I'm Switching.

 

I am officially switching to Tumblr.

I have discovered the 'Fitblr' community and I like Tumblr's layouts better...

Just click the link below to be redirected. 

Thank you and sorry for any inconvenience.

http://www.Health4Happiness.Tumblr.com

First Cross Fit Class

I don't feel like I ever truly understood Cross Fit. My teachers and many classmates of mine at the school I went to for personal training (NPTI) were all super into it and a lot of it was incorporated into our workouts throughout those 24 weeks, yet I did not truly understand it until I took my boss' Cross Fit class last night at the gym I am interning at.

Above is the work out we did. Between each round we ran a lap around the outside of the gym.
I came in second each time, in this particular class, and a female came in first every round. There were three ladies in this particular seven person class.

I'm starting to realize more and more about the comments people, usually men, automatically make regarding fitness levels. I will give them benefit of the doubt and say it's out of habit or something, but for example referring to modifications of exercises, many refer to weak/incapable females.

"And for the ladies in the class you can use this band to help you do a pull-up if you can't do one on your own."
 

Ahem...first of all I feel for the men who can't do a pull-up on their own and now they're being compared to a women, in a negative light...which is also pretty twisted and I don't agree with that at all...

Secondly, this gives me hard core motivation to be the [lady] that does not need those modifications. (for the record I cannot do one single pull-up on my own, I need a band!)

I am not a feminist by any means. I just happen to strongly believe that both sexes should be treated equally. I don't think because you are a male you are automatically stronger than I am and I do not think because I am a female I deserve more of anything...

For the record, I want to say my boss at the gym I am interning at is very, very polite & respectful and made a point to address both men and women who might need modifications.

Anyway, now I'm starting to rant and I will let you go on with your merry way.

Stay positive :)

Morning vs. Afternoon

 

Yesterday, when I said I walked up to the Nansen Summit by my house, this is where I walk to. This picture does not do it justice but it is a lovely little park-ish space in the midst of very fancy houses, and it portrays a lovely view of suburbia.  It is only about point seven miles from my house so the round trip comes out to about a mile and a half walk. Although it is a very steep walk up to the summit and therefore, some days, feels a little longer.

I have decided to add an April resolution to the list. 

The wake-early-and-walk-if-it's-nice rule.

It will be a challenge.

I do not like waking early. 

I love my bed. 

It is so comfy and so not easy to get out of in the morning. 

Even if I wake from my slumber and I feel rested and ready for my day the coziness keeps me drawn in and eventually I want to go back to sleep. However I know if I do I will not feel awesome when I awake the next time, instead I will feel even more weighted and it will be even harder to get out of bed. Similar to the feeling of being shook from a REM sleep cycle by your alarm going off. Just grogginess and no clear thoughts for the first few minutes.

I am not a morning person, but waking early does not mean I am getting up at the crack of dawn. Today I am going to go into work at noon. So I got up at 9:30 this morning. 9:30 really is not that early. I was thinking to myself on the way up to the summit this morning that the morning air smells different than the afternoon air and how it is easier for me to get up and look out the window and say it's nice out now, I'm going. Rather than saying I hope it's nice out later, if it is I'll do it when I get home. There is so much room for error in that sentence. At least for myself, I know me too well. I will get home from work and I will be tired and I will not feel like going for a walk.

In the book I am reading called Happier by Tal Ben-Shahar, Ph.D. it is suggested to make rituals out of new routines. I like this idea, it's kind of a psychological trick. If we do not ritualize activities, whether working out in the gym, spending time with our family, or reading for pleasure, we often don't get to them and rather then being spontaneous, we become reactive, to others' demands on our time and energy.

Just a little something for you to think about today.
What have you done for you lately?

I am slowly trying to add more 'rituals' into my life.

Like this, wake-early-and-walk-if-its-nice, rule.

You know, the last two mornings, these walks really refresh me and get me ready for my day.

A nice way to break the routine.

What will you do?

Hold Yourself to It

Yesterday was absolutely gorgeous here in Portland Oregon.

It literally felt like a day of Summer. The wind was blowing slightly but the sun kept the air warm enough that it did not make us cold. The air was nice and crisp. I cannot wait until I can plan a week in advance to go to the beach and know that the weather will probably be nice, not grey, not wet, not cold. 

