Motivation {Tuesday} & article

So...in my effort to get the whole house cleaned yesterday I had to skip out on other things and the FITness blog was one of them.
This morning I woke up at 5:30AM to head on over to the pool to swim some laps. I checked the weather before I left, just because. It said 81 degrees and an ozone health warning was in effect. I opted to change back out of my swimsuit and jump back into bed and read in peace and quiet as working out in filth is not exactly a good idea. It worked until I fell back asleep. RATS!!! I don't like it when that happens.

Ever have those mornings when you have great intentions and plans only to get swept away into other things? Here's what I did and you could try it to:
    I had plans with my kids to go to the summer movie. So I don't shower, throw on something that will look like I tried to put myself together, and come home and go straight into the workout clothes with a workout routine already in mind. Still get in a great workout and not throwing in the towel because it didn't work out the first time.

Find something that works for you if the first attempt and getting in a good workout fails. Maybe it won't happen until 9PM, the point is, make the time and there will be the time.

On to the article: Seriously disgusting sounding food. Watch out for those things when you are on the road this summer! Take along some healthy homemade car snacks like granola or applesauce muffins. Nuts and a big bottle of water are also good options...better than the gas station stops!

Summer Fun

It's blazing hot outside maybe you have humidity along with it, maybe you don't. Either way, it can be hard to get outside and do some cardio when it's mega degrees outside. No fear, pool time is here! The pool can give you a fantastic workout.

Over at one of my favorite ever sites for everything fitness: Fitness Magazine, they have pool workouts for beginner, intermediate, and advanced. You'll love it!

As I've said before, I don't own a gym membership, so I have to be very creative when it comes to FITting it in and knowing that I got a great workout. My community I live in has a pool they allow for lane swimming from 6AM-8AM. It's a great way to start your day feeling refreshed and energized to run around crazy with the kids all day spending quality time with them during these summer months.

Get your pool workout on! Let me know if you have a pool workout that you love to do. I'll probably try it!

GOAL: At least once this summer do a pool workout. Start it early in the summer because you never know...you might get hooked!

Still Around!

So, I'm back from a little family vacation. Much needed and much loved! We went out hiking and enjoyed the beautiful weather, surroundings, and fresh air.

I'm a huge fan of switching up workouts and I rip out workouts from Fitness Magazine and Health Magazine. Then I go through them and choose which workout I'm going to do that day. I have everything from full body strength, targeted areas for strength, and numerous cardio workouts. Switching up a routine will get you motivated to keep moving. I've started a different strength workout that I'm going to do for one month. I'll add some variations if my interest starts waning.

You can check out the workout here. Maybe you want to jump on board, too! Sign up and they'll send you a new workout every Monday. Awesome deal, huh?!

Happy working out.

Motivation Monday

Can't leave Monday without some Motivation to kick off the week.

This morning I was up bright and early. I'm working really hard on getting my 7-8 hours of sleep in each night. It feels great to get just the right amount of sleep. Being on a regular schedule is so great for your body. It helps with your metabolism and can speed it up. Drinking 2-3 liters a day helps with that as well. My aim is for 2 liters now, and I'm getting there. (Bathroom stops are every 1/2 hour, feels like being pregnant all over again!)

I didn't just wake up early. I woke up, put on those workout clothes. Grabbed my Yoga mat, headed to my backyard, and enjoyed the perfect morning. I ran 10 laps around our yard (it's a good size yard), then I did walking lunges and a back leg lift on the way up. I did this across our lawn and back again. I didn't count, I just made it to the other side of the yard. If you have seen my yard, you know how long it is! I did 2 sets of 30 jumping jack, did LOTS of ab work. Did some butt work. 3 sets of 10 pushups and LOTS of water.

What a way to start the day.

GOAL: GET 7-8 HOURS OF SLEEP EVERY NIGHT AND GO TO SLEEP AND GET UP AT THE SAME TIME EVERYDAY. YOUR ENERGY LEVEL WILL INCREASE. THIS IS ONE ASPECT OF INCREASING YOUR METABOLISM.

