Tag Archives: 28 Days of Fitness

Feb2

28 DoF Final Check-In: Week 4

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Yesterday was the day!!! It was the end of our 28 Days/10 Minutes a Day Fitness Challenge!! So, how did you guys do? Was it harder or easier than you thought? If you missed a day, did you get back to it the next? Do you want to do it again? Are you going to set a longer goal? Time to update us with your Week 4: Days 22-28!!

I’m still not going as hard as I have in the past, but I was mostly back to morning workouts this week, if I remember correctly. They were just short ones though … but hey, that’s the point right? Even 10 minutes a day is worth it!! So, this week, I decided I really want to work on improving my hip flexibility for yoga as I felt like I had kind of plateaued in my practice lately. I really want to be able to do the cross-legged full lotus pose. So, that was somewhat my focus this last week.

WEEK 4 RECAP

Day 22 / 342:  Hot Yoga / Vinyasa Flow at Younique Yoga studio in Sparta, NJ (75 min). 

Day 23 / 343: Lauren Brooks Kettlebell Joint Mobility Warm-up and 12 Minute Full Body Blast. But, I switched it up. Since I didn’t have time to do 2 rounds of the short routine, instead of taking the 30 second rest between each  1 minute set, I jumped rope during that “breaks” instead. This kept my heart rate up through the entire 12 minutes.

Day 24 / 344: Jump rope (5 min – whew!), 12 reps x 3 sets of rows with door jam “suspension trainer,” 12 reps x 3 sets of “superman” back extensions, Developing Lotus Flexibility video (10 min), forearm tripod inversion for 30 breaths (total: approx. 20-25 minutes).

via YogaVidyaEnglish

Day 25 / 345: Developing Lotus Flexibility video (10 min).  I did the video in the morning with plans to get some cardio in the evening. Well, I’m sure glad I did that in the a.m., because I was on the road for 4 hours for work and when I got home, passed out on the couch at 8:30 p.m. I woke up, thinking it was 10 or 11 … it was almost 2 a.m.! Needless to say, I hit the sack, counting myself lucky that I had done the video in the morning!!

Day 26 / 346: Developing Lotus Flexibility video (10 min) and Lotus Hips video (20 min). 

via Eckhart Yoga

Day 27 / 347: KeiraLashae Kickboxing video (10 min), jump rope (5 min), and Developing Lotus Flexibility video (10 min).

Day 28 / 348: Angie Miller Kettlebell Bootcamp sets 1-3 plus 32 alternating hand swings and 16 two-hand swings (22 min).

So I’m also going to include a little of Day 349 / 29 (Hot Yoga Vinyasa Flow – 75 min) in this post, because …

Yeah, I know the video is kind of crappy, but I didn’t have any help today!! LOL! But, the point is, those hip opening stretches are already paying dividends!! Today was the first time that I’ve even come close to this one leg arm balance (Koundiyanasana)! Usually, I can’t even get that front foot off of the ground!! So, I’m kind of excited and, after I finish this post, think I’ll be doing some more hip opening stretches. Hey, I’m home alone while many are starting to enjoy Superbowl parties, small and large. So, why not? Think I’ll catch up on last week’s Justified and Community too ;).

Lata Gatas!

(p.s. Don’t forget to check out our FB Events page where many folks update daily! You can find lots of ideas for home, outdoors, YouTube, DVD, app, and gym workouts to mix it up and beat boredom!! If you aren’t on Facebook and/or want more ideas, check out the Fitness Playlist I created on my YouTube channel to share fitness videos that I like!)

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How did you do the last 7 days of the challenge? 

Who is still going to continue and for how long are you planning? 30 days? 100? 365? 

Who wants to try again, because they didn’t make it all the way through?

Who wants to do it for the first time?

If there is enough interest, I’ll keep this going for another 28 days with weekly update posts for accountability and inspiration!! 

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Jan26

28 DoF Check-In: Week 3

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Sookie Sookie Now!!! Only one week to go chicas and chicos!!! Time to update us with your 28 Days/10 Minutes a Day Fitness Challenge progress for Week 3: Days 15-21!!