I enjoyed being out in the weather so much yesterday that I told myself I'm going to wake up at 8am tomorrow morning; if it is nice outside I will get up, stretch my joints awake and hike up to the Nansen Summit.

This morning I woke up. I looked outside. I could see the sun rising up and peaking into my neighbors windows across the street, the sky was already a clear blue. 

So I proceeded to do what I told myself I would do if I saw such a sight.
What would I have done if it was rainy, grey, or cold looking outside? Well, then, I would have just gone right back to sleep. 

It felt absolutely amazing hiking up there this morning. I got to the top and I did lunges around the giant circle then walked back down. Not a lot, enough to get some of that PNW air flowing through my lungs and break a bit of a sweat down my back. 

I've always enjoyed the great outdoors but I think this might be the year I fall a bit head over heels for it.

Now for breakfast then off to work. 

Beautiful start to hopefully an amazing day.

I hope you enjoy your day as well.

Oh, Sunshiney Day

Alrighty,

It is April. That means its time for another resolution and maybe some catch up time with you readers. 

Life is good. Spring is here this year and it is very exciting! Summer is just around the corner...

I have started interning at a gym that I am very excited about.

This weekend I am going to practice my sales speech on my friends and try to blow my boss away on Monday. Firstly, it is intimidating having to pretend-sell training packages to your boss, but on the other hand I just don't know a lot about the selling aspect. There is a whole psychology behind the right types of words to use. I am happy that I must sell something I truly do believe people will benefit from though. Makes things much easier.

Last month one of my resolutions was to be signed up to take the NASM test by the end of March. That didn't happen, but it is because I am waiting for my diploma to come in the mail, then I can call someone and they can help me get set-up with the sweet discount through my school. So I didn't accomplish that resolution, but I'm not necessarily at fault.

So for April I have three things I am going to aim for, two that are just reiterations.

1. Sign up for the NASM test & start studying

2. Meditate more regularly throughout this month.
Even if it is as simple as slowly down enough to concentrate on my breathing. (I'm hoping to incorporate more yoga as well, this will go hand in hand)

3. Get back into a good diet.
Lately I have been snacking a ton! Muffins, cookies, chocolate, pizza. Just bits and pieces here and there but I need to put a hold on that stuff again. It comes in waives, I know, but I want to get back to eating so regularly that I keep myself from getting snack-hungry. Along with eating more regularly/healthy I want to try doing gluten free again. For the last few months I have been buying my own GF stuff for my kitchen but when I go out to eat I am not picky at all and often times eat bread. Since I do have 1 loaf of bread in my house right now and probably a couple other non-GF things I am going to give myself until April 12th to get the kitchen put back together --this means time to eat those things so they are not in the kitchen anymore and they are not going to waste by just being thrown away.

On a very separate note I need to tell all you cat lovers out there about this litter I found!! It is seriously amazing.
If you didn't know, cat's noses are insanely more sensitive than people's noses are. If you can smell the cat box, think about how your cats feel...I read an article once about closed cat boxes. It said to stick your head inside the cat box and see how it was. My first thought was no way, that's nasty and extremely stinky! The article suggested taking off the lid to the litter box. It gives your cats more room in general to go about their business and it doesn't lock the smell in so much. This can be a pro for your cats but sounds like a con for you, yeah? Well I found that taking the lid off of my closed litter box actually makes me clean the litter box more, so that definitely makes it stink less. I also just got to thinking more about how often I use the bathroom myself and what if I had a box I had to go in and my nasty bits didn't just get flushed away to never see again. What if I had to step over my own shit just to shit again? Sounds nasty...that's how your cat feels! We all know cats are very clean animals. So I made a rule for myself that seems to be working out for the most part. Every time I go to the bathroom I also scoop the litter box. In my house the litter box is right next to the toilet so this is pretty easy. 

