didn't want to be there, everything was just 'meh'. I gave up on the blogilates workout halfway through because I just didn't want to do it any more. It was especially frustrating because the reception at the gym sucks so each video took like 10 minutes to load and would randomly freeze in the middle. There was no 'flow' to the workout, just a lot of lying around. Wasted time. I *hate* wasting time. But since I hadn't really done anything in the nearly 60 minutes it took me to watch 30 minutes of video, I got on the bike. Had to do SOMETHING to salvage the day. But I had nothing to read. Ugh. At least I kept up a good pace? Hopefully my next workout will be better.

Friday, February 22, 2013

35:00 Row

Friday! Finally. Even though this week was short due to President's Day I feel like it's slogged on forever. No major plans this weekend, for once, but I'm totally ok with it. I hope to get some laundry done and maybe even clean something. Ambitious, I know.

Still fighting the guilt fight due to the fact I've only really worked out twice this week, so I'm hoping to hit it hard today. Muscles, don't fail me now!

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Sore Areas: Triceps. Hamstrings.
Yesterday: No alcohol! Pilates! Walking! HEALTHINESS!
Environment: indoors

Workout
Equipment: Rowing Machine
Work Time: 35:00

Row:
Level: 8
Minutes Intensity: min/500m Total Distance (m)
0:00 - 3:00 2:25 
3:01 - 5:00 2:15 
5:01 - 6:00 2:00 
6:01 - 6:30 1:50-1430
6:31 - 32:30 Repeat 0:00 - 6:30
x4
2885
4235
5760
7185
32:31 - 35:00 3:007610
Total: 35:002:18 [avg]7610

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Stretch Time: 15:00
Total Time: 60:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 2
Sore Areas: Forearms, Back

Comments
So my original plan failed a bit -- I got off the rower with every intention of logging some time on the treadmill, but a minute into that plan I felt like my calf was going to tear in half so I abandoned the effort. Did some extra stretching instead, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I'll just have to make it up to myself over the weekend.  

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Blogilates - Arms/Back + 30:00 Incline Treadmill

Two days later and my quads are STILL complaining about the workout I gave them on Tuesday. Whiners. So today I'm going to try to hit my hamstrings to make up for it, which pretty much leaves me with the incline treadmill. I'll have to keep the pace down to keep quad effort minimal, which always makes me feel like a failure, but such is life. Since I have no obligations today, no cooking to do, and lingering I-haven't-worked-out-enough-but-eaten-like-a-fat-kid-anyway guilt, I'm also going to do an upper body workout.

The upper body workout is from Blogilate's 'FeelFabFeb' calendar (Feb 13th's workout, specifically). Unlike January, which flip-flopped between full body workouts and cardio workouts, February's calendar only has one day a week dedicated into cardio. The rest of the days work one or two muscle groups specifically with a little cardio tacked on to the end. Since I was planning on doing the treadmill anyway, I skipped the final cardio track.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Sore Areas: Quads. Still.
Yesterday: Quick abs, beer drinking.
Environment: Indoors.

Workout
Warmup: Walking to the gym.
Equipment: Incline treadmill.
Work Time: ??? + 30:00

FeelFabFeb Arms/Back - 2/13

Minutes Intensity: MPH Incline: ° [time]Total Distance (mi.)*
0:00 - 3:00 3.56.0 - 12.0
[+ 3.0 every 1:00]
~.17
3:01 - 6:00 3.015.0 - 21.0
[+ 3.0 every 1:00]
~.32
6:01 - 9:00 2.524.0 - 30.0
[+ 3.0 every 1:00]
~.45
9:01 - 27.00 Repeat 0:00 - 9:00 x2~.9
~1.35
27:01 - 28:002.56.0~1.31
28:01 - 29:003.03.0~1.44
29:01 - 30:003.50.0~1.5
Total: 15:003.0 [avg]16.4 [avg]~1.5 mi [1000+ vert. m]

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Stretch Time: 10:00
Total in-Gym Time: 90:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: Hamstrings, mid-back

Comments
Hamstring usage success! Not painfully sore this morning, but they definitely got used yesterday. I shall call it a win.

Also, again I get my ass kicked by freaking knee pushups. KNEE. PUSHUPS.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

15:00 Abs

I had Plans to go to the gym today, I really did. Game show night didn't start until 8:30, giving me at least an hour to work with. But, as it does, life got a bit in the way. The fact there was nothing cooked in the house to eat and I'd already eaten Chopt for two meals, combined with the fact my quads are KILLING me aaaaaand I kind of lost all motivation. I cooked vegibles instead of working out, so sue me. My other option was to work out and eat a quesadilla at the bar. So it was probably a draw either way, but now I have food for tomorrow too!