And don’t forget to check out our FB Events page where many folks are updating daily! In a work-out rut? You’ll can find tons of ideas for home, outdoors, YouTube, DVD, app, and gym workouts to mix it up and beat boredom!! If you aren’t on Facebook and/or want more ideas, check out the Fitness Playlist I created on my YouTube channel to share fitness videos that I like!

As for my week, the struggle continues. I’m still not getting up as early as I’d like. A 5:30 am wake-up can be beastly in the winter when it’s still very dark and cold and especially when it seems to be snowing EVERY OTHER day in NJ! Ughhh!! So, I was still fighting the time crunch most of the week and ended up doing late night workouts on Friday and Saturday.

WEEK 3 RECAP

Day 15/335:  Hot Yoga / Vinyasa Flow at Younique Yoga studio in Sparta, NJ (75 min).

Day 16/336: Tamilee Webb’s Abs of Steel (10 min). In my defense, I cleaned house ALL day … well, I mostly dealt unpacking (ummm … see, what had happened was … Okay. I have no excuse. I just fully unpacked from the honeymoon on MLK Day. I know. Sad. But, whatcha gonna do?). So, I sorted, organized, and shred a lot of mail/paperwork and washed, folded, and put away a crap-load of clothes.

Day 17/337: 10 Minute Kickboxing with KieraLashae (don’t get it twisted, you will get your sweat on with these 10 minutes, IF you give it your all).

Day 18/338:  Lauren Brooks Joint Mobility Warm-up and 12 Minute Full Body Blast x2 (29 min).

Day 19/339: FitSugar’s Treadmill Pyramid Intervals to the 22 minute mark, then 6 minutes to cool down (28 min).

Day 20/340: Tamilee Webb’s Abs of Steel (10 Minutes)

Day 21/341: Tamilee Webb’s Abs of Steel (10 Minutes)

Day338

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We’re in the home stretch now!! How did you do Week 3, days 15-21? 

What are your plans for your final week?

Jan19

28 DoF Check-In: Week 2

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Woot!! Woot!! We’re at the halfway point folks!!! Time to update us with your 28 Days/10 Minutes a Day Fitness Challenge progress for Week 2: Days 8-14!!

And don’t forget to check out our FB Events page!!  The home, outdoors, YouTube, DVD, app, and gym workouts continue to roll in!! I tried a new 10 workout myself last night!! And, if you aren’t on Facebook and/or want more ideas, check out the Fitness Playlist I created on my YouTube channel to share fitness videos that I like!

As for my week, I’m getting back into the groove of morning workouts … but still not getting up as early as I’d like. I went from a 6:30 am rise time to 6 am. So, that was good. But, my goal this week is to get back to 5:30 am. If you remember, I’m also doing a personal 365 Days of the Word challenge with YouVersion’s One Year Bible. So, I do my reading and prayer first (along with my cup of coffee ;)), then workout.

WEEK 2 RECAP

Day 8/328:  Hot Yoga / Vinyasa Flow at Younique Yoga studio in Sparta, NJ (75 min). I hadn’t been to hot yoga in 2 months, so I was bit nervous. But, I didn’t do too badly! I definitely was tighter than I had been, but I’ll work out the kinks soon (I hope ;))!

Day 9/329: Lauren Brooks Joint Mobility Warm-up and 12 Minute Full Body Blast x2 (29 min).

Day 10/330: Run on treadmill – 5 min warm-up; then 5 min at 5 mph and 10 min at 5.5 mph at 1.5% incline; 5 min cool down (25 min total). I would have liked to run longer, but I was short on time. I know it’s better for me to get a shorter workout in the morning than try to wait until after work for a longer one and end up doing NOTHING!

Day 11/331: Angie Miller Kettlebell Bootcamp with 15 and 20 pound bells (45 min). I was using the 15 lb bell for the entire workout, but am progressing and working towards using the 20 lb bell for the whole routine.

Day 12/332: FitSugar’s Treadmill Pyramid Intervals to the 22 minute mark, then 5 minutes to cool down. I was short on time again!!