MOVING ON though, I need to tell you about this litter and why it is so amazing!! All typical commercial litters I have ever used do not smell good. They don't smell bad...but when I pour that litter into the cat box and all the loose dusty bits fly everywhere I am holding my breath if not coughing. When I scoop the litter box using the typical Tidy Step, Arm & Hammer, or whatever it may be, I think it smells like flavored ammonia/baking soda/shit. I'm still holding my breath, there's not way I want to inhale any piece of that stuff and I feel bad for my cats because if I don't like the smell of it I know there is no way their tiny noses are liking it either. SOOO I found this litter by magic at Costco. It comes in a 35# jug there. The logo brags about a natural lemongrass essence the litter gives off and I would agree, when I scoop that box it does not smell bad. I don't want to say it smells good, but the smell is absolutely tolerable and not displeasing to the nose. Be warned though...I guess some cats have been known to eat their Litter Purrrfect and get very sick from it, so just keep our eye out. So far it is working out great for me and we have two cats in our house hold. 

Enjoy the sun everybody!!

Down to Zero

 

I absolutely love this photo because in my book of life, it could not be more true.

Yes, you can choose to be happy! & it is good for your health! 

How can feeling good and all other things that come with being happy, not be good for your health?

Today is my last day of school.  I just found out I got a 95% combined total on both of my finals. I am so ecstatic! Is it cheesy to say I'm proud of myself? I am a queen of procrastination and in the past I have known myself to even skimp on school work that I find extremely important to me. 

It started when I was studying American Sign Language. We were assigned books to read and even though I don't like reading much I thought to myself, these are going to be so awesome to read! Yet, I found myself skimming through or spark noting them. I did not read those books.

Eventually came culinary school, where I really hardly procrastinated at all...in the beginning. Then over half way through the program I realized I didn't need to be studying as hard as I was and I cut myself a bit of slack...

Starting in culinary school to fully realizing it here at NPTI, I have come to the conclusion that I love learning! It is something that shocks me because I have never been one to be very excited about school. Yet now that I have found a couple things that I am extremely passionate about I can't help myself, I want to keep learning and educating myself. I want to know all there is to know in my profession so I can better help others. I don't think I have ever been so excited to go out and start a new job! I am so excited to start training! It really is one of my dream jobs (a job including traveling and/or photography is ideal). I am helping people better their lives, I get to work with them directly and actually get to know them, while working out and sharing my knowledge! How does it get better than that?!

I just can't explain how happy I am. I know this may not be ideal for everyone, but that's okay. Find your niche. It's not impossible & if you would like, I'm happy to help get you there.

24 weeks already?!?

Time has flown by!

I cannot believe how fast the past 6 months have come [and gone].

Not only did I grow up with my grandparents, but I have actually worked with quite a few older folk so far in my life. There are a couple common words of advice I hear regularly from the 'elderly' generation and I want to share them with you. 

These words have stuck with me and I am really starting to take them to heart. 

First off they always tell me that they wish they would've taken better care of their bodies when they were younger. This really speaks to me. If you think about it, the way the body naturally deteriorates as you age, it makes a lot of sense to gear yourself up with a solid base so to speak. Though I do want it to be very clear that, metaphorically speaking, you can teach an old dog new tricks! If you are older and living a weak or sedentary lifestyle don't be discouraged, it's easier than you think to turn yourself around.

The second thing I am most commonly told is that the older you get the faster time seems to fly and enjoy every minute of it while you can. Take your time. With this advice I believe it is most important to live your life day by day and to the fullest each day. I think it is important to stop and ask yourself that seemingly brutal question, what if I died tomorrow? Seriously, how would you feel about your life so far? Are there things you would change? Why not start making those changes now? What do you think you have to wait for?

I now have 3 days until I am done with school at the National Personal Training Institute of Portland. One written final down (feel very good about it!) & one practical final to go. I also updated my Progress tab and wrote a little summary about my goal over the course of this program.
I'll write soon about April goals, etc.

I also think I am starting an internship at a gym...I'll keep you posted on that as well.

Take care for now.

Meditation

Have you ever meditated or even considered doing it?

For me, the first time I think I ever truly meditated was in a yoga class that my gym at the time offered. Looking back now I didn't even realize I had been mediating. At the end of the yoga class the instructor had up lay back on our mats with our eyes closed, focus on deep breathing with lovely nature-type music playing softly in the room. Go to a peaceful place in your mind, forget all worries, stresses and cares you might have with you today. Let them roll off you like a drop of water. I left that yoga class feeling so freaking relaxed, calm, clear-headed, and simply blissful. At the time I was completely blown away by the kind of high you could get off of just taking a yoga class.

As years have passed I've learned quite a bit about meditation but I do not practice it regularly. Every time it is brought to attention again I want to start getting into it. 