I did manage to slip in a 15:00 ab workout courtesy of Pumps and Iron. Goes like this: there are 3 sections, each section has 3 exercises. Do each exercise in a section for 30 seconds, repeat 3 times, then rest 30 seconds before moving on to the next section. Again, each exercise, 30 seconds, 3 times through, rest 30 seconds. Finish the last section in the same manner, collapse. Cook dinner.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: QUADS. Dying slowly.
Yesterday: Intense lifting + biking HIIT
Environment: indoors, at home - there's a rug!

Workout
Equipment: None!
Work Time: 14:30

TimeExercise 1 [:30 sec]Exercise 2 [:30 sec]Exercise 3 [:30 sec]
0:00 - 1:30Windshield WipersBicycle CrunchesBoat Pose
1:31 - 4:30Repeat 0:00 - 1:30 x2
4:31 - 5:00Rest
5:01 - 6:30Side Plank Lifts RSide Plank Lifts LElbow Plank
6:31 - 9:30Repeat 5:01 - 6:30 x2
9:31 - 10:00Rest
10:01 - 11:30Reptile PlankCrunch PulsesLeg Hover
11:31 - 14:30Repeat 10:01 - 14:30 x2

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Stretch Time: 0:00
Total Time: 15:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: Quads

Comments
While I was completely feeling the burn while I was going through this workout, I was disappointed in the lack of soreness the following day. Must not have been trying hard enough. Good thing there's PLENTY of room for improvement in my boat pose, because that shit is hard. Mostly it wears out my hip flexors, which probably means I'm doing it wrong. Must investigate.

Quads still hurting Thursday from lifting Tuesday. Must remember to reuse that workout at a future date, because it's clearly a killer!

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Full Body Lift + 15:00 Bike

I'm fully hydrated for the first time in 4 or 5 days and let me tell you, it feels great. Since I took it fairly easy yesterday (drinking-wise), I'm totally ready to hit this week hard to make up for my 3 days of debauchery. Although we did walk a TON - our house was about 2.5 miles to 'downtown' and we walked there or back at least once a day - so I don't feel as bad about it as I could. And I had fun, so, no regrets!

Today's workout comes courtesy of the Fitnessista -- it's the week 2 workout in her 'Winter Shape Up 2013' series. Yes, I did the week three last week and now I'm doing week 2 so I'm really the most terrible plan follower of all time, but I'm over it. Anyway, this workout is completed by doing the exercises one after the other without rest, then take a minute to catch your breath, and repeat. Then do it a third time.

-'180 Squat Jumps' - Squat jumps with a 180 degree turn. Reverse direction with every jump-- should never complete a full circle.
-'Side Plank Combo' - Start in a T-plank, bring top arm down into chest, turn body into regular plank-ish position, reach under/across body ("threading the needle" motion). Reverse back into T-plank, then bring top arm down side toward thigh while raising top leg, reverse back into T-plank.

It was suggested that I do a 15 minute HIIT workout after this was done, so I did. Original plan was to row, but they were both taken by the time I got over there so I did the bike instead.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Sore Areas: None.
Yesterday: Travel day - no exercise.
Environment: Indoors

Workout
Equipment: dumbbells - 15lb; kettlebell - 20lb
Work Time: 45:00


GoalActual*
Exercise NameReps - Weight [type] Set 1: Reps - Weight [type] Set 2: Reps - Weight [type] Set 3: Reps - Weight [type]
Kettlebell Swing15 - 20 lbs20 - 20 lbs20 - 20 lbs20 - 20 lbs
Side Lunge R + Upright Row10 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs
Jump Lunges15/side15/side15/side15/side
Side Lunge L + Bicep Curl12 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs
Plie Squat + Wide Row15 - 15 lbs15 - 15 lbs15 - 15 lbs15 - 15 lbs
180 Squat Jumps12/direction12 + 1012 + 1010 + 12
Side Plank Combo: Reach Under -> T -> Leg Raise10/side10/side10/side10/side
Triceps Pushups / Pushups10 / 108 / 88 / 88 / 8
Total time
8:0010:0011:00
*Color key: green = accomplished goal, blue = exceeded goal, yellow = did not meet goal

Stationary Bike
Level: 14
Minutes Intensity: RPM Total Distance (mi)
0:00 - 1:00 60
1:01 - 2:00 100+~.6
2:01 - 14:00 Repeat 0:00 - 2:00
x 6
1.13
1.71
2.28
~2.88
3.38
3.90
14:01 - 15:00 604.06
Total: 15:00~80 [avg]4.06

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Stretch Time: 0:00
Total Time: 65:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]:3
Sore Areas: Quads, Biceps

Comments
Oof -- probably should have stretched, my quads are killing me! Not to the point where stairs are impossible, but they're definitely uncomfortable. I'll likely have to scale back what I was planning on doing today because I went too hard yesterday. Whoops. This is why I try to put the hard stuff at the END of the week so I have the weekend to recuperate. Guess I got a little overzealous. Oh well. I would definitely do this workout again, possibly with a heavier kettlebell. And I have no idea why I planned to do 10 lunges right and 12 left... counting fail.

