And I'll bring the moonshine.
Hey everyone! So one of my favorite workouts in the world to do is a 600 rep body weight only series on BodyRock. Since I will be traveling from tomorrow night through Thursday morning, I thought I would get in some weight work while I can. So I created my own 600 rep full body blast.
50 90lb dead lifts
200 Squats
100 side V crunches (L)
100 side V crunches (R)
25 Wide Arm Push-Ups
25 Triceps Push-Ups with knee to elbow.
100 Sasha Rows
And, as usual. Time it!
Then, depending on how long this takes, 20 minutes of jumping FREESTYLE! Woohoooo! I'll either do it right after this - or later in the day. Either way it will get done :).
I'll head to Biochemistry Deuce from 3-5, come back for a nap and throw some chicken and veggies in a pan and leave for the birthday get away that MKBBF is taking me on. Thank you baby Jebus for OSCE "holidays". Oh, and for MKBBF. He's pretty rad, too :P.
My posts for the next couple of days aren't going to be particularly lengthy or have any blabber, but I am still going to be posting a workout every day. They will all be bodyweight only, since I don't think taking weights on vacation is particularly in the spirit of the adventure :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
MKB 600 Workout Score: 26:53
Also, something is up with my middle two metatarsals on my right foot near where they attach to my toe, so I won't be jumping today. They started bugging me a few days ago during my jumping intervals, and I decided to see if the issue would resolve on it's own. It hasn't, so rather than risk overuse injury, I'm gonna whip out 100 burpees for time later this afternoon to make up for it.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
And on the seventh day . . .
She reattempted workout 2 from the sixth day!
Hey everyone! So this post is coming at you bright and early on this Sunday morning. MKBBF's body is dropping the hammer on some pesto and veggies he ate yesterday, so I woke up at 5:00am to the various sounds of his stomach saying "no sir!" So I came to, and had the immediate visceral response of a stomach ache, worry, and helplessness. :(. He likes to get this saute from Harry's one day a week or so for lunch. The thing is it makes him sick to his stomach. Every. Single. Time. Nothing like this usually - but always some kind of pain involved. I submit when you eat clean all the time, your body forgets how to process TONS of fat (side note: most pesto is healthy - but the pesto they use in this saute is at least 70% oil and they put two big scoops in the veggies - ugh turns my stomach to think about). I haven't been able to eat high fat foods without SEVERE consequences for a couple of years now, and my conjecture is that's what's happening with MKBBF.
Anyway, today is a one workout day because, frankly, I'm starting to feel mentally and physically burnt out. I'm going to scale it back to one workout for a few days and then ramp it back up again probably Thursday :). The thing is, when I'm only doing one workout, you can believe it is going to be bad and burny and dirty and epic.
Workout of the Day:
-20 hanging leg raises
-5 pull ups
-10 75 lb squats
-20 burpees
-1 min jumping jacks, 1 minute shadow roping, 1 minute legs far apart jumping, 1 minute one foot hopping/high knees combo from yesterday
x5 rounds for time.
Alright, I'm going to see if I can't get back to bed for a while. Hopefully things will calm down around here soon.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
This workout was a destroyer of worlds. To rack the bar on my traps to do the back squats safely I had to clean it and then push press it. After having just milked my grip doing pull ups and hanging leg raises. Not fun. And after having it grinding down on my traps for a minute while I completed the squats - using those muscles to push press it back up front so I could put it down was also a challenge.
Anyway my time for this workout was:
46:30
25 pull ups 100 leg raises 100 burpees 50 75 lb squats and all interspersed with 20 minutes of jumping. Stick a fork in me, I'm done!
Hey everyone! So this post is coming at you bright and early on this Sunday morning. MKBBF's body is dropping the hammer on some pesto and veggies he ate yesterday, so I woke up at 5:00am to the various sounds of his stomach saying "no sir!" So I came to, and had the immediate visceral response of a stomach ache, worry, and helplessness. :(. He likes to get this saute from Harry's one day a week or so for lunch. The thing is it makes him sick to his stomach. Every. Single. Time. Nothing like this usually - but always some kind of pain involved. I submit when you eat clean all the time, your body forgets how to process TONS of fat (side note: most pesto is healthy - but the pesto they use in this saute is at least 70% oil and they put two big scoops in the veggies - ugh turns my stomach to think about). I haven't been able to eat high fat foods without SEVERE consequences for a couple of years now, and my conjecture is that's what's happening with MKBBF.
Anyway, today is a one workout day because, frankly, I'm starting to feel mentally and physically burnt out. I'm going to scale it back to one workout for a few days and then ramp it back up again probably Thursday :). The thing is, when I'm only doing one workout, you can believe it is going to be bad and burny and dirty and epic.
Workout of the Day:
-20 hanging leg raises
-5 pull ups
-10 75 lb squats
-20 burpees
-1 min jumping jacks, 1 minute shadow roping, 1 minute legs far apart jumping, 1 minute one foot hopping/high knees combo from yesterday
x5 rounds for time.
Alright, I'm going to see if I can't get back to bed for a while. Hopefully things will calm down around here soon.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
This workout was a destroyer of worlds. To rack the bar on my traps to do the back squats safely I had to clean it and then push press it. After having just milked my grip doing pull ups and hanging leg raises. Not fun. And after having it grinding down on my traps for a minute while I completed the squats - using those muscles to push press it back up front so I could put it down was also a challenge.
Anyway my time for this workout was:
46:30
25 pull ups 100 leg raises 100 burpees 50 75 lb squats and all interspersed with 20 minutes of jumping. Stick a fork in me, I'm done!
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Chiropractic Widow Saturday - Part 1
Hey everyone! MKBBF is going to be at chiropractic board review today from 8-5, so I'm going to do two workouts, make some more headway on rebuilding my LLBean Corduroy Blazer (seriously a size four at LLBean is a size ten everywhere else - so this is an epic tailoring job), and maybe harass my dad for a little while :).
Workout 1:
Hot Body Beach Workout
Followed by the following jumping intervals:
1 min jumping jacks
1 min shadow roping
1 min 10 foot hops on one leg alternating
1 min high knees
1 min shadow roping
x4 rounds
Workout 2:
20 strict pull ups
50 75 lb back squats
100 burpees
Again, if you're using a 25 or 30 lb bag or backpack for the back squats, double the reps and really hit it for speed. It will be a crazy effective burn if you push it, either way :). Note: Don't WEAR the backpack - shrink the straps up all the way and hold it with your hands behind your head. I guess I never mentioned that before, but if you wear the backpack you have to bend your back forward to compensate for the weight hanging off of it. Proper squat form absolutely requires a straight back (they call it maintaining the lumbar curve in the tutorial video - same thing) to avoid injury and get the most effective workout. It can be done if the weight is up higher, but if it's hanging off of your low back, you'll burn it out. Which is bad.
Anyway, do those exercises for time :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
My scores for workout 1:
1)Knee Tucks (L) 16/14 (R) 14/14
Happy Monkey 5/5
2)Knee Tucks (L) 17/15 (R) 16/15
Happy Monkey 5/5
2 Commando Push Up/Roll Over/10x Mountain Climbers
1)7.5
2)6.5
3)7.5
*the .5 is when I finished the 2 push-ups but didn't make it to the mountain climbers.
1) Jump Lunge 25/20/18
Diamond Runner Push-Up 8/8/8
2) Jump Lunge 27/18/20
Diamond Runner Push-Up 9/8/8
Then I did the jumping. Instead of doing high knees and then alternating jumping on one foot as two separate intervals, I combined them into 1 two minute interval. The rhythm was
left foot hop
right foot hop
left foot hop
right foot hop
left high knee
right high knee
left high knee
right high knee
Basically, 2 hops on each leg to 2 high knees on each leg. I made sure to keep my heel glued to my butt when doing the one foot hops to get a little back of the leg burn happening :).
Annnnd I'm done!
*******UPDATE 2 *******
I did the 20 Pull-Ups and on my 8th squat my left hip popped, and this stabbing pain shot all the way down the outside of my leg to my foot. Considering I had already done a bunch of lunges and squats today, I took that as my sign to back off. I'm going to attempt this workout again tomorrow, when the first workout isn't so leg/butt exercise heavy.
Workout 1:
Hot Body Beach Workout
Followed by the following jumping intervals:
1 min jumping jacks
1 min shadow roping
1 min 10 foot hops on one leg alternating
1 min high knees
1 min shadow roping
x4 rounds
Workout 2:
20 strict pull ups
50 75 lb back squats
100 burpees
Again, if you're using a 25 or 30 lb bag or backpack for the back squats, double the reps and really hit it for speed. It will be a crazy effective burn if you push it, either way :). Note: Don't WEAR the backpack - shrink the straps up all the way and hold it with your hands behind your head. I guess I never mentioned that before, but if you wear the backpack you have to bend your back forward to compensate for the weight hanging off of it. Proper squat form absolutely requires a straight back (they call it maintaining the lumbar curve in the tutorial video - same thing) to avoid injury and get the most effective workout. It can be done if the weight is up higher, but if it's hanging off of your low back, you'll burn it out. Which is bad.
Anyway, do those exercises for time :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
My scores for workout 1:
1)Knee Tucks (L) 16/14 (R) 14/14
Happy Monkey 5/5
2)Knee Tucks (L) 17/15 (R) 16/15
Happy Monkey 5/5
2 Commando Push Up/Roll Over/10x Mountain Climbers
1)7.5
2)6.5
3)7.5
*the .5 is when I finished the 2 push-ups but didn't make it to the mountain climbers.
1) Jump Lunge 25/20/18
Diamond Runner Push-Up 8/8/8
2) Jump Lunge 27/18/20
Diamond Runner Push-Up 9/8/8
Then I did the jumping. Instead of doing high knees and then alternating jumping on one foot as two separate intervals, I combined them into 1 two minute interval. The rhythm was
left foot hop
right foot hop
left foot hop
right foot hop
left high knee
right high knee
left high knee
right high knee
Basically, 2 hops on each leg to 2 high knees on each leg. I made sure to keep my heel glued to my butt when doing the one foot hops to get a little back of the leg burn happening :).