It was brought to my attention again today, so I Googled a bit of information on it. If you didn't already know meditation can help you to be less stressed and have a new outlook on stressful situations. It can also help you get in more in touch with yourself. People don't usually listen to their bodies very often, they just simply think and act. According to this Mayo Clinic article meditation can also help you to focus on the present and reduce negative emotions. 

There are several different types of meditation that I read about in the Mayo Clinic article. (I do recommend that you read it to!) The one I realized that I do from time to time on my own is called Guided or Imagery/Visualization. I go to a place in my mind that I have just completely made up, if it does exist I would love to go there or one day I would love to create this place for myself. I go to this place in times when I just need to cool down, want to feel more relaxed/calm or even when I am having a hard time falling asleep. 

Slowly, over time, I have added things into this place; but when it all started I was sitting beneath one giant tree on top of a hill. The hill, under the tree that I was sitting on was in the middle of a giant open lusciously grassy green field. Down the hill and onward just a bit, the edge of field comes to a forest. The forest is filled with trees just like the one I am sitting under. If I were to walk through the forest in the middle of the day the sun would beam down through the trees and it would be easy to take a stroll through it. It is always sunny and warm here. Sometimes there is no noise, sometimes the birds are chirping and the wind is warmly blowing about. After awhile I added another large tree and placed a hammock between the two. I don't often lay in the hammock but it is nice every once in awhile. Today I added a single bamboo fence, maybe about six feet long, just a few feet away from the trees & hammock. The bamboo fence still sits on top of hill and beyond it, some time I will plant a little garden. But for now I am using it to be able to lay down and do any type of stretching I like with it's assistance. I also brought my cat Dina here today, where she shall stay from now on. She likes to sleep in the hammock. 

Where would you go if you could just to get away? 

What kind of place comes to mind? 

You don't have to go into great detail. You also don't have to practice this type of meditation.

I do challenge you to try doing it though. Even if it is just for a couple minutes. 

Sit down, breathe deeply, let there be light soothing music or no sound at all--so your mind does not wander. Concentrate on your breathing and positive things in your life. Let go of every single negative feeling you have been holding on to, because it's simply your choice to be holding on to it.

Let go, feel freer and continue on with your day a little more relaxed/open-minded.

Inspiration of the Day

Quote of Day

"Discipline is choosing what you want most over what you want right now."

*I found these pictures from two other favorite blogs of mine. Click the photos to go to those blogs.*

Inspiration

Everyone needs a little inspiration. Today I have been inspired by my cousin's blog: Our Lovely Life. She was talking about how she is waiting for Spring to come. Spring is a great thing, but I am waiting for summer! Just a reminder, if you haven't been keeping track summer is just a couple months away! My summer starts in May, so that is just ~10ish weeks away. Do you have plans for this summer? You must have some idea of what you want to do! Whether it is as simple as going to the beach or on a picnic, I have some suggestions to keep you inspired and hopefully also motivated.

First off, remember your resolutions! January was now three months ago but that is no excuse to steer clear of your resolutions, fitness or not. If they have changed that's fine and understandable--mine seem to change weekly--but why do you make up resolutions in the first place? To hold yourself to something of some sort? Make new ones if you need to! After January my new resolution was to have a new resolution for every month, while sticking to my original resolution for the year. I am a goal oriented person though, so making resolutions and setting goals and marking my progress really help me accomplish the things I want to.

Secondly, make a small list (physical or mental) of what you have planned to do or what you want to do this summer. Then find specific pictures to go with those things. For example, I am going to the Sasquatch Music Festival on Memorial day weekend in May, so I found the photo below of the music festival that portrays it in all it's beauty. It's in the Gorge!

 

Once you find at least one photo for each thing you want to do put them in a folder on your desktop. I titled my folder Summer Inspiration. As each event gets closer put each image as your background, or if you aren't sure what you're doing collage a few images together and post them as your background.

Right now I have the picture above as my background photo for inspiration to get my butt in gear for summer because after this festival summer will be in full throttle and who knows how much time I will be spending at the gym. My next big event is going to Vegas in July, so I compiled the picture below of the swimming pool at the hotel I am staying at!

After the Sasquatch Music Festival I am definitely going to put this as my background photo and hopefully it will keep me from eating all the delicious summer sweets and maybe even keep me in the gym or get me out on a few nice summer sun runs.