Day332

Day 13/333: 60 seconds x2 sets of bicycle exercise for abs, 15 recline leg lifts, and 20 “superman” back extensions in the am (5 min); Tamilee Webb’s Abs of Steel in the pm (10 min)

Day 14/334: Cardio Crush Workout by BeFit on YouTube (10 min)

Feeling good!! I’ve been thinking about what I’m going to do when my 365 days are complete. Will I keep going or start taking off days? Hmmmm … I’m feeling like I’ll keep going. But, I’d like to challenge myself in a different way. Maybe run 365 miles in a year … or, what I’ve really been thinking about is doing a different fitness challenge each month for 12 months. Or … maybe a year long daily yoga challenge as it’s amazing to be able to do things with my body that I’ve never been able to do in my life! Hmmmm …

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Okay my peeps!! How did you do Week 2? Give us the rundown of days 8-14!!

What victories did you achieve this week?

Jan12

28 DoF Check-In: Week 1

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It’s that time!!! Time to update us with your 28 Days/10 Minutes a Day Fitness Challenge progress for Week 1: Days 1 -7!!

Now, a lot of you have been updating our FB Events page and that has been absolutely awesome to see the variety of things everyone is doing to get in their 10 minutes!! If you haven’t checked it out, please do!! The variety of home, outdoors, YouTube, DVD, app, and gym workouts is great!! And, if you aren’t on Facebook and/or want more ideas, check out the new Fitness Playlist I created on my YouTube channel to share fitness videos that I like!

Okay, now let’s get to my update! But, before I do, let me preface this by saying that I was oversleeping this week, because what I thought was my 5:30 alarm was my 6 o’ clock alarm!! And then, when I figured it out … I still slept in a couple days. Ummm … yeah, so, I ended up just barely getting in my 10 minutes several days this week. And, when I got them in, I didn’t want to do anything that made me sweat because I didn’t want to have to take a shower late at night and have to take another one the next morning. Because, the plan was always to workout in the morning … ended up being the failed plan most days last week.

Anywho … here’s my quick run down … remember, I’m doing this concurrently with my 365 Days of Fitness, which I haven’t yet completed.

WEEK 1 RECAP

Day 1/321:  10 Min. Fat Burning Kickboxing with KeairaLaShae – I got this one from one of our challenge ladies who posted it on my FB page on Day 1!! It’s not the most polished of videos, but it got the job done! I broke a NICE sweat!!

Day 2/322: 60 secs x 2 sets of bicycle for abs in the morning;  20 min walk on treadmill (5 min warm-up; 5 min @ 3.8 mph w/4% incline; 5 min @ 3.8 mph w/8% incline; 5 min cool down).

Day 3/323: FitSugar Treadmill Pyramid Intervals workout (as pictured above) (30 min). I got this one from my sister who was a varsity runner in high school and just did a half marathon in December! She was impressed with how it improved her performance. I was fine the first half, but once those “rest/recovery” intervals picked up to 5.5 mph, I had to take them down to 4.0 in order to recover from the 7, 8, and 7 mph again sprint intervals!! And, I added 5 minutes of additional cool down to the end! 4.0 mph is a cardio walk pace! It is NOT a cool down!! LOL!! And, anyway, I did the first minute of the program cool down at 5.5 mph and the second at 4.5 mph. You can always increase or decrease the speed to accommodate your fitness level when doing any High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).

Day 4/324: Tamilee Webb’s Abs of Steel (10 min)

Day 5/325: The Biggest Loser Cardio Max Level 2 Workout (40 min)

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Day 6/326: Tamilee Webb’s Abs of Steel (10 min)

Day 7/327: Tamilee Webb’s Abs of Steel (10 min)

And that was my “Week 1!” Started week 2 pretty well with a 75 minute hot yoga class this morning! So, hopefully, that will be the kicks I needed to get back into waking up in time to exercise in the morning, before going to work!! Wish me luck!!

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Okay folks!! How did your Week 1 go? What did you do Days 1-7?

Most importantly, how are you feeling? I hope great :)!!

Jan9

Building Defined Abs

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Jan_Dec2013_AbsAbs progress Jan-Dec 2013 (148.5 lbs to 122 lbs)

I often get asked about what I do for abs. I’m hourglass shaped and tend to hold most of my excess weight between the area beneath my navel to mid-thigh. So, my upper body and abs are the first to show the results of weight loss/strength training. If you are more apple-shaped/top heavy, then it will likely take more work for you to see results in the abs just like it takes me more time to results in my legs/glutes. With that caveat, here are the things that I do to get defined abs!