Annnnd I'm done!
*******UPDATE 2 *******
I did the 20 Pull-Ups and on my 8th squat my left hip popped, and this stabbing pain shot all the way down the outside of my leg to my foot. Considering I had already done a bunch of lunges and squats today, I took that as my sign to back off. I'm going to attempt this workout again tomorrow, when the first workout isn't so leg/butt exercise heavy.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Pork Tenderloin with Apple and Onion
Here's what's cooking at Cocina MKB: Pork Tenderloin with Apple and Onion and Baked Sweet Potatoes. Sweet potatoes are a fence food, some paleo eaters think they're acceptable and some think they're off limits. I err on the side of conservatism, so I don't normally eat them, but they don't make me sick like truly non-paleo foods (grains, dairy, sugar) do, some from time to time I will indulge.
1 1lb pork tenderloin
2 tbsp dried rosemary
1 tbsp dried thyme
1 tbsp dried parsley
1 apple - quartered(I only eat Granny Smiths)
1 onion - coarsely chopped (I like red - but it's just a color preference)
3 garlic cloves
1/4 cup lemon juice
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Toast rosemary thyme and parsley in a skillet for about 3 minutes on high heat moving constantly until they are fragrant. You can skip this step, but it releases the oils in the dried herbs and makes them much more flavorful. Learned that one from one of my favorite butchers at Harry's, Jerry.
Pat the spice mixture over pork tenderloin and let it rest for half an hour
Put the apple, lemon juice and garlic cloves in the blender until kind of a rough mash is formed. Place the mash in a skillet over medium-low heat along with the onions. Cook for 10 minutes. If the mixture starts to fry to the bottom of the pan, add some water to deglaze and turn the heat down a smidge.
In an oven and stovetop safe dish heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Sear the pork tenderloin for 2 minutes then flip and add the onion, apple, garlic mixture to cook while the second side is searing - also for 2 minutes. Place in the preheated oven uncovered for 12-20 minutes until the thickest part is at 137 degrees. The thickest part will be a teeny bit pink, but NOT raw. It will look cooked texture wise, just will have a blush to it.
Cut into 1/4 - 1/2 inch pieces and scoop some of the onion apple mixture onto the pork.
Dig IN!
1 1lb pork tenderloin
2 tbsp dried rosemary
1 tbsp dried thyme
1 tbsp dried parsley
1 apple - quartered(I only eat Granny Smiths)
1 onion - coarsely chopped (I like red - but it's just a color preference)
3 garlic cloves
1/4 cup lemon juice
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Toast rosemary thyme and parsley in a skillet for about 3 minutes on high heat moving constantly until they are fragrant. You can skip this step, but it releases the oils in the dried herbs and makes them much more flavorful. Learned that one from one of my favorite butchers at Harry's, Jerry.
Pat the spice mixture over pork tenderloin and let it rest for half an hour
Put the apple, lemon juice and garlic cloves in the blender until kind of a rough mash is formed. Place the mash in a skillet over medium-low heat along with the onions. Cook for 10 minutes. If the mixture starts to fry to the bottom of the pan, add some water to deglaze and turn the heat down a smidge.
In an oven and stovetop safe dish heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Sear the pork tenderloin for 2 minutes then flip and add the onion, apple, garlic mixture to cook while the second side is searing - also for 2 minutes. Place in the preheated oven uncovered for 12-20 minutes until the thickest part is at 137 degrees. The thickest part will be a teeny bit pink, but NOT raw. It will look cooked texture wise, just will have a blush to it.
Cut into 1/4 - 1/2 inch pieces and scoop some of the onion apple mixture onto the pork.
Dig IN!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Lands End Canvas Purchases & Friday Double Header
Hey everyone! Just wanted to share a small victory with you. I found a company that makes clothes I can actually wear. HOLY shit moly! Lands End Canvas actually makes clothes that fit those of us with narrow hips and athletic shoulders!!! *Happy dance*. They also make REAL zeros which is nice because ones literally fall off of my no hipped self, as do faux zeros. Okay, stop rolling your eyes :). Everyone I know has frustrations about buying clothing that fits their body properly. My frustration is that everything literally falls off or hangs off of my 12 year old boy frame lifelessly.
Anyway, I just discovered Lands End Canvas recently, and given that their clothes fit me "off the rack" (that is, I don't have to alter them) it was VERY exciting! The clothes are reasonably priced, and when I consider the fact I don't have to alter the stuff or pay a tailor to do the complicated stuff I get there they're downright inexpensive. I have been diligent with the BodyRocking and BodyRock style workouts since mid-November so I got really excited when I saw bathing suits were on sale. It was a treat for my past efforts and an inspiration to keep going and shut that lazy Brutus up :). I came away with three bathing suits. I got this top in Black, Deep Sea, and Turquoise. Then I got this bottom in Black and Turquoise, and this one in Deep Sea. Original total: $192.00 plus tax and shipping ~$200.00. What I paid: ~$46.00. Then they had this extra 40% off sale which started the next day. Ahhh Murphy's Law. But over 75% off is nothing to sneeze at, so I'm happy.
Oh, and once I found out about the super sale I got these boots too :P. I ordered them at the Lands End store in Sears on Roswell Rd. so I didn't have to pay shipping and it was during the extra 40% off sale so they were ~$25.00 with tax. Down from $98.00 plus $8.00 shipping. SWEET!
~$61.00 is more than I ever spend on myself since I am a penny pincher all the way to the bank. Ask anyone. Seriously. It's kind of ridiculous. BUT I figured - my bikini from last summer just doesn't look right anymore. I don't fill out the top AT all, and the bottom is black and white so I can still wear it with my new top. Did I mention it was from Victoria's Secret and was $90.00? So I figured by finding a bathing suit that fit (a rarity) and buying 3 at over 75% off I've just saved myself the horror of spending money on bathing suits for a few years :). Oh, and the boots? Well, I had been gawking at them when they were full price, but I decided to save the hundred bucks and wait until the 10" Maine Hunting Shoe Bean Boot is available again on March 10 and pick those up instead. I'm big into functional clothing, and who doesn't love the classic Bean Boot. I mean, really. But when I saw the heels were on sale for $25.00 and I don't HAVE a pair of closed toe heels of any kind, I decided they were too good to pass up. Oh, and since I paid my tuition on my LLBean Visa (which I then paid off the next day because this girl does NOT do credit card debt or paying interest), I have about $30.00 in LLBean coupons. So I got the heels, and I'll be able to pick up the Bean Boots too for roughly the same original price of either. Who says you can't have your cake and eat it too?? :D
Okay, business time now. Friday is a two workout day. The first is more of an exercise challenge leg burnout/cardio routine than a whole body muscle pain gasping for air trying not to barf workout.
Workout 1:
Sexy Legs Exercise Challenge
Workout 2: Ab Annihilator Version 1.5
Round 1:
20 Sasha Sit-ups (or you can do it with a sandbag - the idea is exactly the same)
2 min plank
50 sec Side V Crunch (Right side up) (side v crunch exercise is at minute 4:30 in the video in the link)
50 sec Side Plank Lift (Left side up)
Round 2: same as Round 1 but Side V Crunch with Left side up and Side Plank Lift with Right side up.
Round 3:
20 Sasha Sit-ups
50 sec V-up
50 sec Push Throughs (minute 6:00 of the video) In the push throughs your abs get no break = you are just pulsing the contraction - if it doesn't hurt relatively quickly focus on using your abs to get the pulse and not other accessory muscles.
Eh, decided to take out the push presses and continue with the Ab Annihilation. I'll be doing 100 ab rollers. If you don't have an ab roller (kind of a bizarre little piece of equipment) do 100 extra V-ups.
Time the whole thing :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Sexy Legs Exercise Challenge Scores:
1) Lunge L: 86
2) High Knees: 70,68,71,65,60,67,66,67,69,65
3) Lunge R: 90
4) High Knees: 74,69,66,70,67,67,69,70,68,67
5) Lunge L: 100
6) High Knees: 73,70,69,65,66,66,64,67,65,71
7) Lunge R: 96
Total Lunges: 372
Total High Knees: 2031
Awesome workout to get the day started :D.
*******UPDATE 2*******
Here are my scores for Workout 2: Ab Annihilator
2 min plank: completed
1) Side V-Crunch (Left side up) 32
1) Side Plank Up (Right side up) 23
2 min plank: Failed after 55 sec took 10 second break and another 55 sec plank.
2) Side V-Crunch (Right side up) 30
2) Side Plank Up (Left side up) 24
2 min plank: Same as round 2.
3) V-Ups 29
3) Push Throughs 51
Total time for workout including 60 total Sasha Sit-Ups and 100 Ab Rollers:
29:03.
Anyway, I just discovered Lands End Canvas recently, and given that their clothes fit me "off the rack" (that is, I don't have to alter them) it was VERY exciting! The clothes are reasonably priced, and when I consider the fact I don't have to alter the stuff or pay a tailor to do the complicated stuff I get there they're downright inexpensive. I have been diligent with the BodyRocking and BodyRock style workouts since mid-November so I got really excited when I saw bathing suits were on sale. It was a treat for my past efforts and an inspiration to keep going and shut that lazy Brutus up :). I came away with three bathing suits. I got this top in Black, Deep Sea, and Turquoise. Then I got this bottom in Black and Turquoise, and this one in Deep Sea. Original total: $192.00 plus tax and shipping ~$200.00. What I paid: ~$46.00. Then they had this extra 40% off sale which started the next day. Ahhh Murphy's Law. But over 75% off is nothing to sneeze at, so I'm happy.
Oh, and once I found out about the super sale I got these boots too :P. I ordered them at the Lands End store in Sears on Roswell Rd. so I didn't have to pay shipping and it was during the extra 40% off sale so they were ~$25.00 with tax. Down from $98.00 plus $8.00 shipping. SWEET!
