April 21, 2015 by Stephanie

Fit for Me 16/52

What I did last week:

Wednesday-20 minutes of Ab stuff.

Thursday-I did an at-home workout for my legs. I held George while I did 5 sets of squats, lunges, and calf raises.

Saturday-1 hour of BodyPump. I got through every song except triceps and shoulders (no surprise there). Triceps I am usually good at, but I tried to up my weight to soon. Note taken body.

Sunday-This day was interesting workout wise. I set out early in the morning to walk the dogs, but it started pouring so we circled the block and maybe completed a quarter of a mile. It looked like it was going to rain all day so I planned to do two rounds of stairs for 10 minutes. I completed my first set during George’s first nap. Then the weather cleared up so I figured I would take the dogs out again. We ended up doing around 30 minutes of walking. My calves still hurt from those stairs though.

Tuesday-30 minutes on a treadmill. I did the trail workout, which is basically a hill workout but it randomly changes for you.

Impressed by:

Attempting my workout in so many ways on Sunday. You really do have to make the time.

Struggled with:

I forgot to work out on Monday which is usually a short ab day. I was too excited about looking at kid’s book for a book party I was part of on Facebook. So I struggled with that distraction and also not buying all the books. (I didn’t buy all the books, but I wanted to!)

Did I meet my goal from last week?

I did meet my goal. I actually really liked the preset workout on the treadmill. I wasn’t able to run all of it because I thought I would fall of the treadmill at an incline any higher than a 5, but it was still a great workout. It was nice to just let the incline change randomly instead of having to worry about changing it myself.

What is my goal for next week?

I want to add planks to my ab workouts. Ugh I always feel like a wimp at BodyPump because I wobble like crazy even just on my knees. I want to get better at this.

Fitness Thoughts:

I know I talked about treadmills last week, but does anyone else look at the person next to them to see how they measure up on a treadmill. I hate when someone gets on the machine next to me because I feel like I am in competition with them. I rarely win though…

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Advice on adding planks to my regiment? How do you find time when you workout plans go sour?

April 15, 2015 by Stephanie

Fit For Me 15/52

Just a recap since I am 15 weeks in. I started this journey of documenting my weekly workouts to keep myself accountable to being healthy for myself. After giving birth to George in August, I really wanted my workouts to be a time to refocus on myself and be healthy for me. In turn, I am hoping that it creates balance in other areas of my life.

I do feel stronger and better about myself just after a few months. I may not be where I want to be physically but I am definitely better than I was when I started. This has also been a process of giving myself grace as well and remembering this is an adventure to be healthy for me and not healthy for some athlete model.

What I did last week:

Thursday-30 minutes on the treadmill. This one was a real struggle. I ended up doing a walking hill climb because I couldn’t catch my breath running.

Saturday-30 minutes walking with the family. Pushing a stroller is a surprisingly good workout.

Sunday-30 minutes run/walk with the dogs. We managed to get it in before the downpour that day! (Hence the running part…)

Monday-20 minute ab workout.

Tuesday-30 minutes on a bike.

Impressed by:

I started thinking about it on our walk in the sprinkle on Sunday that I am pretty proud of myself for being able to walk two 75lb dogs simultaneously while alone. We have a pretty good rhythm as a trio, and I can get them to follow my lead 95% of the time while we are on our walks. Professional dog walker is in my future! (Only if I have a professional poop picker upper tagging along.)

Struggled with:

I was really upset with myself that I couldn’t run on the treadmill on Thursday. It’s not like I can blame the changing weather for my breathing issues because I was inside. But instead of quitting like I have been known to do before when my breathing becomes an issue, I kept myself going on a moderate level doing a hill workout instead. I still managed to get my legs working without compromising my lungs.

Did I meet my goal from last week?

So my goal was to walk at least 10,000 steps each day, again. After epically failing the week before, I really tried to make a better effort of getting off my tush more at work. I was about 50/50 on it, which is a vast improvement over my one day last week. Either I completely sailed it out of the park exceeding my goal by a thousand or more, or I missed it by a couple thousand. Monday was my worst day missing it by 3…whoops. Parking farther away and making more trips around my office when my alarm went off every half hour definitely helped. I need one of those treadmill desks I have decided.

What is my goal for next week?

Doing that hill workout manually on the treadmill this week made me realize that I have never done one of those preset workouts on the treadmill. I want to try one of those this week.

Fitness Thoughts:

I try to cover up my workouts stats when I am on the treadmill because it can be really distracting to just watch the minutes not go by. I think you also start to dread the workout when you are just watching it there on the screen. I really need to invest in some new headphones so I can watch the TV. I would love to walk the dogs everyday, but that isn’t always feasible with Tom’s schedule. Either all five of us go or someone has to stay at home with George. While I may feel confident walking both dogs at the same time, I do not feel comfortable with a baby and two dogs by myself. So to the gym on the treadmill I go since there is a daycare there for when Tom isn’t home. Oh those treadmill minutes…

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Have you ever done one of the preset workouts on a treadmill?

March 25, 2015 by Stephanie

Fit for Me 12/52

This week I was a little lame, and there isn’t much to update on.