A Weekend New Orleans! Part One

We shall return to your regularly scheduled workout with my next post, but I wanted to share my weekend with you first! Warning: it's long.

New Orleans is one of those cities I absolutely love, but can really only handle in small doses - a long weekend like this past one is the perfect length. I was down there for a combo bachelor/bachelorette (jack and jill?) party for two very good friends that I met in college. There were about 15 of us renting a house in the Garden District, a mix of the bride and groom's high school friends, college friends, family members, and the odd significant other. We had an absolute blast romping around, drinking (as one does in New Orleans)

Although he's only met the happy couple a few times, I decided to bring boyfriend along for the weekend, as it's February and it's about time for a vacation. We got in Friday, fairly late, and after a minor debacle with the cabbie (you don't know how to use the credit card machine in your own vehicle? you have to give me the CC option, it's the law... fine, take me to the nearest ATM ... no, I'm not tipping you) we met up with the rest of the party and headed out to a bar named, very creatively, The Balcony. It wasn't anything super special, as it was a bit too cold to use the titular balcony, but it was nice to meet the new faces in the group and it was close to our rental house so altogether it was a win.

Saturday morning is when the fun really started. A dozen of us got up (waaaaay too) early and cabbed to the Villalobos Rescue Center - the canine rescue facility featured in Animal Planet's 'Pitbulls and Parolees' show (not linking because I looked at that site for about 3 seconds before wanting to cry. People SUCK.). As rescue dogs are a cause close to the couple's heart, we decided to use part of our weekend volunteering and walking the dogs at the center. They have around 270 (yes, two HUNDRED and SEVENTY) dogs at the shelter, most of whom are pit bulls or pit bull mixes although they don't turn anyone away. Over the course of several hours us volunteers each got to meet 6 or 7 new best friends. I swear I wanted to take all of them home. But probably mostly I wanted the one that spent half an hour chewing on his plastic igloo doghouse. His name was Monday and he might have been a bit special and I loved it. While I sadly only got to admire him from afar, I did have the honor of walking Bullet, Pacific, Earlina, Wilma, and Henry. They were all very well behaved and I would have adopted any one of them on the spot had I been allowed -- sadly the shelter won't allow out-of-staters who already have a dog to adopt one of theirs, although they will go above and beyond to deliver a new adoptee to a qualified dog-empty home anywhere in the country.

Unfortunately we did eventually have to leave all the lovable pups. And that's when the day took its first turn for the worse -- we had to call cabs because we were in an out-of-the-way (truthfully: waaaay sketchy) part of the city about 5 miles from our house. So we called, and a very reasonable 15 minutes later a huge 15-seater van shows up. Score! Everyone in, let's go get lunch because we missed breakfast to play with dogs and now we're all STARVING. But wait, no, sorry, says the driver, there's a law in New Orleans that says you can only have 6 people in a cab, so you 6 have to get out and wait for the second cab they're sending ... Then why on earth do you have a 15-person van? I don't understand. So 6 of us get back out of the car to await the cab we're assured is coming. And we wait. And wait. Around 15 minutes later there's no sign of a second cab, so the future groom gets back on the phone to find out what's going on. Dispatcher says she's sent a car, it'll be there shortly. Great! We order some sandwiches (sorry, "po'boys") to pick up on the way home. While on the phone ordering sandwiches, there is a second call that gets send to voicemail. It was the dispatcher from the cab company with a short and sweet message: "you are very rude". ... are you kidding? Who calls someone they don't personally know and leaves them a message telling them they're rude?

About another 15 minutes go by, still no sign of the car. Call the company back. There's a heated interchange between our guy and the woman on the phone, as we've now been waiting around 45 minutes, and the people at Villalobos are curious as to why the hell we're still there. We decide to walk down the block to the nearest busy street to see if the cab is lost. Still no sign of the cab. At this point, even the homeless woman realized we needed more help (she offered to call us a cab - do homeless people have cell phones now? serious question). We started looking up more cab companies online and dialing them at random. Most of them don't pick up the phone. One connects to the exact same woman who was dispatching for the original company -- she hangs up on us after informing us that the cab had been there and she had tried to call us to let us know, but the call went to voicemail (apparently 'you're rude' is dispatch speak for 'you're cab is outside. I know you're standing literally on the street in front of the address and don't see anything, but it's there. IT'S THERE. Goodbye'). At this point, we've been waiting over an hour. It's cold and windy, we're hungry, and getting a bit desperate. What exactly do you do when you're in an out-of-the way place and can't get a cab to come to you? There certainly weren't many cruising the streets, and the few that did ignored our attempts to hail them. Our groom even ran down the block like a madman after several of them in an attempt to make them stop. Didn't work out. Uber doesn't exist in NOLA yet. Boyfriend started checking out the nearby bus stop and claimed that he had figured out the route -- theoretically if we got on we'd end up at least downtown, which personally I thought would at least be a better place to try and hail a cab on the street but made the rest of the group uncomfortable. So we missed the bus.