CHALLENGE: You will NOT regret, EVER, getting a good workout in. You WILL regret NOT getting a workout in. Write this down and post it on your mirror so you see it every morning.

Motivation Monday

I'm back with a little Motivtion to keep on FITting it in this week!

Nothing motivates better than swimsuit season, right people?! The thought of going to the pool all summer long in that swimsuit can make a person cringe. Here's what you are going to do this week: HANG UP THAT SWIMSUIT IN YOUR CLOSET SO YOU KEEP ON SEEING IT. This will force you to make time to FIT it in.

You've got about a month before pool season is in full swing! In 4 weeks of hard core FITting it in, you will look stunning at the pool. One of the best compliments I have gotten happened in my bathing suit. I was at the pool where I take my kids daily during the summer and another lady I knew there said, "You have a body of a model!" You too can get compliments like that if you FIT it in. I don't mention that because I necessarily think so, but it did make my day..well, summer!!

When I get my Fitness Magazine or SELF magazine or any other magazine I subscribe to, I rip out the workout they provide and do them. I keep the ones I like and toss the others. Below are links to the workout I've enjoyed the most:

Get a WOW Booty Now
Love you Lower Body
Boost Energy, Blast Fat!
Firm Flat Abs Fast!

Just a few of the 50 workouts I have covering my desk! I love them and I think you will too.
GOAL: Pick one of these and do it today! Most of them consist of 5 moves and 8-15 reps each. You DO have time for that!

Strength Training: You NEED It!

Strength training is very important for your body. Here's why:

1. It helps prevent bone and muscle loss.
2. It makes you stronger and fitter.
3. It helps you develop better body mechanics.
4. Plays a role in disease prevention.
5. Boosts energy levels and improves your mood.
6. It means more calories burned.

How does it do all that?:
1. Strength training adds muscle and helps to prevent bone loss because of the strength you are adding to your joints and to your whole skeleton.

2. Doing isometric and istonic strength training you are providing your muscles with two different types of strength. For example: When I had my second child she loved to be held always. I noticed that my left arm began getting so much stronger than my right arm. I was holding her in the same position for long lengths of time (isometric exercise). When I did strength training at the gym I noticed that my right arm could do so many more reps than my left arm (isometric exercise). My arms were being trained (or worked out) in 2 different ways. Both are important and both will improve your strength and fitness. You will have toned arms and you will have more strength therefore, you will be and feel fitter.

3. Having toned muscles leads to better balance and coordination. Squats and lunges are great strength moves to develop and maintain balance and coordination even as you age.

4. Diseases such as arthritis and osteoperosis can be somewhat relieved and made better, or with osteoperosis start to be reversed, through strength training.

5. As with all exercise, endorphines are released when you exercise that make you feel good. Strength training has been shown to also improve your sleep, can be an anti-depressant, and improve your all around mood or quality of life. If it makes you feel good and it is good for you, why not do it?!

6. Lean muscle burns calories even when you are at rest. Here's to burning more calories and not having to do anything, right? Well, you still have to keep up your strength training to keep burning those calories. It is a great way to jumpstart your metabolism.

GOAL: Start a strength training program and begin to see the transformation in your shape, your muscle tone, and your overall quality of life.

Motivation Monday

It's Monday again! Time to get your pumped up for another week of FITness.

How long have you done the same routine? Are you getting bored with it? You are more likely to stay motivated if you switch it up a bit. Don't go into the new "routine" blindly. Still have a plan, just make multiple plans. Rotate through them to keep you excited and energized and of course motivated to keep finding time to FIT it in.

Pick a different cardio option: running, walking on an incline or faster, bike. If you go to a gym, try a new weight machine, or new weight training routine.

One of my favorite things to do at a gym is trying new classes. Different instructors teach differently and attending different classes get you excited to try something new.

Perhaps you don't attend a gym, switch up your scenery. If you do only videos, move your workout outside. Join a group that works out outside.

Just last Thursday I was at a park and a bunch, I mean a WHOLE LOT, of people came out to do yoga, running group, and walking group. I even saw at a different park a group of just 3 moms and their kids doing exercises together with just a few pieces of equipment.

