Winter Weekends And Stretchy Goals

After my last workout I had a rough recovery day. Not in terms of my muscles, they seemed quite fine, but the rest of my body had quite the time reminding me that I am still sick! I was exhausted all of Saturday and had practically no appetite whatsoever. I must have watched White Christmas at least twice and felt terrible about how lazy I was being. Rest days have always been a struggle for me because I have always felt the need to be doing something. A day without work, exercise, or any other sort of activity feels like a complete waste. And I can hardly believe any of you would be interested in photos of me in my pajamas catching up on tv if any such things even existed.

My same friend who worked out with me on Friday wanted to know when we could hit the gym again and after a day of pure boredom I was thrilled to know I would have a regular gym buddy for the winter. We agreed to meet up Sunday morning and got started right away. While she did her cardio warm up I hit the mats for a bit of stretching and yoga since cardio is still off limits until I'm no longer sick.

Stretching has always been my least favorite element of a healthy lifestyle since I was little. Even as a kindergartner who cartwheeled her way through life I hated having to sit down and work on my flexibility. Stretching always felt like more of that dreaded rest I mentioned earlier and never seemed nearly as fun as all the other workouts.

 But as I've grown up I've come to understand its importance, not that I've gone ahead and done anything about it; my splits - the ones I used to have as a high school cheerleader - are far above the floor these days.

A back handspring from way back in the day

They are also my latest goal. I'd like to have them back. And not just "someday". I know better than to set a goal for myself without a deadline. So I'm telling you now, I intend to have my splits by the first day of March, 2014. I'll keep you updated on my progress but here is where I'm at now.

My "good side" left leg forward splits

My right leg forward splits - this side has always been tighter

After an agonizing half hour of bending and twisting in ways I haven't in months my friend finished her run and we were ready to hit the weights!

It was a short and sweet session today but I was still pretty winded by the end. I know I've got a long time before I'll be back to where I was before I got sick but I'm willing to do whatever it takes to not only get back there but to surpass it and rise even higher.


Shirt: Nike
Shorts: Nike
Shoes: Adidas

"Rest Day"

After much debate and several sleepless nights I finally went in to see a doctor to figure out what was up with this whole not getting better thing. I had typed my symptoms into webmd and they told me it could pretty much be anything from allergies to cancer so when the doc said sinus infection my first question was, "So, can I still run?" Turns out, intensive cardiovascular activity makes sinus infections worse. Ooopsie! The doctor actually told me to take the rest of the week (and most of next week) off. Total bummer. On the other hand, pushing it too hard too quickly could turn this into pneumonia, making what I've got now seem like a minor annoyance so I'll take her advice and get a little rest. But the second I'm good to go I'll be back with a vengeance. After all, seven days of rest make one weak! And there is a massive difference between looking fit and being fit. I'd prefer the latter so I'm giving myself some rest, for now.

Or so I thought...when I got a text from one of my very best friends saying she was in need of a sweat session I couldn't help but join in. She had mentioned only ever joining me for arms days so I tried to mix it up a bit and work a little of everything for her. I had her begin with 30 minutes on the arc trainer at level 10 (that puts her resistance at 45) and I joined her after the cardio was done.

I was inspired to throw some of these in thanks to scrolling through the instagram account of the fabulous Shauna Harrison. She's one of the inspiring women sponsored by Under Armour and has a PhD in Public Health. She also posts great exercises to her instagram in both photo and video form.

Just a heads up, this is killer on your wrists so if you've been having any problems with them, you might want to ease up or save it for another day!

Bone Chilling Cold

This week has had temperatures below freezing but the sliver lining was a couple days of beautiful sunshine! I planned ahead to run on what would be the sunniest and "warmest" days. Unfortunately the weather man wasn't quite as accurate as I'd hoped. My run was sunny but so cold I couldn't feel my face! I cut my run short because despite my many (warmest) layers I was expelling heat too quickly and not able to warm up. It actually took another hour beside the fire before I fully regained feeling in my extremities.