What I did last week:

Tuesday-30 minutes on the elliptical. Question: Does anyone out there experience their feet going numb when they are on the elliptical? Is this just me? How do I prevent this from happening? I can rarely go a full 30 minutes without them being asleep and sometimes in serious pain. Am I doing the elliptical wrong?

Impressed by:

My ability to carry a baby and a suitcase up a flight of stairs without injuring George or myself. Mommy muscles.

Struggled with:

Working out while on the road apparently, although I would say unloading and loading up my car every day counts as a workout!

Did I meet my goal from last week?

I did those stretches most mornings. I have to confess that I forgot some mornings. I am really going to try to do them more often. I also did not do an actual workout while on the road, but it was really hard to figure out with the timing and how to navigate it with George so I just didn’t.

What is my goal for next week?

To get back on a schedule with my workouts. With last week being wonky, I want to really try to focus again on this time. It shouldn’t be hard, but it is my goal none the less.

Fitness Thoughts:

I am reminded again that it is so easy to say no to a workout because of convenience. There are things that I could have done in the hotel room to make a workout possible, but I decided after a day’s worth of driving that I wanted to watch Once Upon A Time laying on the bed instead. While I think I should give myself some grace, I also know that I don’t want this ease of pushing a workout aside to become a regular thing. I know I have said it before, but every day is a commitment.

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Do you take time off workouts when you travel?Do your feet fall asleep on the elliptical?

March 18, 2015 by Stephanie

Fit for Me 11/52

What I did last week:

Thursday-30 minutes on a bike.

Saturday- 1 hour of BodyPump. I haven’ been in a class for awhile so it was nice to get back in there. And the instructor I love was teaching so I was able to really get into it. We also took a 20 minute walk with the dogs and baby.

Sunday-I took the dogs on a 30 minute walk by myself. I found a great 2.5 mile loop by our house that has two monster hills. I think I want to try to be able to run them by the end of the summer…maybe.

Monday-20 minute ab workout.

Tuesday-30 minutes on the elliptical.

Impressed by:

I figured out how to read while on the elliptical without getting motion sickness or a headache so that was a win for this week. I might actually finish a book this way!

Struggled with:

That hill by our house was a struggle pushing the stoller, but I conquered it ever so slowly. It was a good struggle.

Did I meet my goal from last week?

I did work out at least 5 days. Whoop whoop!

What is my goal for next week?

George and I are going to be on a road trip the next 5 days, so my goal is to do these stretches every morning. I would also like to get at least one workout done on the road, but we’ll see how that happens since I will be solo with George.

Fitness Thoughts:

Hills are hard-mentally and physically. The downs and ups both are hard in their own rights. Why don’t I live in a place that is flat?

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How do you tackle hills? Do you have any good road trip exercises you do?

March 4, 2015 by Stephanie

Fit for Me 9/52

What I did last week:

Thursday-30 minutes on a treadmill. I have been keeping a monthly log on my progress. I have increased my mileage for this time by almost a half mile since January. I would say that is progress.

Saturday-We had a kids’ party to attend during our normal gym time so I had to make some adjustments. We walked around the mall for an hour that afternoon. Shopping is a sport people, especially when you are pushing a stroller! Instead of sitting watching the latest episode of Pretty Little Liars, for that entire hour I marched and jumped around the living room with George. It is really hard to keep moving for a whole hour, but I did it! I definitely looked like one of those Leslie “Walk at Home” videos.

Sunday-Another day I didn’t make it to the gym, but have no fear I still made this body move. I did 15 minutes of stairs. My calves are still feeling it days later. I also did an hour of mini squats unintentionally while trying to bounce/rock George to slumber. I think this totally counts as a workout!

Tuesday-30 minutes on a bike.

Impressed by:

Seeing how much I have improved on my mileage while running. I would love to be able to run a 30 minute 5K, so this was some positive progress. (My PR for a 5K is 34 minutes.)

Struggled with:

Apparently I struggled to work out on Monday and Wednesday. Monday I will be honest I just wanted to watch the Bachelor and enjoy sitting on the couch with Tom for more than 5 minutes in passing. So that is what I did!

Did I meet my goal from last week?

My goal was to be more positive about myself, and I really tried to do this! I started an open note on my phone to help. Whenever I was feeling down about myself, I would challenge myself to think about at least one reason why I love my body and record it there. I wont share all of them but here are a few: “I love my body because it allows me to hold George. I love my body because it allowed me to walk across a graduation stage on two separate occasions for college degrees. I love my body for the ability to carry a child safely into this world through pregnancy and birth. I love my body because it helped me finish 5 half marathons.” These affirmations are a good reminder of what I can do because of the body I was given. It is reminding me how lucky I am, and also how strong I really am as a woman. Seeing and reflecting on these really helps me shift my thought process to a much more positive one and serve as a testament that I do have a choice how I view myself! Also our admin assistant asked me the other day if I had lost weight and complimented me on how great I look. I laughed and said that I had actually gained weight, but it was another reminder to not worry so much about what I see in the mirror. We are all beautiful!

What is my goal for next week?

To tackle the row machine like a beast.

Fitness Thoughts:

Baby wearing a 6 month old should always be considered a form of exercise. It is no joke.

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