Obviously you need to go to the gym more than just on Mondays, but I have really made it a point to live by this advice when I am seriously in the swing on working out. To that end, I had to share this great graphic that I found on Pinterest.
Showing posts with label Spin Class. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spin Class. Show all posts
Monday, March 24, 2014
Never Miss Monday
People ask me why I am such a proponent of getting to the gym on Mondays. Well, because my awesome personal trainer, Amanda, told me once that Monday is the easiest day to get the gym. It's the beginning of the week, things don't USUALLY pop up, and you get it out of the way while you're still fresh from the weekend.
Obviously you need to go to the gym more than just on Mondays, but I have really made it a point to live by this advice when I am seriously in the swing on working out. To that end, I had to share this great graphic that I found on Pinterest.
Obviously you need to go to the gym more than just on Mondays, but I have really made it a point to live by this advice when I am seriously in the swing on working out. To that end, I had to share this great graphic that I found on Pinterest.
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Back to Workouts
The bridal bootcamp has been underway for weeks now, but unfortunately I haven't been as on my game as I should have been... I'm going to blame the long hours at my new job.
Well, two weeks ago I emailed my personal trainer, the wonderful Amanda, and let her know what my pain points are as far as not having a regular work schedule. I told her that I'm going to make fitness a much bigger priority and focus on a manageable work life balance. And she helped me out with some awesome workouts to help get me back into shape.
First up on the list? I started getting my act together for spin class on Mondays and Wednesdays at 6:45 p.m. I cannot even begin to give Sam enough credit for how much he's enabled me to focus on myself. Sam's on a really easy rotation (think reliably short hours) at Kaiser so he's been able to get home to let Hunter out on the nights I head to the gym directly from work.
Additionally, Amanda has given me some really handy workouts that involve walking the dog - which is a win win for us because it gives us a chance to do something as a family (Sam joins us) and we also get to involve Hunter. He has been sleeping through the night A LOT better with all this exercise.
The best news of all is that I've gotten more than 10,000 steps and more than 30 minutes of intense activity for the last five days in a row counting today. I know it's not going to happen over night, but this is the second week in a row that I've made it to two spin classes. Let me tell you, my legs are BURNING, which is a good thing because in the simplest of explanations: the muscles in your legs are the largest, most powerful muscles in your body thus they are capable of burning the most energy aka fat.
I'm also working my upper body so that my arms and shoulders are as sculpted as possible when I don my beautiful strapless wedding dress in less than five months! I can't believe how quickly the months are ticking down...
I'm not sure if it's partly because of the Lexapro, but I don't have quite the same level of agitation and stress at work these days. Not to say I'm not committed, but I don't feel the need to push and give my job all 110% of my energy. And it's been making me really happy to spend some time on myself, improving my fitness and getting back into shape.
Monday, March 17, 2014
St. Patrick's Day Priorities
St. Patrick's Day Priorities when you're on a wedding countdown...
No green beer, but at least I wore my green Lululemon shirt!
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Not All Compliments Are Created Equal
I got home from work today and did my weigh lifting routine before heading to the gym. I was a little later than usual (someone had to take a walk and do his business, Hunter!) but I figured it wouldn't be a big deal because our usual teacher wasn't out today. Man, was I wrong.
I got to class and every single bike against the back wall was taken. Every. Single. One.
Are you kidding me? The one day I wear a snug-fitting Lululemon top to spin instead of a baggy t-shirt I am going to be on display to the people behind me. Cue the self-consciousness.
I did what any girl would do- I immediately texted my girlfriends for support. The responses were priceless.
My Texts:
Showed up late to spin today and couldn't get a back row bike- it's the first day I have worn a tight Lululemon (muffin top exposing) shirt. FML.
Nobody stares at the ass in front of them... except me... right?
Turns out I am not the only one with a muffin top, thank God I have a nice rack.
Responses:
From Amy- "You have such great form that if anyone looks at your ass it's going to be because they are checking out your stance"
From Carina- "LOL ur all good. Gym judgement is silly!!!"
From Sam- "That's what you get for having a muffin top!"
So what did I do? I spun my little heart out! I figured if I was going to be the chunky girl on the bike I could at least get a helluva workout in and have people respect me for that. Our sub, who I've had before and I am convinced is a little nuts, is forevermore to be known as The Spin Nazi. (Seinfeld shout-out!) She is seriously hard work, but not as fun as Jen.