~$61.00 is more than I ever spend on myself since I am a penny pincher all the way to the bank. Ask anyone. Seriously. It's kind of ridiculous. BUT I figured - my bikini from last summer just doesn't look right anymore. I don't fill out the top AT all, and the bottom is black and white so I can still wear it with my new top. Did I mention it was from Victoria's Secret and was $90.00? So I figured by finding a bathing suit that fit (a rarity) and buying 3 at over 75% off I've just saved myself the horror of spending money on bathing suits for a few years :). Oh, and the boots? Well, I had been gawking at them when they were full price, but I decided to save the hundred bucks and wait until the 10" Maine Hunting Shoe Bean Boot is available again on March 10 and pick those up instead. I'm big into functional clothing, and who doesn't love the classic Bean Boot. I mean, really. But when I saw the heels were on sale for $25.00 and I don't HAVE a pair of closed toe heels of any kind, I decided they were too good to pass up. Oh, and since I paid my tuition on my LLBean Visa (which I then paid off the next day because this girl does NOT do credit card debt or paying interest), I have about $30.00 in LLBean coupons. So I got the heels, and I'll be able to pick up the Bean Boots too for roughly the same original price of either. Who says you can't have your cake and eat it too?? :D
Okay, business time now. Friday is a two workout day. The first is more of an exercise challenge leg burnout/cardio routine than a whole body muscle pain gasping for air trying not to barf workout.
Workout 1:
Sexy Legs Exercise Challenge
Workout 2: Ab Annihilator Version 1.5
Round 1:
20 Sasha Sit-ups (or you can do it with a sandbag - the idea is exactly the same)
2 min plank
50 sec Side V Crunch (Right side up) (side v crunch exercise is at minute 4:30 in the video in the link)
50 sec Side Plank Lift (Left side up)
Round 2: same as Round 1 but Side V Crunch with Left side up and Side Plank Lift with Right side up.
Round 3:
20 Sasha Sit-ups
50 sec V-up
50 sec Push Throughs (minute 6:00 of the video) In the push throughs your abs get no break = you are just pulsing the contraction - if it doesn't hurt relatively quickly focus on using your abs to get the pulse and not other accessory muscles.
Eh, decided to take out the push presses and continue with the Ab Annihilation. I'll be doing 100 ab rollers. If you don't have an ab roller (kind of a bizarre little piece of equipment) do 100 extra V-ups.
Time the whole thing :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Sexy Legs Exercise Challenge Scores:
1) Lunge L: 86
2) High Knees: 70,68,71,65,60,67,66,67,69,65
3) Lunge R: 90
4) High Knees: 74,69,66,70,67,67,69,70,68,67
5) Lunge L: 100
6) High Knees: 73,70,69,65,66,66,64,67,65,71
7) Lunge R: 96
Total Lunges: 372
Total High Knees: 2031
Awesome workout to get the day started :D.
*******UPDATE 2*******
Here are my scores for Workout 2: Ab Annihilator
2 min plank: completed
1) Side V-Crunch (Left side up) 32
1) Side Plank Up (Right side up) 23
2 min plank: Failed after 55 sec took 10 second break and another 55 sec plank.
2) Side V-Crunch (Right side up) 30
2) Side Plank Up (Left side up) 24
2 min plank: Same as round 2.
3) V-Ups 29
3) Push Throughs 51
Total time for workout including 60 total Sasha Sit-Ups and 100 Ab Rollers:
29:03.
Part of my story - and EPIC Bikini Burnout!
Hey everyone! So today's lesson is a reminder that exercising your body is something you put into it, a sort of raw material, and is just as important as food. It's easy to view working out as an option compared to the necessity of eating, because our stomachs grumble and give us warning bells when we're hungry. Your body will give you warning bells when you haven't given it proper exercise too, but you have to be listening and willing to respond accordingly by either giving some form of exercise, or changing the kind of exercise you're doing depending on the situation. For me, it was about changing the kind of exercise I was doing. But let me back up a ways.
I've always been into fitness. I guess a decade of competitive gymnastics starting at age 8 will hard wire the need to move into a body. I was forced to quit because of a ridiculous number of stress fractures in both shins. These threatened my bone density and integrity in a way that if I had continued I could have gotten to a point where supporting my own weight would've been extremely dangerous. I was fifteen and a junior in high school (I'm a year young for my year in school - more on that later).
After that, I grew 4 inches and gained about 20 lbs over the next two years, and since then I hadn't been able to replicate the muscle strength, tone or endurance I'd always had. So I started hitting the gym - doing 55 -60 minutes on either the treadmill or the elliptical depending on what my knees could take that day, and 10 minutes of high rep low weight toning exercise. That's a long, boring, horrible, awful, no good way to workout. And I did it five days a week. And nothing seemed to change. Ever. If I had been listening, these long bouts of cardio with little or no endorphin upswing at the end, and the lack of noticeable change in endurance or strength would have been the signs my body was giving me that I was exercising it improperly.
Then MKBBF introduced me to this CrossFit idea. So I did some research, started Tabata training everything I could think of, and cut the strict cardio to 25 minutes. The mental effects of Tabata training are immediate. I submit that NOTHING will take your muscles to absolute zero more quickly, and pushing through the burn in the last 20% of your ability is what makes your mind strong. I started to physically feel the effects of my new strength in about a week and I could see them within three weeks. Once I could see the results, this method of exercise entered a positive feedback loop.
One night while looking up CrossFit stuff with MKBBF, we discovered one of Zuzana's workout videos on YouTube. It was the 550Rep Fat Massacre. It looked brutal. I was intrigued - and I did it the next day. From then on I was hooked on BodyRock, and high(est) intensity interval training. This method of working out has absolutely shredded my body, and it takes 25 fewer minutes TOTAL per day (even on 2 workout days) than the grueling hour of cardio plus 10 minutes of toning weights I was doing before.
My joints don't hurt, my muscles are sore and getting functionally strong, and more importantly than anything, when I'm done with these workouts I feel like I accomplished something amazing. "Take your lunch break, Atlas. I can handle the weight of the world for a while."
:)
SO! Without further ado, here's the workout!
Workout of the Day:
Bikini Beach Workout
Followed by 1 minute shadow roping
1 minute of jumping jacks
x10 rounds
*count the jumping jacks - we're going to be using this interval again so you'll want to compare scores to see how much stronger/quicker you've gotten*
ROCK!
*******UPDATE*******
My scores for the workout were as follows.
Backward Lunge and Knee Up
1) L 18,16 R 19,17
Plank Jumps: 20,20
2) L 19,16 R 18,16
Plank Jumps: 21,20
2x Walking Push-Up + 4x Low Side Step
1) 8
2) 9
3) 9
Jump Forward and Backward and Jump Tuck
1) 7,5
Side Plank & Push-Up
L 10,9 R 9,7
Jump Forward and Backward and Jump Tuck
2) 7,6
Side Plank & Push-Up
L 10,8 R 7,7
Then I did the 10 rounds of 1 min shadow roping and 1 min jumping jacks immediately to avoid getting too sore and keep my heart rate up.
Total Jumping Jacks: 660.
AAAAnd I'm wiped.
I've always been into fitness. I guess a decade of competitive gymnastics starting at age 8 will hard wire the need to move into a body. I was forced to quit because of a ridiculous number of stress fractures in both shins. These threatened my bone density and integrity in a way that if I had continued I could have gotten to a point where supporting my own weight would've been extremely dangerous. I was fifteen and a junior in high school (I'm a year young for my year in school - more on that later).
After that, I grew 4 inches and gained about 20 lbs over the next two years, and since then I hadn't been able to replicate the muscle strength, tone or endurance I'd always had. So I started hitting the gym - doing 55 -60 minutes on either the treadmill or the elliptical depending on what my knees could take that day, and 10 minutes of high rep low weight toning exercise. That's a long, boring, horrible, awful, no good way to workout. And I did it five days a week. And nothing seemed to change. Ever. If I had been listening, these long bouts of cardio with little or no endorphin upswing at the end, and the lack of noticeable change in endurance or strength would have been the signs my body was giving me that I was exercising it improperly.
Then MKBBF introduced me to this CrossFit idea. So I did some research, started Tabata training everything I could think of, and cut the strict cardio to 25 minutes. The mental effects of Tabata training are immediate. I submit that NOTHING will take your muscles to absolute zero more quickly, and pushing through the burn in the last 20% of your ability is what makes your mind strong. I started to physically feel the effects of my new strength in about a week and I could see them within three weeks. Once I could see the results, this method of exercise entered a positive feedback loop.
One night while looking up CrossFit stuff with MKBBF, we discovered one of Zuzana's workout videos on YouTube. It was the 550Rep Fat Massacre. It looked brutal. I was intrigued - and I did it the next day. From then on I was hooked on BodyRock, and high(est) intensity interval training. This method of working out has absolutely shredded my body, and it takes 25 fewer minutes TOTAL per day (even on 2 workout days) than the grueling hour of cardio plus 10 minutes of toning weights I was doing before.
My joints don't hurt, my muscles are sore and getting functionally strong, and more importantly than anything, when I'm done with these workouts I feel like I accomplished something amazing. "Take your lunch break, Atlas. I can handle the weight of the world for a while."
:)
SO! Without further ado, here's the workout!
Workout of the Day:
Bikini Beach Workout
Followed by 1 minute shadow roping
1 minute of jumping jacks
x10 rounds
*count the jumping jacks - we're going to be using this interval again so you'll want to compare scores to see how much stronger/quicker you've gotten*
ROCK!
*******UPDATE*******
My scores for the workout were as follows.
Backward Lunge and Knee Up
1) L 18,16 R 19,17
Plank Jumps: 20,20
2) L 19,16 R 18,16
Plank Jumps: 21,20
2x Walking Push-Up + 4x Low Side Step
1) 8
2) 9
3) 9
Jump Forward and Backward and Jump Tuck
1) 7,5
Side Plank & Push-Up
L 10,9 R 9,7
Jump Forward and Backward and Jump Tuck
2) 7,6
Side Plank & Push-Up
L 10,8 R 7,7
Then I did the 10 rounds of 1 min shadow roping and 1 min jumping jacks immediately to avoid getting too sore and keep my heart rate up.