Lastly I am going to Hawaii in August with my man and his family. We will be staying in the beautiful Kauai! I have never been, but it's HAWAII! We will be spending 12 days there. So below is a beautiful picture of the bay right outside where we are staying and also a view off the front porch of the house we will be staying in:

SO, these are the things that are inspiring & motivating me to get off the couch and do some yoga, stretching, leg lifts, go for a walk, or something active in my spare time. You don't even have to put your pictures in the order you will be enjoying them. Like I said, make a collage of all the images, or just rotate them regularly. You could even put them as a background on your phone, print them out and hang a picture next to your bed, by the bathroom mirror, etc. etc. Somewhere where you will see them and be reminded daily of the things you are set out to accomplish.

I hope you find some nice inspiration in this. Enjoy the rest of your day.

Progression is Exciting

I went skating this last Friday and all the balancing techniques I have been working on in my training is 100% helping me on my skates! It is so excited and completely blows me away. I hope that one day I can help clients feel this good about something they want to accomplish!

When I first started skating, about a month ago now, I was very nervous on just a single leg, let alone on my left (I am a right handed person, meaning most everything else seems to be right-side dominant)! Skating on Friday I was blown away when I could easily and comfortably skate on a single leg. I am not longer feeling wobbly or like I am going to fall at all. I think in the last month I have only fallen twice and I fell forward both times!--this is awesome because in roller derby you do not want to fall on your butt.

I have been stretching way more often and now I am certainly going to keep up with my balance and one-legged/one-armed work-out routines. I am also adding endurance and agility into my regular workouts. I really need to push myself through the endurance training though, because it is not something I am used to at all and therefore is incredibly difficult for me.

Below is m work-out from today. Hope you have a great Monday!

10 wall ball squat and throws with a 20# ball
15 each leg single leg lunges, with back leg on a slide board (slick surface)
10 assisted pull-ups
15 assisted push-ups
10 each side wall ball side throws

March

Okay, so I know it's been forever and I realize I am just getting worse at updating this thing, but I don't want it to be like that. I think I'm going to invent more hours in the day! 

Anyway, I now have three weeks left of school. Three weeks until the final week that is, that's how I like to do my count downs. I feel like I have a lot of things I want to do and need to do to get my ball rolling. I am going to settle and figure out my rates this month and hopefully make a flyer to post around a few places. It would be amazing if I could get a couple clients in Seattle during the summer and travel back and forth. Once I get things more solid and figured out I will post an extra page here explaining everything, so you or anyone you know who might be interested can come and read the details before contacting me, if they want to.

I have already put in my notice here at the nanny house. I think one of my good friends is going to take over my position as well. She would be an amazing fit, so much more patient and just overall better with kids than I am. 

March is going to be a very busy month for me. I can't believe we are already getting into the third month of the year. Keeping in touch with January, are you still sticking to your goals? I have two goals for March. The first is to graduate from school on time and pass my test with at least an 85 (although I will still be happy to pass with an 80--the minimum is 70). Second, I want to have my NASM certification test all lined up and ready to take by the first part of April, so I will need to figure it all out by the end of March.

Other things in march:
-My birthday
-St. Patty's Day
-One of my dear friend's due date
-Lots of baseball games & photo shoots
-Skating & training for roller derby.

Oh yeah! I want to try out for roller derby in September...when I move to Seattle!
More on that to come later :)

Official Update

The last few weeks I have been struggling with the gluten free dieting. I finally got through my fake sausage & chik'n patties, think I have overcome my weaknesses like bread and pasta, & also think I am brave enough to be that ultra picky diner out at the restaurant. Yesterday (Saturday February 11th) was my official day 1 of being gluten free. I even went out to burgers tonight and found a restaurant that had a gluten free bun option. It was very delicious.

Last week I got a new gym membership too! I am quite excited about this. Very much looking forward to getting some extra cardio on! The membership is only $10.95/month with no contracts and was only $15 to sign up this month. It is actually a very nice, large, gym with lots of nice/new equipment. The motto is "No Judgements" which I can dig. If you are interested at all you can click HERE to check it out. My location is Beaverton.

Being that it is February now, I have completed a second assessment on myself as far as physical activity. The results were quite satisfying being that my top new years resolution was to decrease my body fat percentage and build lean muscle.