We waited nearly two hours from the original call to the cab company before we made any progress towards home, and that progress wasn't actually thanks to ANY cab companies at all. At one point, a giant orange SUV painted like a taxi drove by. Naturally, we tried to hail it, but it pulled into the post office next door. Another one lost. However, 3 minutes later we notice that the driver of the car was yelling at us from across the parking lot. We ran over to meet our saving angel. Her name was Bev, she was a taxi driver, off-duty at the moment, but willing to help us out. She explained that this orange monstrosity was her 'old' taxi and that the meter didn't work, but if we wanted to get in she could drive us to her house, we could all get into the taxi with the working meter and she'd take us where we needed to go. We told her, honestly, we didn't care much about the meter and were willing to pay her anything to just get home. She just laughed and told us to get in, "sorry about the mess, you can just hand me my purse!". Nicest woman alive. On the way home we told her our story and she was amazed at the general fail by every cab company in the city. She got us home, cold and hungry but HOME, where we thanked her profusely and stumbled into the house.

Meanwhile, the lucky 6 that had gotten in the FIRST cab and had sporadic contact with us through this ordeal had picked up the po'boys we had ordered so many hours ago and managed to not eat them all. Those lasted, oh, about 3 minutes. After which I was pretty excited for a nap, having had a ridiculously early and long morning, but the general consensus was showers and then heading back out.

More to come next time -- if you can believe it, this was not the lowest point of our day.

Friday, February 15, 2013

Distance Run - 6.5 mi

I had such a wonderfully ranty post planned for today... big plans to rip into the 132082031 new people that have decided to flood into my gym in February (a new trend of Lunar New Years resolutions, perhaps?)... rage at the women who use the temporary lockers as permanent storage for their yoga mats and don't even lock them... seethe at the fact that I've had to modify 3 or 4 workouts recently because all the machines were taken...

but you know what? It's Friday, I left work early, am happily looking forward to to see some old friends this weekend, and it's a gorgeous 55 degrees outside. I'm going running. Happy weekend!

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Sore Areas: None
Yesterday: No exercise, ate risotto and drank wine. Happy Belated Valentine's Day!
Environment: Outdoors - gorgeous, sunny, and warm!

Workout
Equipment: none!
Work Time: 61:00
Distance: 6.5 mi.

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Stretch Time: 0:00
Total Time: 65:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 2 - mostly just tight
Sore Areas: Quads

Comments
I don't recommend running any distance and not stretching afterwards. Especially when you then sit on a plane for 3 hours. And then drink. And wake up early the next day. Generally speaking, that doesn't leave you feeling your best. But if you were happy with your healthiness effort, gotten off the plane in New Orleans, and stayed up late with some good friends only to wake up early to volunteer with puppies, it tends to not matter very much.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

25:00 Stairs

Another day in February, another hurried workout. I've got trivia tonight, but just enough time to slip in a little cardio. Hopefully there's a stair machine free today!

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Sore Areas: 
Yesterday: Quick Lift, Mardi Gras chili and beer and cake
Environment: indoors

Workout
Equipment: Stair Stepper
Work Time: 25:00

Stairs
Minutes Intensity (level [steps/minute]) Total Distance (floors)
0:00 - 1:00 9 [51]~5
1:01 - 2:00 11 [60]~11
2:01 - 3:00 13 [69]~18
3:01 - 4:00 15 [78]~26
4:01 - 5:00 18 [91]~35
5:01 - 6:00 20 [101]~45
6:01 - 7:00 12 [65]~51
7:01 - 8:00 14 [73]~59
8:01 - 9:00 16 [83]~67
9:01 - 10:00 18 [91]~76
10:01 - 11:00 20 [101]~86
11:01 - 21:00 repeat 6:01 - 11:00
x2
~127
~168
21:01 - 22:00 13 [69]~175
22:01 - 23:00 13 [69]
side-step right
~182
23:01 -24:00 13 [69]
side-step left
~189
24:01 - 25:30 13 [69]200
Total: 25:30avg: 15 [78]200

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 
Stretch Time: 
Total Time: 35:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 
Sore Areas: 

Comments

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Total Body Lift

Happy Mardi Gras! A friend of mine is cooking dinner, but I managed to escape work a bit early to sneak in a workout -- with all the restaurants and drinking of the past 2 weeks and a weekend in New Orleans coming up, I need all the help I can get!

I stole this workout off The Fitnessista -- it's the workout for week 3 of her 'Winter Shape Up 2013' series. It's supposed to be paired with a HIIT workout, but unfortunately I don't have time today. Next time!