Total Jumping Jacks: 660.
AAAAnd I'm wiped.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Green Goodness Soup!
Grey rainy day means soup here at Casa MKB. This is the one I made for dinner tonight. It is one of my favorites of all time.
1 head of cauliflower (chopped but not too small you don't want it to fall through the colander holes)
1 tsp coconut oil
3 HUGE handfuls of spinach
1/2 onion (chopped)
1 cup of chicken broth
2/3 cup coconut milk
1 chicken breast w/o tenderloin (chopped)
1/2 lb bay scallops (about two and a half handfuls)
Steam the cauliflower. If you don't have an actual steamer, fret not. I don't either :). Get a big soup pot and put 2 inches of water in the bottom. Put the cauliflower into a metal colander and put it in the pot. The handles of my colander stick out so it stays suspended over the water, but doesn't touch it. Put the heat on as high as it will go and get the lid that normally goes to the pot and put it on. It won't be a tight fit because the colander's handles will be in the way, but it's good enough. Now forget the cauliflower exists :).
Sauté the onion in the oil for about 5 minutes. Add the spinach and cook until it wilts. Now get a pan hot over medium heat with a teeny bit of olive oil in it. Sear the scallops on the down side for about a minute and toss them around for another minute and a half or so. They'll be done by then. You don't want to overcook scallops or they get rubbery and gross. Pull them out and set aside and add the chicken into the scallop juicy goodness. Toss it around for 5-6 minutes or until it's done. Put into same container as scallops.
Test the cauliflower and see if it's soft. If so, dump it into a blender (I highly recommend our Vita-Mix) with the spinach onion mixture, the chicken broth, and the coconut milk and let it rip. If your blender is having trouble, there may not be enough liquid, so add chicken broth bit by bit until the mixture can be blended and the soup is the consistency you like. MKBBF likes his soup thick and creamy (I think it's a New England thing), so I don't use a ton of liquid in the recipe. Pour the blended soup into a pot and heat until warm. You won't need to do this if your coconut milk and chicken broth are at room temp because the cauliflower is screaming hot. My liquids had both been in the fridge so I had to heat it a bit.
Put a scoop of the chicken scallop mixture in the bottom of a bowl and ladle a couple of scoops of the green goodness over it. Get a spoon and dive in!
1 head of cauliflower (chopped but not too small you don't want it to fall through the colander holes)
1 tsp coconut oil
3 HUGE handfuls of spinach
1/2 onion (chopped)
1 cup of chicken broth
2/3 cup coconut milk
1 chicken breast w/o tenderloin (chopped)
1/2 lb bay scallops (about two and a half handfuls)
Steam the cauliflower. If you don't have an actual steamer, fret not. I don't either :). Get a big soup pot and put 2 inches of water in the bottom. Put the cauliflower into a metal colander and put it in the pot. The handles of my colander stick out so it stays suspended over the water, but doesn't touch it. Put the heat on as high as it will go and get the lid that normally goes to the pot and put it on. It won't be a tight fit because the colander's handles will be in the way, but it's good enough. Now forget the cauliflower exists :).
Sauté the onion in the oil for about 5 minutes. Add the spinach and cook until it wilts. Now get a pan hot over medium heat with a teeny bit of olive oil in it. Sear the scallops on the down side for about a minute and toss them around for another minute and a half or so. They'll be done by then. You don't want to overcook scallops or they get rubbery and gross. Pull them out and set aside and add the chicken into the scallop juicy goodness. Toss it around for 5-6 minutes or until it's done. Put into same container as scallops.
Test the cauliflower and see if it's soft. If so, dump it into a blender (I highly recommend our Vita-Mix) with the spinach onion mixture, the chicken broth, and the coconut milk and let it rip. If your blender is having trouble, there may not be enough liquid, so add chicken broth bit by bit until the mixture can be blended and the soup is the consistency you like. MKBBF likes his soup thick and creamy (I think it's a New England thing), so I don't use a ton of liquid in the recipe. Pour the blended soup into a pot and heat until warm. You won't need to do this if your coconut milk and chicken broth are at room temp because the cauliflower is screaming hot. My liquids had both been in the fridge so I had to heat it a bit.
Put a scoop of the chicken scallop mixture in the bottom of a bowl and ladle a couple of scoops of the green goodness over it. Get a spoon and dive in!
At noon the week will be half over!
Hey everyone! So today's first workout is bodyweight only and comes from Zuzana and Freddy over at BodyRock.tv.
Workout 1:
Ready to Sweat Workout
Workout 2:
100 squat pulses w/25 lb plate (similar to the lunge pulses we did yesterday, but this time with feet in squat position and without the jumping)
2 minute plank
2 minute wall sit
3 rounds
Then 10 rounds of 30 one footed jumps on each leg while doing speed bag arm movement.
Remember, you can load up a duffel bag with heavy stuff and hold it over your shoulders if you don't have weight plates or a barbell :).
Time the whole thing. Some of it you can't control because 12 minutes are already blocked out for you. Racing the clock is the easiest way to make sure you maintain the intensity in your workouts :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Ready to Sweat Workout Scores
1) 17
2) 70,60,60,62,62,62,59,57 (I did high knees without the rope)
3) 12
4) 71,68,69,69,68,65,69,67
5) 12.5 (the .5 is the pushups I completed but I didn't get to the low jacks before time ran out)
Workout totals: 70 pushups
152 squat variation exercise reps
1003 high knees
All in 20 minutes. Now THAT is efficiency. Put one up for high intensity intervals! Heyyooo!!!!
*******UPDATE 2*******
I completed all 3 planks without rest or form break, which is huge for me. My legs were the main burn zone, which is new. I'm sure my abs were burning too, but I only really felt it in my legs because of the 100 squat pulse burnout. I've done six minutes of planks in a workout twice before, but since then I've attempted it and muscle failed. Which is cute because when you muscle fail in a plank you fall on your face. Literally. Fortunately my upper arms aren't very long :).
The wall sits were a destroyer after the squat pulses and the plank. I did not complete any of the 2 minutes without muscle failure. Again, fortunately my legs aren't that long and muscle failing on a wall sit means you plonk on your butt. I do a lot of squats - so my tail is pretty well padded, if you know what I mean hahah. Here's what happened for each 2 minute attempt. The first number is how many seconds I was able to hold the wall sit, the second is the rest I took.
Wall Sit:Rest
1) 48:10. 30:10. 22 sec sit to finish interval
2) 30:10. 29:10. 27:3. 11 sec sit to finish interval
3) 32:10. 26:10. 25:5. 12 sec sit to finish interval.
Total time to complete workout from beginning to end including the 10 rounds of 30 jumps on each leg:
23:20
And my legs are fried. Goodnight!
Workout 1:
Ready to Sweat Workout
Workout 2:
100 squat pulses w/25 lb plate (similar to the lunge pulses we did yesterday, but this time with feet in squat position and without the jumping)
2 minute plank
2 minute wall sit
3 rounds
Then 10 rounds of 30 one footed jumps on each leg while doing speed bag arm movement.
Remember, you can load up a duffel bag with heavy stuff and hold it over your shoulders if you don't have weight plates or a barbell :).
Time the whole thing. Some of it you can't control because 12 minutes are already blocked out for you. Racing the clock is the easiest way to make sure you maintain the intensity in your workouts :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Ready to Sweat Workout Scores
1) 17
2) 70,60,60,62,62,62,59,57 (I did high knees without the rope)
3) 12
4) 71,68,69,69,68,65,69,67
5) 12.5 (the .5 is the pushups I completed but I didn't get to the low jacks before time ran out)
Workout totals: 70 pushups
152 squat variation exercise reps
1003 high knees
All in 20 minutes. Now THAT is efficiency. Put one up for high intensity intervals! Heyyooo!!!!
*******UPDATE 2*******
I completed all 3 planks without rest or form break, which is huge for me. My legs were the main burn zone, which is new. I'm sure my abs were burning too, but I only really felt it in my legs because of the 100 squat pulse burnout. I've done six minutes of planks in a workout twice before, but since then I've attempted it and muscle failed. Which is cute because when you muscle fail in a plank you fall on your face. Literally. Fortunately my upper arms aren't very long :).
The wall sits were a destroyer after the squat pulses and the plank. I did not complete any of the 2 minutes without muscle failure. Again, fortunately my legs aren't that long and muscle failing on a wall sit means you plonk on your butt. I do a lot of squats - so my tail is pretty well padded, if you know what I mean hahah. Here's what happened for each 2 minute attempt. The first number is how many seconds I was able to hold the wall sit, the second is the rest I took.
Wall Sit:Rest
1) 48:10. 30:10. 22 sec sit to finish interval
2) 30:10. 29:10. 27:3. 11 sec sit to finish interval
3) 32:10. 26:10. 25:5. 12 sec sit to finish interval.
Total time to complete workout from beginning to end including the 10 rounds of 30 jumps on each leg:
23:20
And my legs are fried. Goodnight!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Paleo Chicken and Veggie Stir Fry
Hey all! So this is my asian version of chicken and veggies :).