1. LOSE WEIGHT/FAT: Maybe you’ve heard the saying, “Abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym?” It’s true. 90% of getting defined/tight abs is losing weight/fat. You’re not going to see muscle covered by fat. If you do a lot of ab work, but still have a tummy/gut/Dunlap disease (your waist “dun lapped” over your belt … LOL!), then it’s likely your six-pack is hiding under subcutaneous fat and losing weight will make them come out of hiding. Cardio is a necessity to burn calories and strength training helps boost base metabolism. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is an effective way to burn calories and boost base metabolism! A simple 25-30 minute HIIT treadmill workout for beginners is: warm-up walk for 5 minutes; 1 minute sprint (fast as you can) followed by 1.5 min walk/jog, repeat 6-8 times, cool down walk for 5 minutes. I used this C25K week 1 treadmill workout as my time guide.

2. ABS OF STEEL by TAMILEE WEBB (VHS): I’ve used this tape for 20+ years. It has three 10 minute workouts and I’ll do it 3-5 days a week (abs don’t need rest/recovery every other day. 1-2 days of rest in a week is adequate). I recently found that the VHS I use can be found on sale on eBay (pink box/blue leotard) and you can download it to your computer at TamileeWebb.com!

3. BICYCLE EXERCISE FOR ABS: I just added in the last few months because my lower abs were not progressing in strength the way I wanted or had experienced in the past. I realized that this was likely because I wasn’t doing the Captain’s Chair lower leg lift exercise that I used to do 1-2 days a week when I worked out at a gym. I corroborated with some online research that this is one of the top three effective exercises for abs as proven by EMG testing (see article here). So, I started to think about buying a Captain’s Chair for my home gym. But then I looked at the #1 exercise (Captain’s Chair was #2) and discovered it was something that required NO equipment, can be done anywhere, and is the most effective for the total core (upper abs, lower abs, AND obliques). It was a no brainer. I started incorporating one to two 60 second sets (60 sec rest between sets) into my workouts 1-2 days a week. I saw my lower ab strength increase within a week or two and that resulted in improved performance during running and yoga (especially inversions).

Bicycle for Abs Demo

via LiveStrong.com

So yup! That’s what I do for defined abs. But again, remember number one is the most important!! Case in point, I’ve been doing Abs of Steel almost every day for the last several weeks, but barely doing cardio and still eating like I’m on the cruise! So … the abs aren’t looking like they did in December!! So, it’s definitely time to get the eating back in order and cardio back in effect for real! With that, time to get on the exercise gear and hit the basement for The Biggest Loser Cardio Max for Day 325 of 365 Days of Fitness (and Day 5 of 28 Days of Fitness).

Lata Gatas!!

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How do you get “six pack”/defined abs?

Jan7

My Lazy Woman’s Diet

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So, some of you have embarked upon the Hairscapades 28 Days/10 Minutes a Day Fitness Challenge. And among a variety of goals, one of the most common is to lose excess pounds to improve health issues, energy, and/or self-esteem. As you may know, that is partly what motivated my 28 turned 365 Days of Fitness challenge almost a year ago. I started at 148.5 pounds (I’m 5’1″) with a goal to get back down to my preferred weight of 120 pounds and ultimately, I did reach my goal. So, I often get asked, “Did you have to change your diet?”

Ummm. YES!! LOL!

I have never been a person who lost weight with only diet or exercise. I have to do both. There is no way around it, in order to lose weight, you have to burn more calories than you eat. Simple. Truth. You can work out 4 hours a day. If you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. If you eat as many calories as you burn, your weight will remain the same. I can’t tell you how many people I saw in the gym REGULARLY who always looked the same … overweight. And I’m not talking about the folks who only seemed to go to the gym to socialize. I’m talking about the people really breaking a sweat who looked the same year … after year … after year.