The workout is accomplished by doing the first 'monster set' 3 times, resting 1:00 between sets, then doing the second set 3 times, again with 1:00 rest.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: None.
Yesterday: Beer, No exercise
Environment: Indoors

Workout
Equipment: dumbbells - 15lb, 20lb
Work Time: 24:00


GoalActual*
Exercise NameReps - Weight [type] Set 1: Reps - Weight [type] Set 2: Reps - Weight [type] Set 3: Reps - Weight [type]
Bench Press12 - 20 lbs12 - 20 lbs12 - 20 lbs12 - 20 lbs
Lunges12/side - 20 lbs12/side - 20 lbs12/side - 20 lbs12/side - 20 lbs
Pushups20202020
Jump Lunges
40
304040
Total Time
4:003:003:00
Assisted Pullups
12 - 80 lbs
Lat Pulldowns
12 - 90 lbs
Lat Pulldowns
12 - 90 lbs
10 - 80 lbs
Plank1:001:001:001:00
Bicep Curl + Overhead Press12 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs12 - 15 lbs
Tricep Dips20102010
Total time
5:005:004:00
*Color key: green = accomplished goal, blue = exceeded goal, yellow = did not meet goal

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Stretch Time: 0:00
Total Time: 45:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]:2
Sore Areas: Biceps, Quads

Comments
Note to self: work on your triceps, they suck at life. Just as you feared. Also your biceps, because they should be able to handle 15 pounds, no problem, and this was definitely a bit of a struggle. Also a memo to the world: if you're not actively using the machine, I'm allowed to ask to jump in for a quick set. There's no need to give me the evil eye.

Monday, February 11, 2013

8:00 Abs + 15:00 Jump Rope + 26:00 Bike

Running behind with my posting, so I'm just going to throw this up here. This was another day of mixing lifting and cardio, with the focus on my abs! This was also my only day during the week when I didn't have anything else planned, so I wanted to pile on the cardio. Since I was kinda hungover wanted to read, I had originally planned to then work the stair stepper for 25 minutes then do 15 minutes of jump rope, but when I was done with my ab work both the steppers were taken! So I did my jump roping instead, and while the steppers were momentarily free while I was bouncing about, they were occupado again when I was finished (So Annoyed -- more on that later). Since I didn't feel like waiting I switched out the stepper for some bike intervals.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: Just kind of hungover everywhere...
Yesterday: No exercise, bottomless tequila and tacos!
Environment: indoors - kinda warm!

Workout
Equipment: Jump Rope, Stair Stepper Stationary Bike
Work Time: 21:00

Ab bonus!
TimeExercise
0:00 - 0:30Plank
0:30 - 1:00Forward/Backward 'Saw'
1:00 - 2:00Side Plank + Tuck (R)
2:00 - 2:30Side-to-Side Hip Drops
2:30 - 3:00Up-Downs
3:00 - 4:00Side Plank + Tuck (L)
4:00 - 5:00Rest!
5:00 - 9:00Repeat 0:00 - 4:00

Jump Rope
Minutes Jump TypeSpeed
0:00 - 1:00 two-foot jumpModerate
1:01 - 2:00 single-foot jump
[:30 R / :30 L]
Moderate
2:01 - 3:00 two-foot jumpFast
3:01 - 3:30 butt kicksModerately Fast
3:31 - 4:00high kneesModerately Fast
4:01 - 4:30 forward/backward jumpsModerate

4:31 - 5:00
side/side jumpsModerate
5:00 - 15:00 repeat 0:00 - 5:00

Stationary Bike
Level: 14
Minutes Intensity: RPM Total Distance (mi)
0:00 - 3:00 75
3:01 - 5:00 85 
5:01 - 6:00 95 
6:01 - 6:30 110+1.96
6:31 - 26:00 Repeat 0:00 - 6:30
x3
3.9
5.8
7.75
Total: 26:00~85 [avg]7.75

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Stretch Time: 10:00
Total Time: 80:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 2
Sore Areas: Upper back

Comments
I was surprised at how well I took on the bike, considering my bottomless tequila brunch the day before. It wasn't quite as fast as a non-hungover workout, but I'll take it! Upper back ended up pretty sore, probably because of the jump rope. Still angry at all gym goers.

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Blogilates - Full Body Focus

Uuggghh. Today is not a good day. I was supposed to have plans today, but now I don't, and so I feel kind of adrift. I have all the time in the world, and zero desire to do anything productive. Weird how that works -- when my days are packed full I manage to find the energy to do all zillion things that need doing, but when they're empty all I want to do is sit on the couch. Today I'm feeling extra mopey for no reason. Bah humbug. I blame the fact everyone else I know has super-fun plans today and I do not.

Since walking all the way to the gym is clearly out of the question, I'm going to do a workout at home. Blogilates is super home-friendly. being equipment free and all, and honestly I don't want to work up the energy to even put on shoes so this should work out perfectly. Gods forbid I actually put together a new playlist, so I'm going back to the first workout I tried nearly a month ago because it's already saved. Hey, at least I'm doing SOMETHING.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 1
Sore Areas: Enh.
Yesterday: No exercise. There was some wine.
Environment: Indoors. Barefoot. Dog getting in the way.