1.5 tbsp coconut oil
3 cloves of garlic (minced)
***1/2 inch of fresh ginger (minced) or 1 tsp ground ginger
1/3 huge red onion or 1/2 normal red onion (chopped)
15-20 cremini mushrooms (sliced)
3 carrots (skinned and sliced diagonally about 1/8 inch thick)
1 chicken breast (chopped)
2 brocolli crowns (chopped)
1 8 oz can of sliced water chestnuts in water (drained)
1.5 navel oranges worth of fresh orange juice
1.5 tbsp lemon juice
***I don't use a ton of ginger in my recipes because MKBBF can't stomach the spice, and I assume there are others like him out there, so I measured conservatively here :). If you find the recipe to be a little plain or you want to add some kick to it, cut off a 1/4 inch piece of the fresh ginger root, mince it and put it over the finished product. I did, and it was tangy and spicy deliciousness.***
First things first. This is a stir fry. Which means you have to keep stirring. The heat is on high for most of it and veggies burn easily. If you keep them moving you will end up with yummy cooked but still a teeny bit crunchy piping hot garlic-y ginger stir fry. If not, you'll end up with a burnt veggie slab on the bottom of the pan. I just did it tonight while trying to multitask cutting the veggies for later in the recipe and stirring the ones already in the pot. So I had to start over. Cut the ingredients before you start and commit to stirring from start to finish :).
Melt coconut oil over medium low heat. Add garlic and fresh ginger (if using ground - wait until the end) and sauté for 2-3 minutes until they get fragrant. Turn heat to high and add onion, mushrooms, carrots, and saute until onions and mushrooms starting to get soft 3-4 minutes. Add chicken and cook until white on all sides about 3-4 minutes. Add brocolli and water chestnuts and cook 3-4 minutes. Add juices of navel oranges and lemon (and the ginger if you're using ground) and cook 2-3 more minutes or until the juices are reduced some and the veggies aren't soupy in the juice.
Yum!
1.5 tbsp coconut oil
3 cloves of garlic (minced)
***1/2 inch of fresh ginger (minced) or 1 tsp ground ginger
1/3 huge red onion or 1/2 normal red onion (chopped)
15-20 cremini mushrooms (sliced)
3 carrots (skinned and sliced diagonally about 1/8 inch thick)
1 chicken breast (chopped)
2 brocolli crowns (chopped)
1 8 oz can of sliced water chestnuts in water (drained)
1.5 navel oranges worth of fresh orange juice
1.5 tbsp lemon juice
***I don't use a ton of ginger in my recipes because MKBBF can't stomach the spice, and I assume there are others like him out there, so I measured conservatively here :). If you find the recipe to be a little plain or you want to add some kick to it, cut off a 1/4 inch piece of the fresh ginger root, mince it and put it over the finished product. I did, and it was tangy and spicy deliciousness.***
First things first. This is a stir fry. Which means you have to keep stirring. The heat is on high for most of it and veggies burn easily. If you keep them moving you will end up with yummy cooked but still a teeny bit crunchy piping hot garlic-y ginger stir fry. If not, you'll end up with a burnt veggie slab on the bottom of the pan. I just did it tonight while trying to multitask cutting the veggies for later in the recipe and stirring the ones already in the pot. So I had to start over. Cut the ingredients before you start and commit to stirring from start to finish :).
Melt coconut oil over medium low heat. Add garlic and fresh ginger (if using ground - wait until the end) and sauté for 2-3 minutes until they get fragrant. Turn heat to high and add onion, mushrooms, carrots, and saute until onions and mushrooms starting to get soft 3-4 minutes. Add chicken and cook until white on all sides about 3-4 minutes. Add brocolli and water chestnuts and cook 3-4 minutes. Add juices of navel oranges and lemon (and the ginger if you're using ground) and cook 2-3 more minutes or until the juices are reduced some and the veggies aren't soupy in the juice.
Yum!
Grey Day Bright Mood!
Hey everyone! Today is awesome. Just wanted to put that out in the universe.
Also, just as a reminder. These workouts are only intense if you push at your absolute 100% during the work intervals. By the end of 16 minutes of this you should be able to mop the floor with your hair. If you're not - go harder :).
The first workout is body weight only and you'll do max reps for time. There is a 10 second rest interval and a 50 second work interval.
Workout 1: Body Weight Burnout
1) burpees
2) jump lunge with 5 pulses - do what the chick in the video is doing but do 5 pulses raising yourself 2-3 inches at the bottom of each lunge, then jump up and switch legs etc. Each jump lunge + 5 pulses counts as one rep :).
3) side plank lift (l)
4) side plank lift (r)
x4 rounds
Then alternate 1 minute shadow jump roping with 1 minute of high knees for 5 rounds (or 10 if you're choosing one workout :) ). If high knees get too hard in the last couple of rounds, alternate doing 10 hops on each foot keeping your knee as high as you can instead.
Workout 2:
100 Jumping Jacks
30 Sasha Swings
5 rounds for time.
Freestyle jump for 10 minutes. My 10 (9:10 truthfully) minute playlist for today is:
Foo Fighters - The Pretender
Finch - What It Is To Burn
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Body Weight Burnout
1) burpee: 15,15,14,12
2) jump lunge w/5 pulses: 10,11,10,10
3) side plank lift (l): 26,22,23,20
4) side plank lift (r): 26,22,23,24
Workout 2:
Looking back at it - it seems I had originally intended to do the jumping jacks first. Well, I forgot apparently and did the swings first. Anyway, my score was:
16:26
And to all a good night!
Also, just as a reminder. These workouts are only intense if you push at your absolute 100% during the work intervals. By the end of 16 minutes of this you should be able to mop the floor with your hair. If you're not - go harder :).
The first workout is body weight only and you'll do max reps for time. There is a 10 second rest interval and a 50 second work interval.
Workout 1: Body Weight Burnout
1) burpees
2) jump lunge with 5 pulses - do what the chick in the video is doing but do 5 pulses raising yourself 2-3 inches at the bottom of each lunge, then jump up and switch legs etc. Each jump lunge + 5 pulses counts as one rep :).
3) side plank lift (l)
4) side plank lift (r)
x4 rounds
Then alternate 1 minute shadow jump roping with 1 minute of high knees for 5 rounds (or 10 if you're choosing one workout :) ). If high knees get too hard in the last couple of rounds, alternate doing 10 hops on each foot keeping your knee as high as you can instead.
Workout 2:
100 Jumping Jacks
30 Sasha Swings
5 rounds for time.
Freestyle jump for 10 minutes. My 10 (9:10 truthfully) minute playlist for today is:
Foo Fighters - The Pretender
Finch - What It Is To Burn
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Body Weight Burnout
1) burpee: 15,15,14,12
2) jump lunge w/5 pulses: 10,11,10,10
3) side plank lift (l): 26,22,23,20
4) side plank lift (r): 26,22,23,24
Workout 2:
Looking back at it - it seems I had originally intended to do the jumping jacks first. Well, I forgot apparently and did the swings first. Anyway, my score was:
16:26
And to all a good night!
Monday, January 24, 2011
Chicken Picadillo Recipe
I wanted to share a quick recipe with you all. It is one of my favorites from the Paleo Cookbooks MKB-BF (my boyfriend) painstakingly assembled from 2 different several hundred page PDF print outs. Easily one of the best "us" gifts I've ever gotten.
Anyway - the recipe in the book is in cups - but I find that to be a pretty annoying way to cook. So here's the recipe I use which is easier to follow.
1 green bell pepper - chopped
1 small red onion (or half of a huge one) - chopped
1 chicken breast (~.4 to .5 lb) - chopped into bite size pieces
9 prunes - sliced
15 pitted olives - chopped
1 - 14 oz can (organic no salt or sugar or spice added) diced tomatoes - drained of liquid
1/4 tsp ground clove or 7-8 whole cloves smashed
Throw first two ingredients into a pan with about a tbsp of olive oil. You can also use 2 tbsp water if you prefer. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Add chicken and cook until chicken is not pink on the outside. Add everything else and simmer on medium or medium low for 5 - 10 more minutes. Get a fork :).
Anyway - the recipe in the book is in cups - but I find that to be a pretty annoying way to cook. So here's the recipe I use which is easier to follow.
1 green bell pepper - chopped
1 small red onion (or half of a huge one) - chopped
1 chicken breast (~.4 to .5 lb) - chopped into bite size pieces
9 prunes - sliced
15 pitted olives - chopped
1 - 14 oz can (organic no salt or sugar or spice added) diced tomatoes - drained of liquid
1/4 tsp ground clove or 7-8 whole cloves smashed
Throw first two ingredients into a pan with about a tbsp of olive oil. You can also use 2 tbsp water if you prefer. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Add chicken and cook until chicken is not pink on the outside. Add everything else and simmer on medium or medium low for 5 - 10 more minutes. Get a fork :).
Sunday, January 23, 2011
What if I say that I'll NEVER surrender?!
Hey everyone! I have to admit I have been having some SERIOUS motivation issues today (Sunday). But you know what? I finished. BOTH workouts. So FLOCK you Brutus! I'm not giving in to your nonsense you slothy bitch!
Ah, that feels better.
Monday/tomorrow's workouts are both bodyweight only so there's no reason to try one or both of them!
Workout 1: Push Back - Exercise Challenge
I realize looking at 300 reps of anything except maybe blinks is pretty daunting, so if you're new to working out like this just try to do 150 as quickly as possible and with good form. If you're not totally totally wiped out at the end, keep going. Remember, the benefits of working out are not just physical. In fact, for me it's a fringe benefit. It's about gaining and maintaining mental toughness, tenacity and pushing your body beyond what your mind thinks it can do.
Then jump for 20 minutes. Anyway you want.
Workout 2: Pike Press Challenge
Then jump for 20 minutes freestyle.
If you do both workouts - do 10 minutes of jumping after each one instead of 20. 40 minutes of jumping in a day is a) BORING and b) a lot of non functional pounding and joint stress.
Also, I'm going to start posting Paleo recipes and such, so that those of you who are curious can get an idea of just how easy it is to eat FOOD.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Push Back Exercise Challenge
Time: 13:18
For the jumping I alternated 1 minute of shadow roping with 1 minute of jumping jacks x 5 rounds.
Workout 2: Pike Press Exercise Challenge
95 reps
I had eaten like an hour before, so 10 minutes of jumping without barfing wasn't happening so I broke it up a little. I did:
1 min of Sasha Rows
1 min of Jumping Jacks
1 min of High Knees
1 min of Shadow Roping
1 min of Straight Leg Reverse Crunches
x 2 rounds.