In the last month I have lost 4.6 pounds, a half inch off my waist, a fourth inch off my hips and one and a half inches off my thighs. I also decreased my body fat percentage by 3.07% and increased my lean body mass by 1.29 pounds. It feels good and is exciting, but what I am more excited about is doing out partner training in school again. We just got our partners and did initial assessments this last week. I am just now remembering that I need to have a work out for my partner tomorrow. My partner is a bit younger than me, very fit guy (7% body fat) with goals that I have not yet worked with such as being more mobile and agile. I will admit that it is quite intimidating working with 1. a male and 2. a very fit and strong male. I will let you know how it is goes. I am excited to see what kind of work outs he is going to have for me.

Take care all.

February: Gluten Free

I am constantly coming up with ideas and goals that I want to set and accomplish and they seem to be all over the board. There are really only a handful that I end up going through with. That said, I have newly decided that I want to make a resolution for each month this year, while still sticking to the original resolutions I had. I will dub January the kick off of the new year and therefore the month where I started putting my new years resolutions into action. February is going to be gluten free month. I'm practically ready.

I went to the grocery store and bought some brow rice bread and tortillas but I also bought some veggie chik'n patties and veggie breakfast sausages...not realizing that these contain wheat and wheat gluten until after I had gotten home and thrown away the receipt. It's going to take me a little bit to get the hang of not eating gluten, but I think once I have it down I will be able to stick with it for awhile. I am thinking possibly til summer, but who knows. I am not allergic to gluten (that I know of) and I do not have celiacs disease. I am just so curious about this feeling people tell me that you feel when you stop eating gluten. A girl in my class that is extremely intolerant to gluten and cannot have any contact with it whatsoever was telling me how surprised you would be by some things caused by gluten. From skin conditions to headaches and even depression, can all be caused by gluten. I've been told it takes ~3 months for your body to realize and process the shift to gluten free so if I adapt easily enough in February I will continue on. I am very excited and curious about this change. I like challenging myself.

I've been extremely busy lately. 

I had my first fashion show this last weekend. It was fun and quite the experience but the event itself was unfortunately very unorganized and overall a little bit of a disappointment. I feel so happy to have friends and family that care for me. I couldn't help but apologize to them and feel guilty, especially for making them pay to come to such an unorganized event. I really do feel like I could've organized that event better...not to be cocky or anything. But everyone told me they were happy to go, also for the experience, and that they were happy to be there to support me. I love all my friends and family. They've all helped me become the person I am today.

I have a few tests to study for these days. I had some roommates move out and new ones moved in. I am still working on my fitness goals and also trying to buckle down on a business plan and decide what I want to do when I graduate school in 8 weeks!!! 

I've included my work out of the day (WOD) from yesterday below. I can definitely feel it today. I added a few things to challenge myself and I've found that I am definitely getting stronger in my push-ups and pull-ups!

>Side Lunge on Bosu with dumbbell curl --10 ea side
>Dead lift, straight leg, 30# --15
>Squat with dumbbell shoulder press --10

>Pull-ups (mod. as needed) --10
>Push ups (mod. as needed) --16

I'll be sure to keep ya'll posted. Keep up with all of your hard work and new years resolutions!

Yesterday's WOD

single arm dumbbell bench press 30 secs each side

single arm reverse flies with dumbbell 30 secs each side

pull-ups (assisted) 30 secs

push-ups (assisted) 30 secs

isolated side lunges with dumbbell curl 30 secs each side

bulgarian squat (one legged squat with dorsi flex) 30 secs each side

cross-over step-ups (make sure to step-up and down with the same leg) 30 secs each side

*Complete 3 rounds, with 1 minute of rest after each

Of course, don't forget to warm-up and cool-down :)

>I pushed myself hard on this one, to the point where I felt like throwing up. Now that's when you know you've got a good work-out in. Remember to push yourself but don't go overboard. You are the only one that knows your limits. Don't forget to breathe through everything! Breathing let's your body know you are okay even if you are hurting and/or pushing it super hard!

On the Countdown!!

Already less than 10 weeks of school? Okay! 

Dang the days are passing me by quick! I am so excited, I feel like March onward is just an opening of a whole new chapter in my life. 