I was reminded why I used to do hot yoga in the winters! 90 degrees is definitely preferable to 20! I only saw three other people on the trail at a time that is usually incredibly popular...hmm can't imagine why that might have been...

When it took me so long to warm up I imagined it was only because I hadn't dressed warm enough, not because I was starting to get sick. That is, until I worked out with my grandma the next day.

As I've mentioned before, my grandmother come in to work out with me on Thursdays. On this particular day we did similar, though not identical routines.  

We warmed up with 5 minutes on the arc trainer. She was at level 5 and I was at level 15.

Then, since it was leg day, we each set up a circuit. I had my squat rack and a box. She had a 20lb bar and, because the boxes were all a little too high for her, I had stacked up a few plates for her to step up on to. She's not at box jumps yet, but she'll get there! I was also extremely proud of her for moving up from doing squats with a 10lb dumbbell to the 20lb bar this week!

For best results, do the calf raises on the box and make sure to drop your heels (as controlled as possible) below parallel to where your toes are standing on the box.

My grandmother couldn't get down on a mat for the medicine ball V-ups (for obvious reasons) so she did alternating reps of 10 on the oblique twister machine instead (technical sounding, I know). 

For our cool down we spent the last five minutes on a treadmill at a fast walk.

When we'd finished I was completely winded, it was as if I hadn't worked out in months! I even had to knock off 10lbs from what I normally squat in order to not feel crushed by the weight. A workout like this would normally completely wipe out my grandma and be written off as an active rest day for me but it was the complete opposite. She felt stronger than ever and I needed a break!

This was when I decided to take the rest of the weekend off to rest and get my strength back. I went out to the movies with friends - side note, everyone should go see Frozen - then stayed in to catch up on some reading, I got my latest issue of Runner's World Magazine. And taking some time off seemed to work!

 I was back to feeling much more like myself by Monday and bundled up for a quick four miles outside before the sun set. 14 degrees doesn't feel so bad when you keep moving - at least that's what I kept telling myself, it was still pretty chilly out.

I might be sensing a pattern developing but I didn't feel so great again on Tuesday and took the night off with a promise to myself to resume working out by the end of the week. We'll see how that goes....

HIIT - High Intensity Interval Training

Yesterday's work out was short and sweet since I was trying to get home for Monday Night Football. (Go Seahawks!!) I grabbed a box and a kettlebell (though you could also use a dumbbell) and got right to work with my eye on the clock.

My goal was to work up a sweat in as little time as possible so I took a page out of the HIIT work book. High Intensity Interval Training is designed to get you moving and that it did! My workout is below for all of you and I highly suggest you try it out! I didn't specify any number of rounds this time because that's completely up to you, your fitness levels, and how much time you've got to spare.

I was able to finish three rounds in 15 minutes but would have liked to do maybe five or six rounds if I hadn't been in such a time crunch. It got my heart rate up and I could feel it working, but, like I said, maybe a few more rounds would be even better for next time. Over all this was a great workout and I would absolutely do it again.

Hills, Love 'em and Hate 'em

Runners have a unique relationship with hills. Everyone knows they need to practice running on them but only a mad few actually enjoy it. I'm just as guilty of skipping hill work as anyone. And I have no excuse, I live at the top of one! It has gotten so bad that I legitimately drive one mile down hill to the gym, leave my stuff there, run on the trail next to the gym and then go back to the gym to work out before driving one mile home. I have gotten stuck in traffic on my way to the gym. Something that is honestly embarrassing. This weekend we've been riddled with storm warnings and I was saying how lucky I was that I could walk to the gym if my car got snowed into the garage. Then I heard what I had said....pretty sad, isn't it?

So guess who ran to the gym today? This girl! Getting there is fine, absolutely no problem. Getting back home, on the other hand, is a battle of the wills. One mile that is completely up hill after an already grueling workout did not my shining moment make. I just kept reminding myself "You don't get better at running hills by walking them."

I used to run this hill no problem, used to do it all the time. But that was a couple years ago. I know all I need to do is keep practicing but it's still gonna take a while before I feel any sort of speedy on my way home.