Ah, that feels better.
Monday/tomorrow's workouts are both bodyweight only so there's no reason to try one or both of them!
Workout 1: Push Back - Exercise Challenge
I realize looking at 300 reps of anything except maybe blinks is pretty daunting, so if you're new to working out like this just try to do 150 as quickly as possible and with good form. If you're not totally totally wiped out at the end, keep going. Remember, the benefits of working out are not just physical. In fact, for me it's a fringe benefit. It's about gaining and maintaining mental toughness, tenacity and pushing your body beyond what your mind thinks it can do.
Then jump for 20 minutes. Anyway you want.
Workout 2: Pike Press Challenge
Then jump for 20 minutes freestyle.
If you do both workouts - do 10 minutes of jumping after each one instead of 20. 40 minutes of jumping in a day is a) BORING and b) a lot of non functional pounding and joint stress.
Also, I'm going to start posting Paleo recipes and such, so that those of you who are curious can get an idea of just how easy it is to eat FOOD.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Push Back Exercise Challenge
Time: 13:18
For the jumping I alternated 1 minute of shadow roping with 1 minute of jumping jacks x 5 rounds.
Workout 2: Pike Press Exercise Challenge
95 reps
I had eaten like an hour before, so 10 minutes of jumping without barfing wasn't happening so I broke it up a little. I did:
1 min of Sasha Rows
1 min of Jumping Jacks
1 min of High Knees
1 min of Shadow Roping
1 min of Straight Leg Reverse Crunches
x 2 rounds.
And on the seventh day . . .
She got off her (recovered) tush!
Workout 1: Break Free Workout + 2 rounds of 5 1 minute intervals of jumping
Workout 2: Yesterday's Mini Challenge I didn't complete because I took a rest day. As a reminder:
20 pull ups, 30 Sasha swings (challenge: snap your hips so powerfully the bell comes above shoulder height), 30 Sasha cleans each arm, 50 leg raises on pull up bar all for time + 2 rounds of 5 1 minute intervals of jumping.
Once I finish the first workout I'll be making flax seed pancakes. The recipe is:
1 cup flax seed meal - I grind flax seeds in my Vita-Mix because the cheapest way to get them is whole at DeKalb Farmers Market
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp baking soda (not paleo - optional - this just makes the pancakes fluffy)
1 egg white
1 egg with yolk
2 tbsp raw honey
2 tbsp coconut milk
2 tbsp coconut oil
2 tbsp water
Makes 4 6 in. pancakes.
The mixture should have the same viscosity as regular pancake batter so if you need to add a little bit more water go ahead. I don't use oil to cook my pancakes because I have killer Kitchen-Aid nonstick cookware so I don't need it. If you are using stainless steel don't be afraid of using oil. These pancakes are harder to flip than regular ones, and on stainless without oil you won't stand a prayer of not butchering them. I know - I've tried :). I ended up with flax seed pancake chunklings. Yummy, but not exactly what I'd planned.
I only ever make this much batter because having only one thing for breakfast is NOT balanced. McKettlebelle BF would prefer me to make double every time, but I insist that pancakes are not breakfast, they are part of breakfast. So we'll have a few boiled egg whites, a bit of avocado, and an orange with our pancakes to make it filling and nutritionally complete. I love Sunday "breakfast". Even if it is at 2:00 pm.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Break Free Workout
Backward Lunge and Kick Up:
1) 16, 15.5, 15, 14.5, 15, 14
2) 16, 16, 16, 16, 15, 15
Sandbag Full Body Exercise:
1) 32
2) 31
Workout 2 time: 14:21
And the pancakes were DELICIOUS.
Workout 1: Break Free Workout + 2 rounds of 5 1 minute intervals of jumping
Workout 2: Yesterday's Mini Challenge I didn't complete because I took a rest day. As a reminder:
20 pull ups, 30 Sasha swings (challenge: snap your hips so powerfully the bell comes above shoulder height), 30 Sasha cleans each arm, 50 leg raises on pull up bar all for time + 2 rounds of 5 1 minute intervals of jumping.
Once I finish the first workout I'll be making flax seed pancakes. The recipe is:
1 cup flax seed meal - I grind flax seeds in my Vita-Mix because the cheapest way to get them is whole at DeKalb Farmers Market
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp baking soda (not paleo - optional - this just makes the pancakes fluffy)
1 egg white
1 egg with yolk
2 tbsp raw honey
2 tbsp coconut milk
2 tbsp coconut oil
2 tbsp water
Makes 4 6 in. pancakes.
The mixture should have the same viscosity as regular pancake batter so if you need to add a little bit more water go ahead. I don't use oil to cook my pancakes because I have killer Kitchen-Aid nonstick cookware so I don't need it. If you are using stainless steel don't be afraid of using oil. These pancakes are harder to flip than regular ones, and on stainless without oil you won't stand a prayer of not butchering them. I know - I've tried :). I ended up with flax seed pancake chunklings. Yummy, but not exactly what I'd planned.
I only ever make this much batter because having only one thing for breakfast is NOT balanced. McKettlebelle BF would prefer me to make double every time, but I insist that pancakes are not breakfast, they are part of breakfast. So we'll have a few boiled egg whites, a bit of avocado, and an orange with our pancakes to make it filling and nutritionally complete. I love Sunday "breakfast". Even if it is at 2:00 pm.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Workout 1: Break Free Workout
Backward Lunge and Kick Up:
1) 16, 15.5, 15, 14.5, 15, 14
2) 16, 16, 16, 16, 15, 15
Sandbag Full Body Exercise:
1) 32
2) 31
Workout 2 time: 14:21
And the pancakes were DELICIOUS.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Saturday Physics Lesson
A BODY IN MOTION WILL STAY IN MOTION. So get up!
Hey everyone! The workout for today/tomorrow is 20 quick pullups, 30 Sasha swings (challenge: snap your hips so powerfully the bell comes above shoulder height), 30 Sasha cleans each arm, 50 leg raises on pullup bar all for time. And 4 rounds of the 5 minutes of jumping :). My legs are absolutely done done done for, so I've designed this workout to be not only quick, but also not terribly intense. Just want to get moving and break through the soreness I'm sure is going to be there after the last couple days of heavy squats and lunges.
equipment free modifications:
If you don't have a kettlebell you can do two handed cleans (tutorial starts at 0:39 ends at ~ 0:50) of a duffel bag full of rice or something else dense but not hard. I wouldn't recommend cans or books, because then racking it on your forearms/collarbone won't be pleasant. Unless you wrapped them in towels? I don't know, get creative with it, have FUN!
You can do the swings with the same duffel bag like in this video (start 1:35 end 2:15). I realize most duffel bags don't have handles on the end like hers does - but before I had Sasha I would tie the handles of the bag together so I could hold the bag long ways (important - I tried to do swings with the duffle bag gripping the handles the way they're attached and smacked myself HARD in the shin) and do them that way :).
If you don't have a pull up bar for the leg raises, do them on the ground like this.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
I woke up and ALL of my stabilizer muscles in my legs and back are shot. This is usually the cue I use to take a rest day. I'm going to do some light stretching today, and I will be doing this workout tomorrow along with another challenge.
Hey everyone! The workout for today/tomorrow is 20 quick pullups, 30 Sasha swings (challenge: snap your hips so powerfully the bell comes above shoulder height), 30 Sasha cleans each arm, 50 leg raises on pullup bar all for time. And 4 rounds of the 5 minutes of jumping :). My legs are absolutely done done done for, so I've designed this workout to be not only quick, but also not terribly intense. Just want to get moving and break through the soreness I'm sure is going to be there after the last couple days of heavy squats and lunges.
equipment free modifications:
If you don't have a kettlebell you can do two handed cleans (tutorial starts at 0:39 ends at ~ 0:50) of a duffel bag full of rice or something else dense but not hard. I wouldn't recommend cans or books, because then racking it on your forearms/collarbone won't be pleasant. Unless you wrapped them in towels? I don't know, get creative with it, have FUN!
You can do the swings with the same duffel bag like in this video (start 1:35 end 2:15). I realize most duffel bags don't have handles on the end like hers does - but before I had Sasha I would tie the handles of the bag together so I could hold the bag long ways (important - I tried to do swings with the duffle bag gripping the handles the way they're attached and smacked myself HARD in the shin) and do them that way :).
If you don't have a pull up bar for the leg raises, do them on the ground like this.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
I woke up and ALL of my stabilizer muscles in my legs and back are shot. This is usually the cue I use to take a rest day. I'm going to do some light stretching today, and I will be doing this workout tomorrow along with another challenge.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Friday is a beginning not an end!
Hey everyone! So today's little lesson is that Friday is a beginning not an end. It's the beginning of the weekend, not the end of a (long, tiring, boring, other blah adjectives) week. It is an opportunity to capitalize on the momentum you've built up working out during the week to start the weekend right. Those squats yesterday fried me up down left right and center, so today is a one workout day followed by a short mini challenge.
I am also going to do 15 1 minute intervals of jumping after BOTH workouts today - it's the momentum building I was talking about before. I'm going to do it like I did yesterday.
1 min shadow jump roping
1 min high knees
1 min alternating one footed jumping (10 hops one leg 10 hops other etc)
1 min shadow jump roping
1 min jumping jacks
x 3 rounds.
Workout 1: Beach Workout - ~20 minutes
Pick one or do both, but make sure you do your jumping afterward! If you do one workout - do the full 20 minutes of jumping :) (4 rounds). The intervals I wrote above are a bit tougher but less annoying than jumping rope. I find tripping over the rope one I've gotten into a good rhythm to be an Achilles heel for my patience. Once I do it twice or three times I want to throw the rope handles into the wall and watch them smash into fifty pieces. So I'll take the physically demanding option vs. the stress spiking option any day :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
So there's a voice that pops up occasionally that tells me "do it later, you can do it later" and puts it off and puts if off and builds static inertia of my butt on my desk chair to a point where it seems that I can't fight it. I/We BodyRockers call him Brutus. He almost won today. Almost. More on this bastard later.