It doesn't take much to switch it up. Find out what works for you and let us know how you switched up your "routine" to work for you!

Now get down and give me 20. 20 squats that is! Then do 2 more sets throughout the day.

Circuit Training

Ever since I started doing the 30-Day Shred with Jillian Michaels (are you tired of me talking about that yet? Too bad, it's the greatest.) I have totally enjoyed doing circuit training. Not only does it cover all you need in a workout, it really tones you up and leaves you feeling like you've spent all day in the gym when you've only spent 20-60 minutes.
Here is the formula for a good circuit:
3 minutes of cardio + upper-body move + lower-body move + ab flattener = 512 calories burned in an hour.

You can do the same circuit over and over for an hour or you can make 3 circuits and rotate through them for an hour. This is great for not getting bored or tired of the same old thing. With the nicer weather we are experiencing it is great to get outside and try this out.

Need help building a circuit? I'll help you. Send me an e-mail and I'll send you back moves that will whip you into shape in no time!

Perhaps circuit training will become your new addiction!

Walking It Off

Aim for a minimum of 45 minutes of walking a day for a week. Make this your goal next week. The weather should be getting nicer everywhere! I know it is here.

Walking is amazing exercise all by itself, but Fitness Magazine has this really great Walking Workout that I'm going to be doing. Embarrased by looking weird at those that pass you? Don't be, you'll have the greatest looking arms and they'll be jealous and possibly ask you what you are doing! HA!

No weights are needed to do the exercises, just ball your hands in a fist.

(all pictures below are from Fitness Magazine)

While you are walking you will be doing the:

upright row:

Starting with hands by your thighs, palms facing you, bring your hands into a fist. Pull your arms up and out as shown. Stop at shoulder height and squeeze your shoulders back. Keep your tummy tucked in. go back to starting position. Do 25 reps of these WHILE CONTINUING TO WALK.

chest press: this is a great one ladies! Start with your arms straight down at your side, palms forward hand either open or in a fist. Bring your arms straight up in front of you while tightening your abs. Bring your pinkies together and squeeze your chest. Do 25 reps. Go back to starting position.

lateral press: another great one! You'll feel this one in your shoulders and triceps (the back of your arms). Start out like the girl in the picture. Arms out to the sides palms facing in (behind you), keeping your upper arm fixed swing the wrist down (bending at the elbow) until it is perpendicular with the ground and swing them back up squeezing those triceps. Do 25 reps and you'll really feel this one.

and the one arm reverse fly: You are going to work one arm at a time with this exercise so don't forget to switch. You will complete 25 reps per arms. Put your left hand on your hip and your right hand in a fist on top of it. Your right arm will be across your body. Raise your right arm straight across and up ending slightly above your right shoulder, like the girl in the picture. Go back to starting position for your next rep. Once complete, do the same thing with your right hand on your hip and your left arm doing the reverse fly exercise.

So I just did the chest press exercise and I'm already feeling it. It feels like I did a few sets of push-ups. I just love that feeling!

Okay, now I've got myself all excited about walking, I might have to start this afternoon and let the kids run wild at the park while I complete laps in a circle around them.

Quick tip: You might need to make a little cheat sheet for yourself if you need reminders on the exercises at first. You'll start to remember it quickly.

Have a Happy Easter!

I'll see you back on Monday for Motivation Monday!

Healthy Family

A while ago I spoke to a group of women concerning healthy snacks and ideas for healthy meals including time saving tips. I love doing that sort of activity.

While researching some topics I could gear towards the demographics of this group, I found that the USDA website had a plethera of information that is very useful.

Today my purpose for introducing you to the website is for this page. MyPryamid.gov is an incredibly useful tool for getting your whole family on board with eating healthy. Everything from tracking your food intake to activities, snacks, and ideas to help your littlest members of the family be involved in meal. There is even a menu planner. I could go on for days about the wonders of this website.

Today I'm going to focus on their- 
                                                         Tips for setting a good example:


• Eat together. Eat meals with your child whenever possible. Let your child see you enjoying fruits, vegetables and whole grains at meals and snacks.