Workout
Warmup: Overrated.
Equipment: None!
Work Time: ???

JaNEWary Full Body Focus - 1/15

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Stretch Time: 0:00
Total in-Gym Time: ??

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: Obliques, Quads

Comments
Well, as per usual I felt better and less mopey after working out. I even showered! A big deal for me on the weekend.

I'm not nearly as sore this time around as I was last time I did this workout - I'm going to pretend it's because I'm getting in better shape.

Thursday, February 7, 2013

15:00 Upper Body Lift + 35:00 Run

So I'm trying a new thing, we'll see if it sticks. *If* I have the time (and some days that's a pretty big if), I'm going to try and sneak in 10-15 minute muscle-specific lifting sessions before my cardio workouts. Arms or abs, most likely. Maybe back.

The reason I'm trying this new thing is because I feel like, by and large, my cardio routines stress my legs -- running, biking, climbing stairs? All mostly leg-centric activities. Rowing is the only one that I feel hits a few other major muscle groups, but I can't do that every day or I'll get bored (plus, there's this one guy at the gym that just OWNS the rowing machine. For two hour stretches. Just KILLS IT. Rowing and rowing above his head and rowing with one arm and rowing and twisting and rowing in ways I'm pretty sure that machine is not meant to be rowed. AND he does it all in khaki cargo shorts and sandals! Not, like, flip flops, obviously, but those outdoorsy ones you'd get from REI that are like hiking boots with holes in them. You know, they're made of leather and have a real sole and... no? Well, regardless, not what I'd consider an athletic shoe. He scares me and I'm not embarrassed to admit that I plan my rowing workouts to avoid the times he's doin' his thing -- usually Tuesdays and Thursdays. Never Fridays. Yes, I know the general workout schedules of my fellow gym patrons. Don't judge.).

Also, while I fully intend to keep my full-body sessions because they are a most excellent workout, I'm not entirely convinced I'm going to get MObama arms by doing 10 pushups twice a week. Call me crazy. And since it seems everyone and their trainer has 15 minute workouts, I'm jumping on the bandwagon. Today it's arms. (Tomorrow, the world!).

I will not hesitate to ax this entire endeavor if I find I'm starting to spend 2 hours at the gym at a time. Definite deal-breaker. I'm a 60, 75 minute max kind of girl, and I don't see that changing any time soon.

Arm workout from Women's Health.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: Hamstrings. The oblique on the right side (?)
Yesterday: Beer, 2.5 mile walk.
Environment: Indoors

Workout
Equipment: dumbbells - 10lb
Work Time: 50:00


GoalActual*
Exercise NameReps - Weight [type] Set 1: Reps - Weight [type] Set 2: Reps - Weight [type]
Standing V-Raise15 - 10lbs1515
Shoulder Press15 - 10lbs1515
Rotating Tricep Kickback15/side - 10lbs1515
Pike Walk + Pushup888
Airplane Extensions151515
Crescent Lunge + Row15/side - 10lbs1515
T-Pushup5/side5/side5/side
Total time7:30 [x2]6:007:00
*Color key: green = accomplished goal, blue = exceeded goal, yellow = did not meet goal

Cardio Workout:
Equipment: Incline Treadmill
Speed: 3.0 MPH

Minutes Intensity: MPH Incline: ° [time]Total Distance (mi.)*
0:00 - 3:00 6.03.0.3
3:01 - 9:009.5 [1:00]
6.0 [1:00]
x3
3.01.04
9:01 - 10:00 3.53.0
10:01 - 11:00 6.03.0
11:01 - 15:009.5 [1:00]
6.0 [1:00]
x2
3.01.7
15:01 - 16:00 3.53.0
16:01 - 20:00 6.0 [1:00]
9.5 [1:00]
x2
3.02.26
20:01 - 21:003.53.0
21:01 - 23:00 4.0
side shuffle R [1:00]
side shuffle L [1:00]
3.0
23:01 - 26:00 4.5
backwards [1:00]
side shuffle R [1:00]
side shuffle L [1:00]
3.0
26:01 - 29:005.0
backwards [1:00]
side shuffle R [1:00]
side shuffle L [1:00]
3.0
29:01 - 30:00 5.0
backwards [1:00]
4.03.02
30:01 - 31:00 3.53.0
31:01 - 35:0010.0 [:20]
rest [:10]
x8
3.03.75
Total: 35:00

3.75

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Stretch Time: 10:00
Total Time: 80:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: quads, hamstrings, triceps


Comments
Such a great workout! I even had the energy to fit in an extra round of intervals (originally only planned for the 2 sets). I figured I had the time, and since I was most definitely going to be consuming oversized portions of pasta and cake for dinner, I should probably take the extra 5 minutes. I was surprised that I actually felt the fatigue in my arms while on the treadmill after doing that quick lift. Definitely going to try and fit things like that in more often. Body is super tired today, so I will likely skip the gym. Wine and puppy snuggles sound like a much better plan.