I went to an awesome talk by Dr. James Chestnut D.C. and got re-inspired to feed my body the exercise it needs. So I got home - and the clock said 9:15PM. And I had yet to do either workout. What to do? Do an epic mind body battle to the end combination of both workouts. So I did the first workout, then 15 minutes of jumping, then immediately into 100 push ups, and 15 more minutes of jumping. I have to say, I was ANNIHILATED after both of the workouts - so I was more concerned about not stopping, keeping the rhythm, catching night time under my toes, and moving my arms all the time. Less concerned about doing the prescribed intervals.
My scores for the workouts were:
Tabata Jump Squats
1) 13,12,11,10,10,10,10,10
2) 12,11,10,10,10,10,10,10
3) 11,10,10,10,10,10,10,10
Total time for workout 1: 29:15.
I did the lunges with knee up with a 25 lb plate, but you could use a duffel bag full of rice or canned goods - whatever you like - just something mild/moderately heavy that is a challenge but doesn't cause you to lose your balance or sacrifice form.
100 push-up challenge time: 5:44
All push-ups military. HUZZAH!
I am also going to do 15 1 minute intervals of jumping after BOTH workouts today - it's the momentum building I was talking about before. I'm going to do it like I did yesterday.
1 min shadow jump roping
1 min high knees
1 min alternating one footed jumping (10 hops one leg 10 hops other etc)
1 min shadow jump roping
1 min jumping jacks
x 3 rounds.
Workout 1: Beach Workout - ~20 minutes
Workout 2: 100 push ups for time. Do as many "regular" as you can - and if you can't continue at a pace to maintain the intensity, switch to knee push ups.
Pick one or do both, but make sure you do your jumping afterward! If you do one workout - do the full 20 minutes of jumping :) (4 rounds). The intervals I wrote above are a bit tougher but less annoying than jumping rope. I find tripping over the rope one I've gotten into a good rhythm to be an Achilles heel for my patience. Once I do it twice or three times I want to throw the rope handles into the wall and watch them smash into fifty pieces. So I'll take the physically demanding option vs. the stress spiking option any day :).
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
So there's a voice that pops up occasionally that tells me "do it later, you can do it later" and puts it off and puts if off and builds static inertia of my butt on my desk chair to a point where it seems that I can't fight it. I/We BodyRockers call him Brutus. He almost won today. Almost. More on this bastard later.
I went to an awesome talk by Dr. James Chestnut D.C. and got re-inspired to feed my body the exercise it needs. So I got home - and the clock said 9:15PM. And I had yet to do either workout. What to do? Do an epic mind body battle to the end combination of both workouts. So I did the first workout, then 15 minutes of jumping, then immediately into 100 push ups, and 15 more minutes of jumping. I have to say, I was ANNIHILATED after both of the workouts - so I was more concerned about not stopping, keeping the rhythm, catching night time under my toes, and moving my arms all the time. Less concerned about doing the prescribed intervals.
My scores for the workouts were:
Tabata Jump Squats
1) 13,12,11,10,10,10,10,10
2) 12,11,10,10,10,10,10,10
3) 11,10,10,10,10,10,10,10
Total time for workout 1: 29:15.
I did the lunges with knee up with a 25 lb plate, but you could use a duffel bag full of rice or canned goods - whatever you like - just something mild/moderately heavy that is a challenge but doesn't cause you to lose your balance or sacrifice form.
100 push-up challenge time: 5:44
All push-ups military. HUZZAH!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Thursday Workout!
I am posting this workout a bit early, as it is not Thursday yet. It is short - 300 weighted squats for time. You can do the weighted part however you want. I'm going to do it with a 25 lb plate, but you can do it with a backpack full of books too. Remember to keep your back straight and stick your butt out - keep your knees behind your toes!
Then we're doing 20 minutes of jump roping. If you want to do 5 rounds of 4 minutes and break it up with a short round of some push ups or crunches in between, it might help it go faster. I get pretty damn bored jump jump jump jump jumping. Gross. BUT! The jump dancing and the breaking it up with other exercises are a good way to change it up from day to day :).
My second workout will be 1000 bicycles for time.
Will update with results as I complete the workouts :)
Rock!
Mac
*******UPDATE*******
Time for 300 weighted squat challenge: 22:12.
This was an all around destroyer for me. My grip, shoulders, low back, and my legs were ablaze after 80. And I still had 220 to go. This workout is one of those that will make you mentally TOUGH! Climbing a mountain of several hundred reps of one thing and completing it brings me a sense of calm satisfaction I don't get from any other source. And given the fact I feel calm pretty much never, I really enjoy the post workout feeling from this type of grueling physical/mental challenge. Try it out, I'd love to know how you feel when you're done :).
Oh, and one other thing - the jumping for 20 minutes was not happening after these squats - so later I'm mashing up the bicycles with the jumping. 5 minutes of jumping 250 bicycles - 4 rounds. Bicycles are timed :).
*******UPDATE 2*******
So I did the 4 rounds of 5 minutes of jumping using my Gymboss interval timer set for 5 rounds of 1 minute back to back. I did 1 min of shadow jump roping 1 min of super high knees 1 min alternating 1 footed jumping 1 min of shadow jumping 1 min of jumping jacks for a total of 5 minutes. Then I did the bicycles. Then 5 more minutes of jumping using those 1 min intervals. And so on and so forth. My times for the 4 rounds of 250 bicycles were:
1)1:43
2)1:52
3)1:53
4)1:50
AAAND I'm spent.
Then we're doing 20 minutes of jump roping. If you want to do 5 rounds of 4 minutes and break it up with a short round of some push ups or crunches in between, it might help it go faster. I get pretty damn bored jump jump jump jump jumping. Gross. BUT! The jump dancing and the breaking it up with other exercises are a good way to change it up from day to day :).
My second workout will be 1000 bicycles for time.
Will update with results as I complete the workouts :)
Rock!
Mac
*******UPDATE*******
Time for 300 weighted squat challenge: 22:12.
This was an all around destroyer for me. My grip, shoulders, low back, and my legs were ablaze after 80. And I still had 220 to go. This workout is one of those that will make you mentally TOUGH! Climbing a mountain of several hundred reps of one thing and completing it brings me a sense of calm satisfaction I don't get from any other source. And given the fact I feel calm pretty much never, I really enjoy the post workout feeling from this type of grueling physical/mental challenge. Try it out, I'd love to know how you feel when you're done :).
Oh, and one other thing - the jumping for 20 minutes was not happening after these squats - so later I'm mashing up the bicycles with the jumping. 5 minutes of jumping 250 bicycles - 4 rounds. Bicycles are timed :).
*******UPDATE 2*******
So I did the 4 rounds of 5 minutes of jumping using my Gymboss interval timer set for 5 rounds of 1 minute back to back. I did 1 min of shadow jump roping 1 min of super high knees 1 min alternating 1 footed jumping 1 min of shadow jumping 1 min of jumping jacks for a total of 5 minutes. Then I did the bicycles. Then 5 more minutes of jumping using those 1 min intervals. And so on and so forth. My times for the 4 rounds of 250 bicycles were:
1)1:43
2)1:52
3)1:53
4)1:50
AAAND I'm spent.
Chilly, grey Wednesday :D
Ahhh, my second favorite kind of day. If it can't be rainy, at least I can still bundle up and I don't have to squint :).
I love cool/cold weather, because the closer acceptable clothing comes to wearing a literal blanket outside the condo, the better.
Today's first workout is a bodyweight only workout which is awesome, because it means there's no reason not to try it! Grand Theft Booty + Counter Strike Workout Mash-up. It's 20 minutes long :).
I ate breakfast not too long ago - and since I usually push to the point of mild nausea, I'm going to wait a while to do this. I'll post my scores afterward.
My evening exercise challenge is:
AB ANNIHILATOR
1) 2 min plank, 50 seconds side plank ups (left side up), 50 seconds side v crunch (laying on right side to continue to target left obliques) *the tutorial for the side v crunch is at 10:40 of the video posted in that link*
2) 2 min plank, 50 seconds side plank ups (right side up), 50 seconds side v crunch (laying on left side)
3) 2 min plank, 50 seconds V ups (don't touch your feet to the ground in between reps if you want a super challenge :) ), 50 seconds swimmers (start at 0:50 - end 0:55)
*2 mins of plank is the goal here - if you need to rest in the middle and put your knees down that's fine - just push for as long as you can between rests and take as short of rests as possible during the 2 minutes.*
Remember to push super hard and maximize your reps in every interval - it's only 12 minutes - you can do anything for that long, right??
Right!
Okay, so pick one or do both or whatever version of either you want to try - then get jiggy with your jump roping or jump dancing for 20 minutes :).
Rock!
Mac
*******UPDATE*******
Snowboarder: 16,16,13
Pistol to Side Kick L: 5,5,4
Pistol to Side Kick R: 5,5,4
Pushup Lunge Combo: 25 in 8 minutes
Shelf Butt Exercise: 21,21,21
Half Pistol to One Leg Pike Press L: 3,3,3
Half Pistol to One Leg Pike Press R: 3,3,3
And I opted out of the jump roping in favor of jumping around to Incubus for 20 minutes making sure my arms were always moving and I was catching light under my feet every jump :).
*******UPDATE 2*******
Okay, this is big. I call the second workout my Ab Annihilator and it is one of my (least) favorites - but I've tried to do it once a week since I made it up. Tonight was the first time I have ever completed ALL THREE PLANKS with no breaks AT ALL! OH MAN! So exciting :D
Here were my reps for the other exercises:
Side Plank Up L: 23
Side V Crunch L: 26
Side Plank Up R: 23
Side V Crunch R: 27
Bicycles: 108 *Game time decision to do bicycles instead of V-ups to keep the intense pace and burn going - didn't think I could do enough V-ups with proper form to maintain the intensity* *The tutorial for bicycles is at minute 8:44 of the video in the link*
Swimmers: 101
I love cool/cold weather, because the closer acceptable clothing comes to wearing a literal blanket outside the condo, the better.