• Take it with you. Show your child how to make healthy choices when you are on the run. Put oranges, bananas, or other fruits in your bag for quick snacks. Let your child see that you like to munch on raw vegetables.

• Share the adventure. Be willing to try new foods, and try new foods together.

• Cook together. Encourage your preschooler to help you prepare meals and snacks. Teach your child to tear lettuce or add veggie toppings to pizza. Cooking together can mean more “mommy (or daddy) and me” time on busy days.

• Keep things positive. Discourage older children and other family members from making yucky faces or negative comments about unfamiliar foods.

• Set a good example for physical activity, too. Make play time a family time. Walk, run, and play with your child rather than sitting on the sidelines.

This is where it all begins-with you!

In my family I have tried to be a good example of all of these things. My children have learned an awful lot about living a healthy lifestyle. One night my husband and I were talking and he said, "You know how I explain the stock market to you and you don't really get it? Well, that's me with nutrition." That helped me put his non-understanding of nutrtion into perspective. I am working with him teaching him what food he needs to cut out and why. It is a process, but I think it's a fun one!

GOAL: 1 minute of high knees. 3 sets of 15 push-ups, 3 sets of 15 abdominals, bridge exercises.

Motivation Monday

Working out on my own gives me my space and alone time. Looking forward to the "adrenaline rush" after working out is motivation enough for me to get a workout in. To keep me going when I'm really working: MUSIC. It has a great effect on how quickly you move OR how slowly you move. With the wondeful invention of the iPod and other MP3 players, making workout playlists is so simple.

Depending on your workout of choice, whether it be running, spinning, walking, jogging, weight training, yoga, the music may vary slightly.

Fitness Magazine has playlist samples and the option to download their playlist from iTunes. Choose a workout and click Download Playlist. It's that simple. Enjoy an upbeat workout with appropriate music to keep you moving at a good pace to burn optimum calories.

My 5 miles run last Friday would have been so much better had I not forgotten my iPod Shuffle. Certainly the satisfaction of completing 5 miles was fantastic, but to keep me moving through moments when I wanted to stop, music would have been my best friend!

Get moving with you playlist and notice a dramatic difference in your endurance and mind set.

Goal: Continue your push-ups, abdominals, and bridges. Incorporate cardio such as jump rope for 10 minutes today. Don't have a jump rope-PRETEND! It works just the same.
ALSO, organize playlists for your endurance cardio workouts, weight training, or Yoga workouts.

Hula Hoop

Did you know that a childhood activity is a great core workout, too?
That's right, the hula hoop, or hooping, is a great cardio activity that also strengthens the core.
If you're a runner it provides a great warm-up.

Better Homes and Gardens had an article in the March 2010 issue about hooping.

You'll certainly notice a difference in your core after hooping 3 times a week for 30 minutes a session. Incorporate the hoop with the core strengthening exercises in the previous post for a great workout.

If you get really into hooping, Hoola Monsters offers heavier adult-sized hoops for an even greater workout. Abby Albaum is the founder of Hoola Monsters. She says that wrapping the hoop with friction tape, which she sells on her site (or you might find it at a bike shop/sporting goods store), you will have better success at hooping. The friction tape will help the hoop to stay up even if your are just beginning!

GOAL: Borrow you child's hula hoop, a neighbors hula hoop, or run out to Wal-Mart for your own and try hooping for 30 minutes today.

Core Workouts

As mentioned on Facebook yesterday I did the Yoga Booty Ballet Core Workout. It is a two-disc workout system that I picked up from the library. The other disc is for the booty. I haven't completed that one, yet. I will today, though. I feel fantastic today. My back especially feels like it got a great strength workout.

What is your core? Your core includes everything from your shoulders to your thighs.

Why do I need to strengthen my core? Your core balances you. A strong core helps you to stand tall and stand in a straight line to your feet and hands. Having a strong core will help you to avoid or decrease your chance of injury.