So, I’m telling you this now. You can get stronger, you can build more muscle, you can improve your endurance, and you can improve your health with exercise alone. But 80-90% of weight loss is diet. You will not lose weight if you don’t know/understand how much you are eating and how much you are burning. So, if your goal is to lose weight, you need to look at your diet and figure out how to eat enough to fuel yourself while still creating a calorie deficit. Also, you can’t tone fat and muscle is already toned. So, if you are looking to get tighter, leaner, lose the jiggle or the spare tire … you HAVE to increase muscle mass and lose fat weight.

All that being said, I’m not going to tell you what to eat. But, what I will do is share a very simple food fact and then what works for me.

carb-fat-protein

THE SIMPLE FOOD FACT

FOOD IS COMPRISED OF THREE SOURCES OF CALORIES ONLY! THREE.

  • FAT (9 cals per gram)
  • CARBOHYDRATES (4 cals per gram)
  • PROTEIN (4 cals per gram

That’s it. There’s nothing else. Most people can readily identify protein and know the difference between lean and fatty cuts. And we know whole fruits and vegetables are mostly low calorie and the good for us carbs (fresh or frozen). So, if it’s not protein or fruits and veggies, it’s fat or carbs and often both (and dairy has all three). Reduce the fats and non-fruit and vegetable carbs and you’ll probably lose weight. Because, seriously, I don’t know anyone who binges on grilled, skinless chicken breast, broccoli, or apples. LOL!! And, even if they did, the damage would probably be minimal to none. Oh, and don’t think I’m saying fruit and veggies are the only good carbs. I co-sign on whole oat oatmeal, rice (particularly brown), white potatoes, and sweet potatoes (my faves).

Okay, so that’s my spiel on that.

Now, on to my diet when I want to lose weight. As some of you may know, I am not a fan of cooking and rely heavily on Lean Cuisines and Healthy Choice frozen meals for lunch and dinner when I am “counting calories.” Because of that, I’ve coined my diet, “The Lazy Woman’s Diet” aka “Cooking? Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That!” LMBO!! That being said, this is what it typically looks like

MY LAZY WOMAN’S DIET

  • Breakfast:
    • Green smoothie (1-2 c. kale or spinach, 1/2 frozen banana, handful of frozen sliced strawberries, 1 c. almond milk, 1 scoop Vanilla Bean or Strawberry Mousse Nectar Whey Protein Powder), or
    • 1/2 c. old-fashioned oatmeal or 1/2 cup cooked Grapenuts with 1/2 cup blueberries (Dole frozen/thawed) and 1/2 c. plain almond milk
    • A cup of instant coffee w/2 packs of Truvia, 1 tsp Agave and a little powdered skim milk.
  • Snack:
    • Fage yogurt (fruit variety/2% or 0% fat)
    • 9-10 almonds or handful of walnuts (occasionally)
  • Lunch:
    • Lean Cuisine (chicken turkey or fish with rice, potatoes, whole wheat or orzo pasta)
    • 1/2 to 1 c. added frozen vegetables (spinach, broccoli, sugar snap snow peas, mixed veggies)
    • Piece of fruit
  • Snack: Organic baby food
  • Dinner:
    • Lean Cuisine (chicken turkey or fish w/rice, potatoes, whole wheat or orzo pasta) w/added vegetables (spinach, broccoli or sugar snap snow peas)
    • A piece of fruit (occasionally)
  • Post work-out: Nectar Whey Protein Shake (w/banana if after yoga) (I only do this if a regular meal doesn’t immediately follow my work-out)

LCRewardsMy bucket of un-entered Lean Cuisine Rewards Codes. Told ya.

If you are concerned about the amount of sodium in my “diet plan” due to the frozen meals, check out this post I did earlier last year about Sodium and Weight Loss.

So that’s it. Wait. No it’s not. One tip that I would give on “dieting” is to not worry about the amount of calories when you start watching what you eat. Think about the QUALITY of the calories instead. Rather than jumping into reducing your calories to 1200-1500 or whatever, just get rid of food that has little to no nutritional value, ESPECIALLY calories that you can’t chew (except green smoothies ;)). Seriously, soda, juice, milk shakes, lattes, etc. … squash them. Replace those empty calories with nutritious ones so that you don’t feel like gnawing off your arm by noon!! Fruits, veggies, low fat/sugar yogurt, whole grain crackers, granola, nuts, brown rice, low fat popcorn, etc. are all options. Get your body adjusted to eating a healthier type of calories. Then, you may find that you are naturally able to reduce your calories because you won’t find yourself overeating whole, healthier foods. And, because you are eating every few hours, you’ll reduce cravings and be able to start cutting back on calories without losing your mind.

