A Casual, Effective Leg Workout

Ah, working out.  No time?  No equipment? No gym membership?  No consistency?  I hear you!!!

That's why I teamed up with my daughters Elizabeth (blogger mommy) and Megan (personal trainer mommy) and started Daily Morning Workouts on Google Hangouts On Air.  Even as personal trainers, accountability is key.  As young moms, Elizabeth and Megan were having difficulty finding the motivation and the format to get in a daily workout (can you relate?)  As a busy professional (a tendency toward workaholic) I have to be very structured to get my workouts in.  We all agree its important and we feel better able to handle the rest of what life brings when we are physically active, so we made a pact and a plan.

The plan is we commit not only to one another, but to you as well.  Our workouts are recorded daily and broadcast live on Google Hangouts On Air.  They are also published on YouTube.  So if you see we missed a day - holler!  Additionally, we want to help you see that working out doesn't have to include a big investment in equipment or gym memberships.  You can work with what you've got around the house, and you'll see we do just that.  So, if you are looking for a way to JUST DO IT - join us!

Here is last week's Leg Workout, courtesy of Megan Henrie:

Fitness Blender

As a fitness professional, I do a lot of homework to keep my teaching fresh and to spice up my own workouts.  I was so pleased to see the work of the folks at Fitness Blender.  Their approach is simple, based on a good foundation of fitness and wellness, rather than hype.  And their workouts are effective.

If you are looking for good at-home workout options or simply a fresh challenge, I encourage you to check them out. They have a plethora of free workout videos - here's the next one on my list.

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This is a worth repeating.... Happy New Year's Resolutions!

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A great, quick article on how our societal perspective on fat affects people's health in a very real way from Lifestyle Coach Kelly Bliss.

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If you can separate your need to be fit from an identification with thinness, you'll have a much healthier relationship with yourself and a healthier overall body and mind. :-)

This Lady Gets It!

I spend a lot of time trying help people shift their perspective regarding weight loss, diets, fitness, scales, etc.

YumYucky (Josie) REALLY gets it! http://www.yumyucky.com/2010/12/check-out-my-new-before-pic-and-re-vamped-fitness-goals.html

If you are looking for a fresh perspective on living your healthiest life, I'd love to help! Drop me a line.

Upper Body Pyramids

Great 30-minute workout for upper body strength using Triangle Pyramids

Set up:

• You'll need a range of dumbbells. Barbells are optional.
• Before beginning each exercise, choose a "light" "medium" and "heavy" weight.
• You'll do 5 sets of each exercise: 12 "light" reps, 10 "medium" reps, 8 "heavy" reps, 10 "medium" reps and 12 "light" reps. Traveling up the pyramid and back down.
• Rest between sets should be 30-60-seconds.
• Rest between exercises should be 1-2 minutes.

EXERCISES

• CHEST PRESS
• SINGLE ARM BENTOVER ROW
• OVERHEAD PRESS
• TRICEP KICKBACKS
• BICEP CURLS

Notes: I use this workout to change things up and when I feel a need to challenge myself or a client to try a heavier weight for just one set. Once you know you can do it, you can do it. :-)

Super (Shaky) Legs

Leg Conditioning Class 12/2/10

Warm Up

• 10 Lunge & Reach - Right leg
• 10 Lunge & Reach - Left leg
• 10 Ski Jumps per side- alternating
• 10 Lunge & Reach per leg - alternating
• 10 X-ctry jumps per leg

1) Super Set - 3 rounds

• 12 Reps Barbell Squat
• 6 reps per leg - Barbell Reverse Lunge

2) 3 sets, 12 reps per leg - Single Leg Deadlift w/plate

3) Super Set - 3 rounds

• 6 reps per leg - Diagonal Lunge Reach with plate
• 12 reps - Plie Squat w/barbell

4) 2 sets, 12 reps per side - Split Squat (Stationary Lunge) with 10-second hold on last rep

5) 3 sets, 12 reps per side - Single leg supine hip lift w/extended leg and 5-second hold on last rep

STRETCH

Ouch - my abs!

Here's the ab portion of yesterday's class workout:

Superset for 3 rounds:

• 30-seconds Supine Flutter Kick
• 30-seconds Fingers to Toes Crunches

1-minute Plank

Superset for 3 rounds:

• 10 Hip-Leg Thrusts
• 10 Right Elbow to Left Knee Crunches
• 10 Left Elbow to Right Knee Crunches

1-minute Plank

25 Straight Arm Crunches

25 Fingers to Heel Alternating Oblique Crunches

1-minute Plank

I'm feeling it!

Importance of Protein - Shalane Flanagan and Melaleuca ProFlex

The question of protein always comes up with our clients and members. Here's Olympic medal winner Shalane Flanagan's take on it.