This past week has been amazing! I never would have thought it could have gone over so well...
I worked out every single day except for Friday I took a little break. Dancing is a great way to work-up a sweat and get your cardio on! Why not throw your own dance party in your bedroom where you can bust out all of your favorite moves and sing along to the music, pick all the songs...its a win win situation if you ask me.

I learned a bunch about stretching this week and am definitely trying to incorporate that into everyday routines, just adding it on to my work-outs. 

My weekend wouldn't have been complete if I hadn't made some more cheesy collages for my liking! I made a real nice one with a friend on Saturday with lots of magazine clippings, but I also made this one and currently have it as my background on my computer: 

"Make Everything for that Pool Side Moment"

I want to be fit for summer this year! My goals are totally realistic with the fitness level I am now at and I have 4 months (minimum) to complete this goal and 5 months (maximum) til June, where the summer sun [usually] starts shining. The goal more specifically is toning my body to the point where you can start to see outline of muscle in my shoulders, stomach (abs), and thighs. It's going to be so much easier than I ever thought, at least after this week that is how I am feeling.

After this week I feel like I am starting to become a tiny bit obsessed with working out, which I suppose is a good thing being that it is what I want to make a career out of. Maybe the word obsessed isn't exactly right, it sounds almost negative, but I feel like I love working out more than ever. My body starts to feel tight and uncomfortable if I go without working out for just one day and I feel this way even more if I don't incorporate some stretching into my life a little bit every day. 

How are you all doing on your new years resolutions?
Are you sticking to your goals?
Are your goals realistic?

If you want to talk about anything I'm all ears!
I love helping people anyway that I can and I want as much practice with anything and everything in the next two months before I graduate, so please, throw something at me!

:) I hope to post a very delicious recipe for Potato Leek Soup soon...until next time.

MAKE THIS WEEK BETTER THAN THE LAST!

10th Week of School....9 to Go

That's my kitty.
I wanted to post a cute little picture and thought I'd include this one. It's just after I got her in February 2010, she was 6 months old then.

Today I got 'snowed in' at the house I nanny at. They live on a hill and I don't have snow tires or very good brakes. The boy I nanny also stayed home from school today because all he ate yesterday was dinner and therefore his stomach was not happy with him all night. We've been watching movies all day and basically being lazy. I've been trying to read up on my school stuff since I missed the day, but my attention spand is short. 

Yesterday I talked to one of my teachers about my goals to make sure I am on the right path to accomplishing them. For the most part I am...If I could keep up with the work-out routines on the weekends and not eat a bunch of crap food. HOPEFULLY this week/end will be better. 

I completed a nice full-body work-out yesterday and I'm feeling it today! Especially in my abs. I was just thinking to myself yesterday that I want to start working out my lower abs more...I think I found the secret. An ab roller. I incorporated one into my workout and I am feeling that oh-so-good-pain in my abs just where I want to today. 

Below is the work-out..Feel free to modify however you feel needed.

10 Pull-ups
15 Push-ups
30 Stability Ball Crunches
15 (each leg) Cross-over Step-ups
5 slow/well done ab rolls (with an ab roller)

*Complete 3 rounds with 30 seconds of rest in between each
Remember to cool down and warm up!

Boot camp style work-out

Jump rope for 15 seconds
10 sumo squat kettle bell swings
15 moving planks
50 curtsy lunges (25 each side)
Bicep curls, shoulder press and Arnold press -- 10 each
Quick feet (works best with ladder, but improvise!)
Hold boat (15 seconds)

*3 rounds, 30secs-1 minute of rest in between each

Don't forget to warm yourself up - get that heart rate up!
& cool down - help get your heart rate back down!

 

1 of 12 Weeks Complete

Sunday night, ending my first week of the last twelve of school. Eleven more to go.

It was a pretty good week. I tracked what time I woke, what I ate, when I went to sleep and my workouts everyday. Paying close to attention to how long my stomach stays full from meal to meal and how what I eat makes my body feel. So far I have found that eating a starchy-ish lunch at 11:30am will keep me full through the afternoon (until ~6 or 7pm). I worked out 5 days this week, took 1 day off completely and took another day to spend time stretching, spending two minutes on each stretch; because in school we learned that the minimum amount of time to make a difference on a muscle when stretching it is 2 minutes. Yes this seems like a long time! But I've found if you relax, put on some tunes and also get a timer you can just set the timer, really relax and get into your stretch and just wait to hear the timer buzz.