WAIT!!

(Who remembers Uncle from Jackie Chan Adventures? ;))

MODERATION IN ALL THINGS!! At least, that’s what I believe. As I said the other day on FB, some healthy foods taste great, but I don’t care what anyone says, nothing makes my toes wiggle like buttercream icing!! LOL!! That being said, I believe that we can indulge in our favorite bad foods every now again and still lose weight. It might take a little longer, but it’ll happen. So, enjoy your life along the way ;)! Because this is the thing. You can’t go back to eating the way you did before you lost the weight and expect to keep it off. Therefore, it’s important to learn to eat in a way that you can sustain a lifetime.

Aaaaaaaaand … I’m done!!

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If you have struggled with weight loss, what are the challenges you’ve faced? If you’ve overcome them, what did you do to make a “diet” work for you?

Jan5

Ready, Set … GO!!

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28DaysofFitnessEventPage

 

Hey ladies!! Just coming on here really quickly to OFFICIALLY kick-off our 28 Days/10 Minutes a Day Fitness Challenge and to let you know that I created an Event Page of Facebook!! So now you can join the “event,” share updates, progress, pics, workouts, information, links, words of encouragement, inspirational stories, etc. with your co-participants all in one place!! Just click the pic above to go to the page!!

LET’S GET IT!!!

Dec31

365 Days of Fitness on a Honeymoon

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365DaysofFitness

As many of you know, I have been doing a personal fitness challenge to work out a minimum of 10 minutes every day for 365 Days. Well, those 365 days included my wedding day and 10 day honeymoon from 12/12-12/21/13. And, I am VERY happy to report that I did not miss one day of working out during my honeymoon and am up to day 315 as of yesterday (still have to get in my 10 minutes today). I didn’t post my workouts daily on Instagram as our internet time was limited. But, I did post my workouts on IG, Facebook, and Twitter periodically. So now, just wanted to share those updates here for those who only follow Hairscapades on the blog :).

First things first though. If you remember, one of the reasons that I started a 28 Day Fitness Challenge back on February 18, 2012 was because I said that I refused to get married fat! LOL! Well, I’m happy to say that on December 11, 2013, Day 296, one day prior to my wedding, I achieved my goal weight of 120 pounds!!

365onHoneymoon_goalweight

Day289Day 43 v. Day 289

I was so psyched because that was the weight I wanted to achieve for my wedding day and gown!

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Now, I’m not gonna lie to you. As I type this, my chocolate, cookie, cake, and assortment of other high calorie food honeymooning/holiday eating butt weighed in at 128.5 pounds this morning. I’ve also ONLY been doing 10 minute work-outs since I got back from the honeymoon!! BUT, I’m gonna get the eating back together now that the holidays are over and I’ll get back to longer cardio sessions and strength training.

Anywho, back to 365 Days of Fitness on a Honeymoon …

Now, you may think that it would be very challenging to continue working out daily on a honeymoon and a cruise ship. However, I looked at it this way. There is less of an excuse to not work out on vacation then there is when you are working 8+ hour days and doing all of the work required to maintain a household. I mean, shoot. You’re resting and relaxing on a vacation!! You don’t have to go to work. You don’t have to cook. You don’t have to clean. People are doing those things for you!! So, ten minutes of exercise a day is nothing and TOTALLY doable!! #noexuses

So, I knew all along that I would at least do that and brought several DVDs with me to ensure that I could exercise in our room if all else failed. But, awesomely enough, the gym was 2 short flights of stairs immediately above my deck!!

365onHoneymoon1#KISMET

And, I felt so great from the extra calories (I was restricting to achieve my goal weight, but now all bets were off ;)), I was killing it with the workouts on most days!! That being said, here is a recap of Days 1-10 of my honeymoon and Days 297-306 of 365 Days of Fitness!