Well, about 10 minutes before class was over, I was sweating all over myself and prepping for an awesome finish to my workout. I looked up and The Spin Nazi is totally grinning at me and mouthing something that seemed encouraging although I couldn't tell what she was saying. The next thing I knew, she called me out for having great form.
Wow. There is no higher compliment when you are working your butt off than to have the group fitness instructor acknowledge your amazingness in front of the entire class. Yes, it's pretty damn rewarding. And honestly, I worked even harder that last 10 minutes after she recognized my effort.
I got to class and every single bike against the back wall was taken. Every. Single. One.
Are you kidding me? The one day I wear a snug-fitting Lululemon top to spin instead of a baggy t-shirt I am going to be on display to the people behind me. Cue the self-consciousness.
I did what any girl would do- I immediately texted my girlfriends for support. The responses were priceless.
My Texts:
Showed up late to spin today and couldn't get a back row bike- it's the first day I have worn a tight Lululemon (muffin top exposing) shirt. FML.
Nobody stares at the ass in front of them... except me... right?
Turns out I am not the only one with a muffin top, thank God I have a nice rack.
Responses:
From Amy- "You have such great form that if anyone looks at your ass it's going to be because they are checking out your stance"
From Carina- "LOL ur all good. Gym judgement is silly!!!"
From Sam- "That's what you get for having a muffin top!"
So what did I do? I spun my little heart out! I figured if I was going to be the chunky girl on the bike I could at least get a helluva workout in and have people respect me for that. Our sub, who I've had before and I am convinced is a little nuts, is forevermore to be known as The Spin Nazi. (Seinfeld shout-out!) She is seriously hard work, but not as fun as Jen.
Well, about 10 minutes before class was over, I was sweating all over myself and prepping for an awesome finish to my workout. I looked up and The Spin Nazi is totally grinning at me and mouthing something that seemed encouraging although I couldn't tell what she was saying. The next thing I knew, she called me out for having great form.
Wow. There is no higher compliment when you are working your butt off than to have the group fitness instructor acknowledge your amazingness in front of the entire class. Yes, it's pretty damn rewarding. And honestly, I worked even harder that last 10 minutes after she recognized my effort.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
Like Lead
So anyway, I have been trying (and failing) to lose weight on my own for about 16 months. Due to some upcoming life events, Sam thought it would be nice to get me a personal trainer. I think he was envisioning that I'd work out once a week with a trainer at our gym, but I had other plans. I immediately texted Amanda and told her it was time to whip me back into shape.
These days (and actually, I think back when we were first training too) Amanda is doing online training via FitOrbit. So I signed up. I got online and I filled out the surveys and I submitted my credit card. Woohoo! So as of June 1, 2013 I am back on my health kick and fitness plan.
Let me tell you, it has not been easy. Today for example, I was incredibly hungry. Just ravenous. Probably because I had a breakfast backfire where my intended meal was just not going to cut it. So I tried to hold out until lunch but I ended up eating my lunch around 11, dozing off around 1, and having second lunch around 2. Oops.
Good thing my workout tonight was INTENSE! I did 30 minutes of Sculpt Cycle weights, walked Hunter for 40 minutes, and then hit up my new favorite Spin Class (Tuesday nights at LA Fitness with Jen). Exhausted is an understatement. I mean seriously. I can barely move.
My arms are still sore from the insane "Just Push" arm circuit I did on Saturday morning. Now I have legs like lead from my workouts yesterday and today. I don't even know how I am going to take Hunter down for his before-bed potty walk. I could have easily gone to soak in the jacuzzi for a while this evening... but I didn't have enough time.
Thankfully tomorrow is a pyramid swim set so I should have some chance of stretching out my arms and legs and doing some lengthening after all this tightening. And since I'll already be down in the pool with my suit on I definitely foresee some soaking time so that my achy muscles can recover a bit.
Eye on the prize, kid. Eye on the prize.
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Just Barely
Today was one of those days.
You know the kind.
My boss and I are at odds regarding the best use of some video footage we shot two weeks ago. I just barely got a hold of myself and redirected our focus on the common goal we share before the debate devolved into some kind of fight. Just barely.
I barely contained a bout of road rage while Sam was driving us to the gym. I wasn't even driving. I wanted to scream, but I held it in. Just barely.