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Spartacus Workout + 15:00 Incline Treadmill

It's back! THIS IS SPARTA! Not really, but, still. This was the workout I was super into last fall -- it probably found its way onto my schedule 3-4 times a month, which is a fairly big deal for me as I get easily bored. It fell of the radar a bit over the holidays because, let's be honest, it's hard and I was most definitely not going all-out at the gym around Christmas. The cookies (and cake. and brownies. and booze. and... beef.) I ate instead were DELICIOUS. Sorry I'm not sorry.

However, now it's February, the holiday excuses are long gone, I've got a month of working out and eating vegetables under my belt and I'm totally back in the groove. Time to dust this baby off. It might suck, it might not, but it's time to try. Shall we?

As a reminder, because I definitely had to look it up myself, this workout is done HIIT-style, with :50 of work followed by :10 of rest before moving on to the next exercise. I've made some modifications to the moves because my gym decided to ax the hexagonal dumbbells and like hell am I trying to do pushups on ones that roll. We'll see how they turn out.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Sore Areas: none, really
Yesterday: Biking! also, butter. Minimal alcohol!
Environment: indoors

Workout
Equipment: dumbbell: 15; kettlebell: 25
Work Time: 30:00 45:00



GoalActual*
Exercise NameReps - Weight [type] Set 1: Reps - Weight [type] Set 2: Reps - Weight [type] Set 3: Reps - Weight [type]
Goblet Squat20 - 25lb [KB]232122
Mountain Climber100110105100
Single Arm DB Swing15/side - 25lb [KB] 14/side13 R / 14 L14 R / 13 L
T-Plank with Touch-Through12/side - 15lb [DB]8 R / 7 L7 R / 8 L8 R / 8 L
Split Jumps50444650
DB Row35 -15lbs [DB] 383535
DB Side Lunge10/side - 15lb [DB]8/side10 R / 9 L10/side
Plank Tricep Kickback10/side - 15lb [DB]11/side12/side12/side
Standing Oblique 'Crunch'10/side - 25lb [KB] 10/side9/side10/side
Explosive Overhead Press20 - 15lbs [DB]221620
*Color key: green = accomplished goal, blue = exceeded goal, yellow = did not meet goal

Cardio Bonus!
Equipment: Incline Treadmill

Minutes Intensity: MPH Incline: ° [time]Total Distance (mi.)*
0:00 - 6:00 3.09.0 - 24.0
[+ 3.0 every 1:00]
~.3
6:01 - 8:00 2.027.0 - 30.0
[+ 3.0 every 1:00]
~.38
8:01 - 10:00 2.027.0 - 24.0
[- 3.0 every 1:00]
~.43
10:01 - 15.00 3.021.0 - 9.0
[- 3.0 every 1:00]
.68
Total: 15:002.73 [avg]18.8 [avg].68 mi [638 vert. m]

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: Obliques, Hamstrings

Comments
On the one hand, it's as hard as I remember. On the other, it's only as hard as I remember! Well, the split jumps were a little harder then they were last year, but that's understandable seeing as how I've done virtually no plyometrics training in recent memory.

Since this was the only day I wasn't rushed at the gym I went ahead and tacked on a short cardio workout when I was done with Spartacus. I had hoped to be able to run a mile or two, but I decided that since I'm entirely incapable of running at one speed on the dreadmill for any length of time when I'm fresh and ready to go, there was no way I was going to survive attempting to do it while tired. I knew I needed some intervals, but also knew I was too tired to sprint, so I settled on walking hills. My hamstrings are definitely feeling it, 24 hours later. Today's going to be an 'active rest day' -- planning on taking the dog for a nice long walk. Everyone wins!

Monday, February 4, 2013

26:00 Bike

 
Superbowl Snackadium 2013: CRUSHED IT! It turned out so well! It took almost 2 straight days of prepping, cooking, and building and a lot of help from my 'sous-chef' but it got done, and it was glorious. The only thing that fell off the menu were the sweet potato bites, which is disappointing to me but I don't think anyone else noticed.

As always, now that I've had my fun it's time to get back to work. Even more so since the Superbowl is just kicking off (hah) 2 weeks of debauchery for me -- two reservations at fancy restaurants, beer-lympics, boyfriend's birthday tequila brunch, Valentine's dinner AND a long weekend bachlorette party in New Orleans, in addition to the regular occurrence of Wednesday night trivia. Going to have to get creative to fit in workouts in the near future, because not working out is definitely not an option. I might have to *gasp* get up early... gross...