Day 1/297 (Wedding Day at 9:50 pm): Treadmill 3.8 mph (12 min)

365onHoneymoon1-1

How I really felt.

20131212_220819Can you say TIRED? #howthemightyhavefallen LOL!!

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Day 2/298: Treadmill run @ 1% incline (10 min @ 5, 10 min @ 5.2, 10 min @ 5.5, 10 min @ 5.7 mph) 5 min warm-up, 5 min @ 3.8 mph, 5 min cool down (55 min total).

Day 3/299: Stationary bike (35 min); 3×12 captain’s chair bent knee leg raises; 3×12 weighted ab crunches; 30 reps side crunches on Swiss ball (R and L); 15 reps crunches on Swiss ball; 5 sets of 16 rep kettlebell swing variations.

Day 4/300: Yoga (55 min) (They offered yoga classes 3 days of the trip for $12 each! I took advantage of it twice) + about 30 minutes of ice skating!

365onHoneymoon5

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Day 5/301: Treadmill run 5.7 mph for 20 min and 6 mph for 5 min (accidentally hit emergency stop after warm-up) (36 min)

365onHoneymoon6“Where’s Weusi?” Also was a milestone day for 365 Days of the Word :).

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Day 6/302: Stationary bike (25 min in am) + stretching session w/some arm balance and inversion practice (40 min in pm).

Day 7/303: Zip Lining with a 10 min downhill walk + Abs of Steel (10 min), because Wei said the walking for the zip line didn’t count! 😛 LOL!!

Day 8/304: Treadmill run @ 1% incline (10 min @ 5.2 mph, 10 min @ 5.5 mph, 5 min @ 5.7 mph, 5 min @ 6 mph, 5 min at 6.3 mph, 10 min at 3.8 mph w/progressive incline 2-8% grade) 5 min warm-up & cool down (60 min total)

365onHoneymoon9

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Day 9/Day 305: Yoga (50 min)

Day 10/Day 306: The Biggest Loser Cardio Max Week 3-4 program (40 min)

365onHoneymoon10

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So, that’s 365 Days of Fitness on a honeymoon!! Not bad, right? Soooo … I was thinking of posting a 28 Day/10 Minutes a Day Challenge for 2014 for you guys! I think 365 Days is a lot to bite off at first and could discourage some from even giving it a try. But, 28 Days, the way I started, is a great entree and I could post some tips. I would be doing it at the same time, of course, as my 365 Days doesn’t end until February 17th. And, I was thinking of starting the 28 Days (4 weeks) on Sunday, January 5th. So waddaya think?

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WHO WANTS TO PARTICIPATE IN A 28 DAY/10 MINUTES A DAY FITNESS CHALLENGE FROM JANUARY 5TH TO FEBRUARY 1ST 2014? 

Aug19

365 Days of Fitness – The Halfway Point!!

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Day183_2

Yup!! This morning’s Strong Curves workout marked day 183 and the halfway point of my 365 Days of Fitness!! This is when the going gets tough and the tough get going (to work)!! Time to make my breakthrough. For the last decade, I have started falling off after 6 months of exercising regularly and eating well.  And, this year, I am committed to breaking that pattern!! My new mantra is: “If you’re tired of starting over again, stop quitting.” I will also be reminding myself, “It’s a LOT easier to STAY in shape than it is to GET BACK INTO shape.” Because, at 41 years of age, it’s definitely getting even harder!! The ol’ joints just aren’t what they used to be!!!

On another note, I picked up a Polar FT4 heart rate monitor watch from Amazon about a month ago and am really liking it!! I purchased it after reading many positive reviews about it from my curlfriends on IG!! I’ll have to do a review soon. But, quickly, you wear a chest strap and then input your height, weight, and sex into the “watch” to get a more accurate reading for calories burned during your workout. And, you can monitor whether you are training inside or outside of your optimal heart rate zone.

Finally, here are a couple progress pics from the beginning of my challenge to now. The first one speaks for itself.