We always think of strengthening our abdominals, thighs, and biceps. We need to remember that there is a back side to us as well. Our shoulders, back, and hamstrings (the back of your thighs) also need to be strengthened. Workouts from Yoga and Pilates often include your core. The exercises from these disciplines involve stretching, balance, and improve flexibility.

The Wall Street Journal had an article on this very subject March, 16 2010. It really is all the rage in athletic and fitness training.

Your goal today is to complete 3 exercises of Pillar Bridges. (If you are healthy and are able.)

Lateral Pillar Bridge: Lie on your side with your forearm on the ground under your shoulder. Push your hip off the ground. Watch your form and make sure there is a straight line from your shoulder down to your ankle. HOLD for 1/2 a minute. Repeat 10 times.

Glute Bridge: Lie face up with your arms to the side, knees bent, and heels on the ground. Lift hips until knees, hips, and shoulders are in a straight line. HOLD for a few second. Repeat 12 times.

Plank with arm lift: Start in a plank postion with your elbows bent in front of you right underneath your shoulders. Without moving your middle lift left arm up to about ear level. HOLD for a few seconds and switch to the right arm. Repeat 12 times on each side.

You should feel really good after doing these exercises. Let me know how it goes for you! Keep doing the previous exercises I've mentioned. Have a great day. See you tomorrow!

Motivation Monday

How were those wall sits over the weekend? They work especially good when you are on the phone with a telemarketer...passes the time nicely, don't you think?

Continue on with your push-ups, abdominal exercises, and those squats I told you to incorporate in the previous post. Keep with it, I bet they're getting easier now. If they're too easy, start doing regular push-ups without the modification.

If you are seeing results with your strength that should be motivation to continue on and see what you can accomplish next. In a previous Motivation Monday post I encouraged you to try something new. Have you done it yet? Do you need motivation to try something new?

Ask around and find out what types of exercise or physical fitness others are involved in. They may be your "in" to trying that new activity. Join a cycling group, ask to join in on a group of runners, ask a friend to walk with you in the morning. Having others around you will motivate you and encourage you to continue doing an activity.

Motivation starts within you, but can be encouraged with those around you. That's what I hope this community to be as well; a place where you can come and find those who are trying to FIT it in their lives and feel great.

Start your exercises! Come back tomorrow for strengthening your CORE.

Workin' Out Old School

Buns of Steel and Sweatin' to the Oldies: classic workouts. Remember these? I still remember my mom sweatin' to the oldies. It was fun as a kid to join in, too. My kids join in with me now.

Workout videos have come a long way. No more leg warmers or body suits. Now it's, well, a lot of skin.

A few years ago I got Yourself Fitness for xBox. I still love it. You can up the intensity, you can set goals, it gives you a menu and the calorie breakdown, you can tell the game what equipment you have and it will incorporate it into the workout. There is also a meditation workout.

At the beginning of this year I picked up Jillian Michael's 30 day shred. If you think you are in great shape after you put this video in you won't think so. She knows how to create an intense workout. There are 3 workout levels and each level has 3 circuit workouts. They get progressively more difficult. For the first time in my life I had a six-pack. I'm not lying, you can ask my husband! (You have to keep up the workout to keep the ripped tummy.) Get this video and you will be shredded.

For those that are pregnant, I did a Pre-natal yoga workout video throughout both of my pregnancies. I was fortunate to be healthy enough to do this. The video I got also had a post-natal workout to do with your baby. If you can tolerate interesting music (like the boyfriend plays in the movie Serendipity), then I would recommend it. If not, I still recommend it, just turn off the music. It is so relaxing to do Yoga while pregnant and even when your not.

Did you know that you can also check out workout videos at the library? Sometimes it is impossible to get out of the house. Maybe you have a sick kid, maybe the weather is yucky, maybe you don't have a spare moment until 10PM-having a workout video on hand when those days come up will be helpful. Pop in the video, do the workout, and fulfill your fitness goals for the day.

Your goal today is put one in (go to the library and get one if you have to or borrow from a friend) and do it! I'd love to hear which one you did and if you would recommend it.

There are so many videos out there. I'd love to hear what your favorite video workouts are.