I think I want to continue with this and make it a regular pattern.
Work out 5 days per week, take 1 day off and take 1 day to stretch.
I have told myself (and successfully held myself to it) last week that I would take a half hour to work out every day after school that we didn't work out hard in class.
I continue to do this until I graduate school.

Going back to my regular diet last week was surprisingly easy and my body took it really well. I thought I would have horrible cravings and that it would be hard to eat small things every few hours, but it wasn't, it came easy. However regardless of not having the cravings I still ate like crap the last two days (Saturday and Sunday). I want to curb the habits of eating horribly on the weekends. It is too easy to do but I know it can also be easy to break.

Also, come February I think I want to try a gluten free diet. It is going to be hard, because I love bread, but I've been talking to a few friends about it and reading a bit about it online and I think it is completely do-able. If it comes easy enough for me in February I want to continue on with the diet for a few months and see how my body feels, then test how my body reacts if I switch back to a gluten based diet. 

This next week I will try to post a little more, at least with my daily exercises, to try and keep a little motivation up for you readers out there. 

remember:

"Just a little bit a day gets you a long way."

Another New Beginning

The start of another new year. Time to resolve something, right? I personally just love setting goals and feel like this a great time to really get a lift off on things. There is a lot of extra motivation going into the last 3 months of school! I have roughly 4 official 2012 new years resolutions.

The first one is to drink less. It's not that I drink a lot, but I do drink. I want to cut it down to a goal of maybe 4-6 times per month. I am going to make a mark on my calendar whenever I do drink so I can total it up and see where I'm at by the end of the month. It is not only for health reasons/benefits, but to save money too!

I also want to decrease my body fat percentage and increase my lean muscle mass, particularly targeting my thighs and core. I am very excited to work on reaching this goal! It's probably the biggest goal of mine and ties in directly with things that we do in and for school. Towards the beginning of December my body fat had decreased to ~19%. I am not completely positive on what a reasonable body fat percentage goal might be so I am just going to have a goal to decrease it as much as possible and see where I am at by the end of three months. How might I make sure to stay on top of this?

Well, that is where my third goal comes in. I am going to pay more attention to my eating habits and change them as necessary to be more beneficial to my over all day. I have previously touched on this a bit, but in school we talk a lot about paying attention to the way the food we eat makes us feel, how long we stay full, the energy it gives us, etc. I bought some instant oatmeal to be able to make in the morning and I think I am going to make smoothies to take with me in the morning and drink once I get to school, since that is the time I usually become hungry again. Additionally I would like to cut my intake on fats, unnecessary sugars and carbs, such as candies, chips, chocolates, etc. I definitely want to watch my intake on carbs coming into the new year!

I got a stability ball for Christmas so I plan on using that tons in my work outs to come in this new year. In general I would like to stretch more and just keep eating healthy, in a strict way, but when I am strict about eating it just comes naturally and I enjoy eating that way, rather than it actually being a strict diet or something. 

Coming into the second half of school I am now known as a returner. We will be spending the first three weeks or so going over how to measure circumferences, body fat percentages, work with clients, etc. etc. Touch on all the basics. I want to keep dibs on myself every three weeks. Re-take measurements and all that. I am no longer expecting to reach my weight goal, with the regular fluctuations in the last weeks I feel like my body may be at a point where I am starting to build lean muscle mass and am no longer losing a lot of fat. As long as I work hard towards my goals I will consider rewarding myself with the tattoo that I want.

I was invited to go to LA with my aunts to visit a cousin that lives down there for a weekend after I graduate. As much as I really want to go, I've decided to pass up the opportunity. I would rather save my money for certification exams to come after I graduate. I may even have to put my tattoo on hold if it ends up costing too much, as I suspect it might. I am going to give myself a price limit, so I don't over-do it. But I have so many travel plans I want to do this summer and they are so more important to me than getting a tattoo. I can get this tattoo at any time in my life. It is to last forever anyway, why not wait?

I hope you all enjoyed your holidays and do well sticking to your goals and resolutions this new year. I am here to help, let me know if you have any questions or I can help you in anyway. Best wishes to you all. Happy new year, 2012!!