During spin class I almost cussed out the teacher and left early. I just barely contained myself and redirected my frustration into the workout. Just barely. It's a good thing I stuck it out because I am now exhausted and completely devoid of frustration.
I also really liked the class- great music, good vibe coming from the instructor and overall a great workout. Not too hard, but a steady, consistent hardcore workout the entire hour. I went up to the instructor after the class to compliment her and see which other nights she teaches. Unfortunately she said this is her only LA Fitness class, the rest of the week she teaches down at a studio in San Clemente. She told me she does get to sub a lot and told me if I gave her my email she'd let me know when she's subbing. I gave her my email and cell phone number so she can text me too. She said she knows how it feels to be disappointed with group exercise instructors and that's what motivated her to become a spin teacher herself- I told her I'd had that thought myself. Sam might get ahold of that idea and run with it. Although I am not sure I have the time and energy to devote to teaching class- I almost feel like I need to focus all my attention on my own fitness and workouts so I can succeed in my weight loss goals.
And boy did I get a good work out tonight! Holy Jesus I was having a tough time walking up the stairs tonight after class. I literally turned to Sam and told him he was on Hunter's potty duty tonight because I don't think I can go up and down the stairs again.
Side Note: A sign of a great spin workout is definitely having trouble and feeling leg fatigue while going up stairs after a workout and the following day.
Now I'm trying to stay awake so I can fold yet another load of Sam's laundry and start on the guest room's sheets and towels. I'm awake, but just barely. I guess I'll have to hold off on the guest room for another night. As for now, I think I'm going to roll out my legs on my foam roller and head to bed.
I think I can make it.
Just barely.
You know the kind.
My boss and I are at odds regarding the best use of some video footage we shot two weeks ago. I just barely got a hold of myself and redirected our focus on the common goal we share before the debate devolved into some kind of fight. Just barely.
I barely contained a bout of road rage while Sam was driving us to the gym. I wasn't even driving. I wanted to scream, but I held it in. Just barely.
During spin class I almost cussed out the teacher and left early. I just barely contained myself and redirected my frustration into the workout. Just barely. It's a good thing I stuck it out because I am now exhausted and completely devoid of frustration.
I also really liked the class- great music, good vibe coming from the instructor and overall a great workout. Not too hard, but a steady, consistent hardcore workout the entire hour. I went up to the instructor after the class to compliment her and see which other nights she teaches. Unfortunately she said this is her only LA Fitness class, the rest of the week she teaches down at a studio in San Clemente. She told me she does get to sub a lot and told me if I gave her my email she'd let me know when she's subbing. I gave her my email and cell phone number so she can text me too. She said she knows how it feels to be disappointed with group exercise instructors and that's what motivated her to become a spin teacher herself- I told her I'd had that thought myself. Sam might get ahold of that idea and run with it. Although I am not sure I have the time and energy to devote to teaching class- I almost feel like I need to focus all my attention on my own fitness and workouts so I can succeed in my weight loss goals.
And boy did I get a good work out tonight! Holy Jesus I was having a tough time walking up the stairs tonight after class. I literally turned to Sam and told him he was on Hunter's potty duty tonight because I don't think I can go up and down the stairs again.
Side Note: A sign of a great spin workout is definitely having trouble and feeling leg fatigue while going up stairs after a workout and the following day.
Now I'm trying to stay awake so I can fold yet another load of Sam's laundry and start on the guest room's sheets and towels. I'm awake, but just barely. I guess I'll have to hold off on the guest room for another night. As for now, I think I'm going to roll out my legs on my foam roller and head to bed.
I think I can make it.
Just barely.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Ladies Weekend
It might not be a big surprise, but I don't get too many evenings Girls Night Out opportunities. Yes, Sam is on call all the time (or so it feels), but many of those nights I am busy with Hunter or doing errands or housework. On Fridays I am frequently too hired from the work-week to bother going out, and often times my girlfriends are busy with their boyfriends on Saturdays.
That was not the case this weekend. Sam went to Las Vegas with Ryan, Steve, Nick, Mason and Kirellos when the stars aligned and all the boys were off at the same time. Dan and Tina had been planning a March Madness trip which happened to coincide with the boys' time off.