In between my mile runs today I did manage to stick it out at the gym for a great workout. All I needed was a 40lb bar, a medicine ball, a 10lb plate, and a mat.

I used the 40lb bar for the Thrusters, Lunges, Deadlifts, and Squats. The 10lb plate for the Inverted Sit ups and Russian Twists, the medicine ball for the Vups and the mat for all the ab work that required me to be on the floor.

This workout combined with my hilly two miles ended up being a great workout I have no doubt I'll be doing again in the near future.

Pre-Thanksgiving FRAN

Wednesday was a bit of a zany day as everyone got ready for Thanksgiving. People were going and coming like crazy both at work and home. I knew I would be taking today off to spend the day with my family so I wanted to make sure I got in at least one good work out before indulging on the Thanksgiving Feast. Clearly, I wasn't the only one who felt the need to earn their slice of pumpkin pie since the gym was packed!

I knew I needed a workout that would make me feel sore enough to eat mindfully rather than to stuff myself past what I would normally eat and so enters Fran. Fran is not a real person, at least not as far as I've ever heard, but she is one heck of a solid work out. Crossfitters have a love/hate relationship with their workouts but as someone who doesn't actually practice crossfit on a regular basis I just have to go in knowing I'm gonna get my butt kicked.

I do enjoy the occasional crossfit WOD but for the most part stick to workouts that I know. Having been a gymnast on and off for the last 19 years and a varsity athlete in high school, I have a pretty sufficient knowledge of challenging exercises to run through and mix them up enough to never really get bored. But occasionally I have to go to outside sources to find just what I'm looking for. This week, that was Fran.

Foolishly, I didn't think Fran would be enough and started off with 30 minutes on the arc trainer, my new favorite thing. Turns out, there is a drastic difference between 15 and 30 minutes on that beast. Especially when you keep your heart rate above 185 the entire time. I looked, and smelled, like death by the time I was done and had already committed to doing Fran as well as an abdominal circuit before heading home. Lord, what fools these mortals be. First I was too short to even reach the bar but once I had a friend lower it for me (yes, I really am that short) I was ready to go. I will not say it was my best time, my pull ups were more than rusty and ended in a couple chin up holds while I caught my breath. I was just happy to have finished. That is, until I remembered I still needed to do abs.

I grabbed a mat and a 10 pound weight and got to work.

I held the small 10lb disk against my chest during the crunches. During the Russian twists I held the weight slightly in front of my torso so I could tap it on the ground each time I turned.

By the time I had finished with my entire workout I had to peel myself off the floor. It hurt to laugh, to pick up my purse, to walk out to my car. The works. I knew I had done well when I arrived home and was still warm enough from my workout to put on a tank top and shorts while everyone else was bundled up and huddled around the fire.

I had a deliciously high protein dinner of crab legs with fresh fruit for dessert. I passed up on the cookies the boys were chowing down on knowing eating too many sweets in a week would make me sick. The willpower it took to turn down those freshly baked chocolate chip cookies was harder than I would have liked but I survived. Yep, I totally earned that slice of pie with extra whipped cream.

Cardio Tester: Arc Trainer

After discussing our favorite cardio options at work yesterday (mine being running or using the stair master) my co-workers gave me a hard time about never having used the Arc Trainer. I had never seen the need to use it before since I got all I needed from running and stairs but I told them I'd give it a try. 

Turns out, the arc trainer is my new favorite indoor cardio option! It combines the movements of the stair master with the elliptical (a machine I abhore) and gives you the feeling of running uphill in a way that you can't get from simply increasing the incline on a treadmil. 

I bumped the arc trainer up to level 10 and did my best to sprint for 15 minutes as my warmup. According to the machine, not only did I get my heart rate up but I managed to burn 200 calories before I even went a mile! Score! 

After my magical new warmup I set up the circuit below for my workout.

There's not any gymnastics this week becase of Thanksgiving so I won't be able to begin two-a-days until next week.