Today's first workout is a bodyweight only workout which is awesome, because it means there's no reason not to try it! Grand Theft Booty + Counter Strike Workout Mash-up. It's 20 minutes long :).
I ate breakfast not too long ago - and since I usually push to the point of mild nausea, I'm going to wait a while to do this. I'll post my scores afterward.
My evening exercise challenge is:
AB ANNIHILATOR
1) 2 min plank, 50 seconds side plank ups (left side up), 50 seconds side v crunch (laying on right side to continue to target left obliques) *the tutorial for the side v crunch is at 10:40 of the video posted in that link*
2) 2 min plank, 50 seconds side plank ups (right side up), 50 seconds side v crunch (laying on left side)
3) 2 min plank, 50 seconds V ups (don't touch your feet to the ground in between reps if you want a super challenge :) ), 50 seconds swimmers (start at 0:50 - end 0:55)
*2 mins of plank is the goal here - if you need to rest in the middle and put your knees down that's fine - just push for as long as you can between rests and take as short of rests as possible during the 2 minutes.*
Remember to push super hard and maximize your reps in every interval - it's only 12 minutes - you can do anything for that long, right??
Right!
Okay, so pick one or do both or whatever version of either you want to try - then get jiggy with your jump roping or jump dancing for 20 minutes :).
Rock!
Mac
*******UPDATE*******
Snowboarder: 16,16,13
Pistol to Side Kick L: 5,5,4
Pistol to Side Kick R: 5,5,4
Pushup Lunge Combo: 25 in 8 minutes
Shelf Butt Exercise: 21,21,21
Half Pistol to One Leg Pike Press L: 3,3,3
Half Pistol to One Leg Pike Press R: 3,3,3
And I opted out of the jump roping in favor of jumping around to Incubus for 20 minutes making sure my arms were always moving and I was catching light under my feet every jump :).
*******UPDATE 2*******
Okay, this is big. I call the second workout my Ab Annihilator and it is one of my (least) favorites - but I've tried to do it once a week since I made it up. Tonight was the first time I have ever completed ALL THREE PLANKS with no breaks AT ALL! OH MAN! So exciting :D
Here were my reps for the other exercises:
Side Plank Up L: 23
Side V Crunch L: 26
Side Plank Up R: 23
Side V Crunch R: 27
Bicycles: 108 *Game time decision to do bicycles instead of V-ups to keep the intense pace and burn going - didn't think I could do enough V-ups with proper form to maintain the intensity* *The tutorial for bicycles is at minute 8:44 of the video in the link*
Swimmers: 101
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Rainy Tuesday :D
Hey everyone! So I'm one of those odd ball types that really prefers rainy days to sun shiny ones. My mind is always redlining so I appreciate the calming effect the weather has on both myself and the people around me. Makes for a globally more mellow environment and mitigates my chronically anxious head space.
Fortunately today is delightfully grey. The perfect day to crank out a couple of good workouts then drink some tea while doing work.
This morning I did the CrossFit workout called Fran. I attempted it a few nights ago (with 65 lbs), but I had smoked myself out pretty well on the first workout of the day, and Fran is not to be taken lightly (or put behind another grueling workout), so I couldn't finish. There was just a lot of clicking and popping happening in my shoulder joints - more than I'm comfortable with.
The workout is 21 reps of thrusters then 21 reps of pullups. Repeat with a round of 15 of each and then a round of 9 of each. The whole thing for time. The "benchmark" uses 95lbs for women to use doing thrusters and 135lbs for men. I'm not quite to benchmark status yet so I used 70 lbs. Go here: watch the pros do it in under 3 minutes - it took me 28:00. BUT I FINISHED. And it is a mental battle - so on that front - I won. As far as the time? Eh, I only need to reduce it by about 800 percent hahaha.
Anyway, I do all my workouts at home and I have one of those door jam pullup bars. It is great but I can't do kipping pull-ups which make this take FOREVER. Strict pullups are not my favorite- I find the limiting factor to be my grip strength. I'm much more used to the dynamic motion of the butterfly kipping pullup. Anyway, my arms and grip are smoked and I suspect my arse will be feeling it too in a little while.
Second workout of the day is just to break up some of that lactic acid in the legs and give the abs a little attention. 4 minutes of moderate pace jump roping and 100 bicycles - 5 rounds. If you don't have a jump rope then just jump. Vary the moves - you can do jacks or scissors or high knees - whatever you want - just make sure you're jumping and getting a little air every time and your arms are moving a little too. Put a sweat band on - put on some 80's tunes and jam out Richard Simmons style for the 4 minutes if you want. Have fun with it - just get moving!!
xoxo
Mac
PS - I haven't forgotten to post my own journey to this point, or WHY I started this blog, but those are both heavily involved (and long) posts, so I'll get to them when I have more time.
Fortunately today is delightfully grey. The perfect day to crank out a couple of good workouts then drink some tea while doing work.
This morning I did the CrossFit workout called Fran. I attempted it a few nights ago (with 65 lbs), but I had smoked myself out pretty well on the first workout of the day, and Fran is not to be taken lightly (or put behind another grueling workout), so I couldn't finish. There was just a lot of clicking and popping happening in my shoulder joints - more than I'm comfortable with.
The workout is 21 reps of thrusters then 21 reps of pullups. Repeat with a round of 15 of each and then a round of 9 of each. The whole thing for time. The "benchmark" uses 95lbs for women to use doing thrusters and 135lbs for men. I'm not quite to benchmark status yet so I used 70 lbs. Go here: watch the pros do it in under 3 minutes - it took me 28:00. BUT I FINISHED. And it is a mental battle - so on that front - I won. As far as the time? Eh, I only need to reduce it by about 800 percent hahaha.
Anyway, I do all my workouts at home and I have one of those door jam pullup bars. It is great but I can't do kipping pull-ups which make this take FOREVER. Strict pullups are not my favorite- I find the limiting factor to be my grip strength. I'm much more used to the dynamic motion of the butterfly kipping pullup. Anyway, my arms and grip are smoked and I suspect my arse will be feeling it too in a little while.
Second workout of the day is just to break up some of that lactic acid in the legs and give the abs a little attention. 4 minutes of moderate pace jump roping and 100 bicycles - 5 rounds. If you don't have a jump rope then just jump. Vary the moves - you can do jacks or scissors or high knees - whatever you want - just make sure you're jumping and getting a little air every time and your arms are moving a little too. Put a sweat band on - put on some 80's tunes and jam out Richard Simmons style for the 4 minutes if you want. Have fun with it - just get moving!!
xoxo
Mac
PS - I haven't forgotten to post my own journey to this point, or WHY I started this blog, but those are both heavily involved (and long) posts, so I'll get to them when I have more time.
Monday, January 17, 2011
HELLO!!
Hey everyone! Just wanted to get a quick first post up to tell you all what I hope to accomplish with this blog. Then I'll post the workout or link to the workout for the day. I do a lot of the workouts from BodyRock.tv and if I post the workout directly here it will affect that site's traffic negatively.
Ideally I'd like this to be a kind of meeting place for anyone embarking on or continuing their wellness journey (so please leave comments!!!!!!!). I am less concerned with whether or not you ENJOY the exercise, and more concerned with your energy level, vitality, and the things standing between you and having more of both. Realistically, when I started the style of the workouts I will be posting here, I did not ENJOY them, and even now some days getting off my ass can be a real soul suck. The joy comes from the mental, emotional, (very very very lastly) physical results of pushing my mind and body to do things I never knew they could. I submit that's what the joy will be for you too.
The other main character in this blog will be my kettlebell, Sasha. I chose the name because it has the same country of origin as the k-bell (Russia) and means "defender of mankind". He weighs 35lb/16kg/1pood. Rather than specify this every time, I will refer to the exercises as "Sasha Swings" "Sasha Cleans" etc.
Today's workout: Swimming In My Own Sweat Workout. Rather than use a light sandbag and doing one arm swings, I'm doing standard Sasha Swings. I'll update later with my time. You should try the workout - improvise if you need to - fill up a backpack with some books and get after it! Having "proper" equipment is NOT necessary to get a great workout :D.
I'll fill you in on my own wellness journey to this point in my next post.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Time: 19:05
Last time I did this workout I did it in reverse. This time I went down the mountain, last time I went up the mountain. My up the mountain time was 19:47. 42 seconds less this time for the same total reps. 150 burpees, 100 Sasha swings.
Ideally I'd like this to be a kind of meeting place for anyone embarking on or continuing their wellness journey (so please leave comments!!!!!!!). I am less concerned with whether or not you ENJOY the exercise, and more concerned with your energy level, vitality, and the things standing between you and having more of both. Realistically, when I started the style of the workouts I will be posting here, I did not ENJOY them, and even now some days getting off my ass can be a real soul suck. The joy comes from the mental, emotional, (very very very lastly) physical results of pushing my mind and body to do things I never knew they could. I submit that's what the joy will be for you too.
The other main character in this blog will be my kettlebell, Sasha. I chose the name because it has the same country of origin as the k-bell (Russia) and means "defender of mankind". He weighs 35lb/16kg/1pood. Rather than specify this every time, I will refer to the exercises as "Sasha Swings" "Sasha Cleans" etc.
Today's workout: Swimming In My Own Sweat Workout. Rather than use a light sandbag and doing one arm swings, I'm doing standard Sasha Swings. I'll update later with my time. You should try the workout - improvise if you need to - fill up a backpack with some books and get after it! Having "proper" equipment is NOT necessary to get a great workout :D.
I'll fill you in on my own wellness journey to this point in my next post.
Rock!
*******UPDATE*******
Time: 19:05
Last time I did this workout I did it in reverse. This time I went down the mountain, last time I went up the mountain. My up the mountain time was 19:47. 42 seconds less this time for the same total reps. 150 burpees, 100 Sasha swings.
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