Simple, Small Space Full Body Workout

Here's a no excuses, full-body workout:

• On the road? No problem.
• No gym available? No problem.
• No weights or other equipment? No problem.
• Short on time? No problem.

All you need is enough space for your body to lie length-wise on the floor and a pull up bar OR an object to provide a little weight for lat pullovers. This can be a water bottle, a paper weight, a shoe, make up bag, whatever you can come up with.

Four basic moves, 100 reps each. Take as many breaks as you need to get the job done. Split it up through the day if you need to. Just commit to 100 reps of each item that day.

1. Bodyweight Squats
2. Push Ups (Full or knees)
3. Crunches
4. Pull Ups or Lat Pullovers. *Use floor, bench, bed, etc. for Lat Pullovers.

That's it.

Simple. Straightforward. Just do it.

No excuses.

Make it Fun, Make it Easy

Are you guilting yourself into starting a fitness regimen? Shopping for "plans" to get fit and fabulous? Preparing yourself for pain and misery as you begin your daily workouts and "diet?"

Here's the thing: If you make it simple and fun, you will stick with it longer and develop lasting results.

Yes, there are plans that will help you shed weight and build muscle - fast. But before investing or beginning those programs, decide whether or not you will stick with it for the long term, meaning rest of your life. If the answer is no, move on. You would be wasting your time and putting your health at risk.

Yo-yo dieting and weight-loss/weight-gain has been shown to affect your overall health in a negative way.

A better solution is to find activities you love and start doing them. Find healthy foods you love and start eating them. Add healthy activities that you can stick to long term and develop a passion for them.

If you are really out of shape and at a loss as to where to start, a personal trainer can help you build a foundation of strength, flexibility and cardiovascular health. This will help make other activities more enjoyable. Once your trainer gets to know you, they can suggest activities that you might enjoy, such as weight training, running, volleyball, triathlons, skiing, hiking, biking, roller blading, pole dancing, softball, etc. A group of local ladies here just started a roller derby league - what fun!

Here's some articles on what other folks are doing, including some senior athletes. It's never too late to get moving!

Roaring Fork Roller Derby

Older Athletes
Pole Dancing
70-year old MMA Fighter
Women's Powerlifting Hall of Fame Member

Anti-Weight Loss Reason #1

The biggest reason I can think of NOT to focus on weight loss is...

Setting ourselves up for failure.

Check this out:

Joe begins an exercise and diet regimen with the goal of losing weight.

He sticks to it for 30 days. He is feeling better, getting stronger, he doesn't realize it, but his blood sugar is more stable, his cholesterol is going down, hormones are balancing out, he just knows he's feeling pretty good. He is sure he is losing weight, but has obeyed his trainer and has not stepped on the scale.

Day 30, Joe gets on scale. It has not moved. He weighs the same.

Joe quits because the program is not working.

Joe misses out on all the other healthy benefits of exercise and healthy diet and those things begin to reverse themselves.

Focus on health, not weight.

Go ahead - be mediocre!

Be the best mediocre you can be!

Great moment yesterday. A member came to me and shared that he had completed a 25 mile bike ride over the weekend, just short of his 30 mile goal. Thing is, he had never ridden more than 5 or 10 miles before. So, while he didn't meet his goal, he more than doubled his longest ride ever and he was so proud! It took a fundraising effort for a favorite charity to push him to do it. Prior to that, he never thought he could because he is "overweight" and "out-of-shape." So he didn't try.

I see it often and have experienced it myself. We think we aren't fit enough, tall enough, big enough, smart enough, insert label here, and so we do not try because we won't be good at it. So what?!

I stumbled across an interview with the author of Slow Fat Triathlete. I haven't read it (I intend to read it ASAP!) but what I gather from the interview is that the author finally came to the realization that she could do what she wanted in the body she had, rather than sitting on the couch or waiting until she was miraculously fit and ready. Can we see ourselves in this? I think so.

In the interview she talks about a culture of "being the best" or not playing. A culture that doesn't accept the middle-ground. It's an interesting perception.

For me, hiking is my nemesis. Actually, it's all cardiovascular activity! But I love hiking, so I do it anyway. I take breaks, I breathe heavy, I truck on. The journey and the top are all so worth it. I can't imagine having missed some of the breath-taking views I've seen just because I am not at top hiking condition. I've climbed this! And made it almost to the top. (Stupid lightening!)

One would hope I would do better over time, but alas, it doesn't seem to be the case. So do I quit? I think not. Why punish myself? I will truck on.

Bottomline: Do what you love no matter how well you perform. Do it anyway. Perhaps you will get better at it, perhaps you won't. But it's life, enjoy it!