I couldn't make it due to Jackie's upcoming wedding events, budgeting for our 10-year High School Reunion trip to San Francisco, and wedding/birthday madness in July. I guess it's part of being a mature, financially minded adult to say 'no' to some trips. :-) Besides, I am really looking forward to all my upcoming weekend celebrations and this turned out to be a bit of a UCI med school reunion for Sam's group of guy friends.
So anyway, Sam left me here with Hunter for the weekend. And wow, I have gotten to hang out with lots of great ladies! Minal, Sam's co-resident, met me at The Melting Pot after I dropped Sam off at the airport on Friday night. She hadn't ever been there before, so we ordered spinach artichoke cheese fondue and then a pot of milk chocolate & peanut butter fondue. It was SO fun getting to spend a little one-on-one time with her. In fact, I think I could REALLY enjoy her company. The only trouble is that she is from Orange County, and has a very busy social life. I anticipate it being even more difficult to spend time with her than it is for me to spend time with Sam!
Saturday morning, Amy and I met for the 9:15 spin class at our local LA Fitness. It was a really rigorous workout this morning; we had a sub and she was way more intense than our usual instructor. Not that we're not usually working hard, but this girl had me POURING sweat and that is rare even for me- I feel like I sweat an unusual amount.
After spin, I came home to shower and pick up Hunter before heading down to Corona del Mar to meet up with Amy for lunch and a little Newport Coast walk. We spent a while hanging out on Nick's patio enjoying the sunshine. It wasn't hot, hot, but it was definitely better than the over-cast, fog situation that was going on earlier in the morning.
When I left Amy, I went by Ralph's and picked up the Rug Doctor carpet cleaning machine and decided to shampoo our carpets. After last weekend's Spring Cleaning, it was just looking foul that our carpets had dark stains and spots. So anyway, I cleaned the carpets for about 2 hours and made very sure to go back over the whole floor with just plain water after I had finished with the soap. I then made extra passes JUST sucking up water from the fibers. My hope was that the carpet would be drier than it was last time I did this (June '12) and that it would be dry by the time Sam got home if not Sunday morning.
Hunter and I settled down on the couch to watch The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and wait for the carpets to dry. I wanted to call Jen, but she has a BIG exam (her last one) next Saturday and I didn't want to be a distraction for her. Around 8:45, she texted me and asked me what I was up to. Since I wasn't doing anything too important, and I had been hoping to see her, I decided to go over and have some wine. Three and a half hours later (WooHoo for ringing in St Patty's Day 2013), after we finished a bottle of wine and played copious amounts of Guitar Hero, I finally headed home to Hunter. While I was out, I left the heat on to try to help dry the carpets. As soon as I got home I turned off the heat and opened back up our balcony slider and bedroom windows to help air out the apartment and speed up the drying process.
Jen texted me a 9 to see what I was up to. She was getting burnt out studying for her big exam next Saturday and wanted to share some wine. A bottle of Pino Noir and a few hours of guitar hero later, we rang in St. Patrick's Day. When I got home I wasn't especially sleepy, so I decided to watch a bit more of The Fellowship of the Ring (which I was midway through when Jen texted). I ended up going to bed around 2:30.
Sunday morning Any and I had planned to go to spin class... but she wasn't feeling up to it. I, with only 5.5 hours of sleep, managed to get myself there and survived back-to-back spin days with LITTLE serious damage. Nothing like last weekend when I did a poor job of working my hamstrings and quads equally... I couldn't wear heels all week and had to roll out my legs for three days straight.
After spin, I started putting things back in order as the carpet began to dry. I also sat down to do some serious work- four hours of intense website analysis. I am trying to work on our pages with high bounce rates so I looked at 26 pages: key term phrases, content, meta description, title, etc. I was able to make changes to most of the pages, and there were a few I don't know how to improve upon so I will send those to our SEO guys and see if they have advice. I also sent some weird URLs to our web design girl so she can check out what they are and if I can just delete the pages off the site or if she can make some edits so the pages function more successfully.
Now, I'm relaxing with Sam and Hunter on the couch, just hanging out and watching The Return of the King. (LOVE THESE MOVIES!) I watched the first two earlier today and I probably won't be able to finish this one tonight. Oh well, I'll have to handle the conclusion tomorrow.
That was not the case this weekend. Sam went to Las Vegas with Ryan, Steve, Nick, Mason and Kirellos when the stars aligned and all the boys were off at the same time. Dan and Tina had been planning a March Madness trip which happened to coincide with the boys' time off.