Tonight marks the beginning of Restaurant Week around these parts, which is a 2-week time span where a lot of the nicer restaurants offer a $35 fixed-price menu. I've always managed to miss it in the past, so I'm excited that I'm actually going to get to experience it this time around. Twice, no less! But 8:30 reservations mean I only have a bit of time to devote to the gym, so tonight I'm just going to hit the stationary bike for awhile. I'll be better tomorrow, promise!

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Sore Areas: None
Yesterday: Superbowl Sunday!
Environment: indoors

Workout
Equipment: Stationary Bike
Work Time: 26:00

Stationary Bike
Level: 14
Minutes Intensity: RPM Total Distance (mi)
0:00 - 3:00 75
3:01 - 5:00 85
5:01 - 6:00 95
6:01 - 6:30 110+
6:31 - 26:00 Repeat 0:00 - 6:30
x3
Total: 26:00~85 [avg]7.8

Ab bonus!

TimeExercise
0:00 - 0:50Plank + Leg Lift
1:00 - 1:50T-Plank - R
2:00 - 2:50Plank + Leg Lift
3:00 - 3:50T-Plank - L
4:00 - 4:50Plank

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Stretch Time: 2:00
Total Time: 50:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 1
Sore Areas: Quads

Comments
For some reason, I didn't feel like I got in that "good" of a workout with this. I've done it before and felt accomplished, and my legs were definitely burning, but I didn't get my usual satisfaction from it. Maybe because I know it's kind of a wimpy effort in the face of the decadance looming? Like, oh, great, you did 20 minutes on a bike, congrats! Now you're going to eat three pounds of butter because Jose Andres tells you to. ALL YOUR EFFORT WAS FOR NAUGHT. MUHAHAHAHAHA! Sigh. Disappointing. Well, tomorrow I'll kill it. Hopefully...

Friday, February 1, 2013

35:00 Row + Superbowl Menu

Friday! Even better, it's SUPERBOWL Friday! Which means I have some serious cooking to do. For the second year I'm planning on putting together an epic Superbowl Snackadium and I'm super pumped about it. I did it last year for a fairly small-ish group of 15 people and it was a thing of beauty. This year I'm upping the ante and trying to feed around 25 people, including several  veggiesauri and at least one whom is gluten-averse. Full menu:

1. Guacamole [pre-made]
2. Salsa [pre-made]
3. Hummus [pre-made]
4. Roasted Veggie Dip
5. Hot Buffalo Chicken Dip [slow cooker]
6. BBQ Beef Sliders
7. Pesto Portobello Sliders
8. Chicken Wonton Tacos
9. Thai Peanut Chicken Wings [slow cooker]
10. Tequila Lime Turkey Chili [slow cooker]
11. Hearty Veggie Chili [slow cooker]
12. Sriracha Quinoa Bites
13. Mac & Cheese Bites
14. Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus Spears
15. Herb Crusted Sweet Potato Bites
16. Bacon-Wrapped Goat Cheese Stuffed Dates (Devils on Horseback)
17. Southwestern Egg Rolls
18. Football Chocolate Dipped Strawberries
19. Car Bomb Cupcakes

Huh. Looks a mite bit ambitious when I lay it all out like that. But it's gonna happen! However before I can cook, I need to shop, and that's where Costco comes in. I love Costco, no joke. I can't quite justify having a membership since I'm pretty sure boyfriend and I don't *actually* need 30 pounds of beef tenderloin (or maybe we do...), but a friend of mine is willing to shepherd me around while I buy absurd amounts of bell peppers. So pumped!

Because of the shopping, I have to cut today's workout a bit short. And what's better for short workouts than the erg? Nothing. Probably. But I haven't had a good row in awhile, so erg(ging?) it is.

Pre
Energy Level [1-5]: 4
Sore Areas: None
Yesterday:No alcohol! Lifting! HEALTHINESS!
Environment: indoors

Workout
Equipment: Rowing Machine
Work Time: 35:00

Row:
Level: 8
Minutes Intensity: min/500m Total Distance (m)
0:00 - 3:00 2:23
3:01 - 5:00 2:13
5:01 - 6:00 2:03
6:01 - 6:30 1:50-~1430
6:31 - 32:30 Repeat 0:00 - 6:30
x4
2870
4290
5715
7135
32:31 - 34:20 3:007500
34:20 - 35:00 2:457620
Total: 35:002:13 [avg]7620

Post
Energy Level [1-5]: 3
Stretch Time: 5:00
Total Time: 50:00

Day After
Sore Level [1-5]: 2
Sore Areas: Forearms, Back

Comments
Well, I kept a normal pace for most of the sets, but I definitely felt slower as more piled on; I don't think I've ever done 5 intervals in a row before, normally I cap it at 4. But it's going to be a fat kid kind of weekend so I decided to go for it. Although 2 days of cooking should totally burn some calories...

But only if I don't eat all the ingredients as I go...