Day43v172

Next up is a collage of pics that show where I was in August 2011 and wanted to get back to when I started this is a 28 Day Challenge back in February. The middle picture was essentially my starting point when I weighed 148.5 pounds. And, the last pic is Day 172 seen above, where I am down about 23 pounds. I actually weigh more in the August 2013 pic than I do in the August 2011 pic, but think I look more muscular. So, I’m cool with that!!

Progression

This last pic is from a night out last Friday. I looked like a lumpy sausage stuffed badly in its casing when I purchased this dress last November after seeing Folake of Style Pantry rocking it here! So, it hung in the closet until last week, when I was looking for another dress and stumbled across it. Let’s just say, I was pretty dang pleased when I saw how it fits now (I know, it doesn’t look like it, but I was!!! LOL!! :)). #WINNING

Ellidresscollage(The dress is from Elli, but is no longer available. Sorry!!)

And, just because … this cracked me up when I saw it, because I hop out of bed around 5:30 am every weekday morning, give Wei a kiss, and then hit the basement for my workout (well, after a leisurely cup of coffee). So, I could relate. LOL!!

ecard_reasonIwakeup

For a daily dose of 365 Days of Fitness (plus hair, food, and random acts of nerdiness), follow me on Instagram and/or Facebook!!

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Have you been on a roller coaster ride with your health and fitness? What have you done or are you doing to “stop the madness?”

 

Aug3

Warrior Dash 2013 (Morristown, NJ)

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WD16

Now that I’ve woken up from my much-needed recovery nap 😉 …

The Opening Scene

It was a rainy and unseasonably cool morning as we drove to the parking lot site at 7:15 am for our day of reckoning. As the shuttle (i.e. school bus) transported us up long, winding, wooded hills, our sense of anticipation rose. We arrived 20 minutes or so later to see work friends waiting for others and we joined the group. The last of the crew arrived and we headed over to the tents to get our packets and hand over the waivers that essentially absolved the event organizers of any fault in the death, dismemberment, or disabilities (regardless of level of neglect) that might result from the dangerous mission on which we were all about to embark. We grinned in the face of death!

Then we herded into a holding area to wait 15 minutes for the next wave to begin. We cheered on the prior group as they threw up their Warrior Horns and were released through the gates of HELL (fire was literally shooting up on top of the start line).  Shortly thereafter … it was our turn. With a shout  of … “5 … 4 … 3 … 2 … 1” … WE ROARED AND WERE OFF!!! Jogging right into this massive, nearly vertical hill immediately in front of us, which kicked many a butt … but, we made it.  We survived the Warrior Dash (you can check out some of the obstacles that we faced here)!!

I’ll let the pics (and some captions ;)) tell the rest of the story.

So my girl Beck says to me this week, “You know there’s a best costume contest?!” Who said what now?!?! An idea emerges and begins to take form.
Another piece to the puzzle. Thank goodness for a free month of Amazon Prime and 2 day free shipping!!!
Amazon Prime strikes again!
It’s really coming together now. (Turns out, I like yellow nail polish.)
Oh yeah … now you see what’s happening here.
MINIONS!!!!!!!!
WE FOUND THE REST OF THE FAM!!!!
Oh … we were so pretty, young, and innocent then.
It was quicksand I tell you!!!! QUICKSAND!!!! WORST. OBSTACLE. EVER!
*muttering* radda radda radda radda …
We survived!!!!! Those overalls weighed a good 15 pounds after the quicksand fiasco. Literally, I felt them pulling me backwards. We had to be pulled out of the wet concrete because we could NOT move once we had to stop. People were literally pushing us further into the muck … it was crazy. Thank goodness for our saviors (the guys). — with Rebecca Fleming Robinson.
Yeah. It was like that.
My overalls were so heavy the straps were cutting into my shoulders. But, Warrior still!!!!
All “cleaned” up after 15 minutes of hose time!! We were so happy to be in a WARM car!!
WARRIOR Victory meal!!! Yeah. It went down like THAT. I think we were allowed a cheat meal ;).

That was a pretty dang cool way to get Day 167 of 365 Days of Fitness done ;). The muscles will need that hot yoga tomorrow!! Felt a Charlie horse almost kick in a few moments ago when I bent my legs up to take off my socks!!! Ate a banana with the quickness!! None of that!!

#thatisall