I couldn't make it due to Jackie's upcoming wedding events, budgeting for our 10-year High School Reunion trip to San Francisco, and wedding/birthday madness in July. I guess it's part of being a mature, financially minded adult to say 'no' to some trips. :-) Besides, I am really looking forward to all my upcoming weekend celebrations and this turned out to be a bit of a UCI med school reunion for Sam's group of guy friends.
So anyway, Sam left me here with Hunter for the weekend. And wow, I have gotten to hang out with lots of great ladies! Minal, Sam's co-resident, met me at The Melting Pot after I dropped Sam off at the airport on Friday night. She hadn't ever been there before, so we ordered spinach artichoke cheese fondue and then a pot of milk chocolate & peanut butter fondue. It was SO fun getting to spend a little one-on-one time with her. In fact, I think I could REALLY enjoy her company. The only trouble is that she is from Orange County, and has a very busy social life. I anticipate it being even more difficult to spend time with her than it is for me to spend time with Sam!
Saturday morning, Amy and I met for the 9:15 spin class at our local LA Fitness. It was a really rigorous workout this morning; we had a sub and she was way more intense than our usual instructor. Not that we're not usually working hard, but this girl had me POURING sweat and that is rare even for me- I feel like I sweat an unusual amount.
After spin, I came home to shower and pick up Hunter before heading down to Corona del Mar to meet up with Amy for lunch and a little Newport Coast walk. We spent a while hanging out on Nick's patio enjoying the sunshine. It wasn't hot, hot, but it was definitely better than the over-cast, fog situation that was going on earlier in the morning.
When I left Amy, I went by Ralph's and picked up the Rug Doctor carpet cleaning machine and decided to shampoo our carpets. After last weekend's Spring Cleaning, it was just looking foul that our carpets had dark stains and spots. So anyway, I cleaned the carpets for about 2 hours and made very sure to go back over the whole floor with just plain water after I had finished with the soap. I then made extra passes JUST sucking up water from the fibers. My hope was that the carpet would be drier than it was last time I did this (June '12) and that it would be dry by the time Sam got home if not Sunday morning.
Hunter and I settled down on the couch to watch The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and wait for the carpets to dry. I wanted to call Jen, but she has a BIG exam (her last one) next Saturday and I didn't want to be a distraction for her. Around 8:45, she texted me and asked me what I was up to. Since I wasn't doing anything too important, and I had been hoping to see her, I decided to go over and have some wine. Three and a half hours later (WooHoo for ringing in St Patty's Day 2013), after we finished a bottle of wine and played copious amounts of Guitar Hero, I finally headed home to Hunter. While I was out, I left the heat on to try to help dry the carpets. As soon as I got home I turned off the heat and opened back up our balcony slider and bedroom windows to help air out the apartment and speed up the drying process.
Jen texted me a 9 to see what I was up to. She was getting burnt out studying for her big exam next Saturday and wanted to share some wine. A bottle of Pino Noir and a few hours of guitar hero later, we rang in St. Patrick's Day. When I got home I wasn't especially sleepy, so I decided to watch a bit more of The Fellowship of the Ring (which I was midway through when Jen texted). I ended up going to bed around 2:30.
Sunday morning Any and I had planned to go to spin class... but she wasn't feeling up to it. I, with only 5.5 hours of sleep, managed to get myself there and survived back-to-back spin days with LITTLE serious damage. Nothing like last weekend when I did a poor job of working my hamstrings and quads equally... I couldn't wear heels all week and had to roll out my legs for three days straight.
After spin, I started putting things back in order as the carpet began to dry. I also sat down to do some serious work- four hours of intense website analysis. I am trying to work on our pages with high bounce rates so I looked at 26 pages: key term phrases, content, meta description, title, etc. I was able to make changes to most of the pages, and there were a few I don't know how to improve upon so I will send those to our SEO guys and see if they have advice. I also sent some weird URLs to our web design girl so she can check out what they are and if I can just delete the pages off the site or if she can make some edits so the pages function more successfully.
Now, I'm relaxing with Sam and Hunter on the couch, just hanging out and watching The Return of the King. (LOVE THESE MOVIES!) I watched the first two earlier today and I probably won't be able to finish this one tonight. Oh well, I'll have to handle the conclusion tomorrow.
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