Meditation and Motivation

Meditation is an important key in life. It is good to have some alone time to pray, think, meditate. I have been doing some videos and at the end of the video you go to child's pose and release all that tension in your body. Also, he has you stay there and think about your final goal. What do you want it to be; what does it look like? This has helped me so much I have started doing it after my workouts at the gym. My mom said, "At the gym, with everyone around?" Yes, at the gym, too. It is just child's pose-haha. It releases all the tension and it helps you see what you want in turn making it easier to go every day and get back out there. That is what we want right-to keep those New Years resolutions. I want to be here to support you and make sure you keep up with them.

When doing this mediation you can think about what you want to look like at the end, but that doesn't necessarily have to be what you are picturing in your head. You can also picture yourself running around with your kids or grand kids-that can be your final goal. Something realistic. One thing I have learned from fitness is that it is best not to put up pictures you find out of a magazine to motivate you. Most likely that person doesn't have the same body type as you so it is an unrealistic goal. If it is a picture, you want pick a picture of you when you feel good at where you were. Not a high school picture-again that is unrealistic. I have learned with me-I can't use the picture when I was 250 lbs, that sends me into a negative fitness pattern. So pick something to motivate you in a positive way.

Okay now for A Fitness Tip. Today was cardio day for me. I like to use the elliptical. It is boring to just get on a machine and go. There is a choice on the elliptical-it is a button that says personal trainer. If you press it until it says x-train aerobic it takes you into a workout that switches things up in 10 minute segments. You are doing something different every 1-2 minutes. So when I get on, if I do an hour I say-I only have 6 segments to do. Then it isn't overwhelming, and it isn't boring because it is being changed up, not just getting on and going. Great cardio workout. So there is another little gem of info to put in your back pocket-go out there and get some cardio on today. Even if it is just taking a walk!!

Tomorrow we will talk about how to keep that want to workout.

New Years Resolutions Out In Full Force

So ventured out to the gym today at the 9 o'clock hour. This is usually the busiest time. Today even worse than ever. Driving to the gym and going to the gym you could see that people had made their goals that they were going to do it this year. They are going to be more fit and this is the year they will do it. I came home and told my husband that the gym was so packed today. He said give it a few weeks. I told him-I hope this isn't the case. I hope every year that this goal stays with people and they continue their journey into fitness. Yay for them who have made this decision. It is one of the greatest decisions you can make.

Two things were funny to me on my trip to the gym. #1 is the cardio equiptment is packed full. They weights-the majority of the gym-completely empty. People you have not heard my speech about strength training. #2 is that #1 causes "regular" attendees of the gym to become frustrated. They come to get on "their" treadmill. See the post about spinning and you will know what I am talking about. Beware of gym regulars and again if you are getting and evil stare-ignore it, you were there first.

Okay now my preaching about strength training. Monday is my chest and triceps day. So I want to give you an exercise to do. If you don't have a gym membership or equipment at home you can do this!! No excuses. You want to know what this magical exercise is that works both chest and triceps. Ta Da-push ups. Yes that is right a simple push up. Now there are also variations to the push up. You can do a modified push up-on your knees-don't ever call this a girl push up or I will track you down. There is the incline push up to make things a little easier. Decline push up to make things harder. Diamond push up-uses more of your triceps. You can look up push up in Google and there are so many variations. My goal for you is to try some push ups today.

Get started with a few jumping jacks, run in place, high knees running in place, get your body warmed up and knock some of these babies out. A good investment for push ups is push up bars. This exercise can tweak your wrist. A push up bar gets your wrist in a better position for this exercise. Have dumbbells that will stay in place? Those also work as push up bars.

Now that you have this little gem of knowledge under your belt-GO GET WORKING!! Keep in touch and I will try and keep posting daily things on here to keep you active and happy. I can't ever help it-I smile through my whole workout. Enjoy what you do and be happy with who you are!

Cardio Lovers

The benefits of a cardio routine are amazing. Keep up the good work. However, despite the title I am here to get you to consider weight training. Just as there are benefits to a good cardio routine there are some great benefits to strength training.

I am going to talk about one big one today. Raise your hand if you thought getting more calcium was the best way to increase your bone density. You know this because as women it is talked about all the time. Did you know strength training can decrease your risk of osteoporosis too?

There is something called Wolff's Law that basically states bone will be laid down where needed, bone adapts according to the applied stress. As your tendons pull on that bone when strength training it stimulates bone cells to stimulate bone formation. After all, the more bone mass you accumulate before menopause the less severe the consequences of loss of bone mass will be. This stated from the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

So if you are afraid of getting bigger and you are a woman, don't worry it won't happen. Strength training does so many good things for your body. Don't steer away from it. If you have any questions feel free to leave a message. I am passionate about a good strength train program and I believe all should have one.

I didn't come to win a beauty contest

So lately I have been selling classes at a gym. So I get to do a lot of people watching. It is so interesting to stand there and see what comes through that door. You can tell the people that are there to really workout and the ones who are there just for the-I don't know-single scene!?! Is this one of the pick up joints that I just never picked up on? It is funny to see girls come in all made up. Hair in some kind of up-do. Even if the hair isn't in a fancy up-do it is strategically messy. Then their make-up is on. Really did you come to workout, or did you come for the beauty competition.

I love to work out. The gym becomes a second home to me. I love to see how hard I can sweat. How much I can push myself. If you see me at the gym, you know I am not involved in the beauty contest. I am not there to talk on my cell phone while I leisurely walk on the treadmill. I can do that anywhere. So why do you go to the gym. Are you there for the beauty contest, the social hour, or are you there to rock it!?! Love the gym-always good times to be had.

New Spinners Beware

I have been going to spin here for a while now. I know it is referred to as group cycle now, but I still call it spin.

So if you have never been to spin before and you decide to try it and you are spinning away and feeling angry stares at the back of your neck you probably are not wrong in feeling this. It means you took somebody's bike. Yes even though there is no seating or name tags-you made the awful sin of sitting in someones spin bike-how dare you.

Now I do love sitting in the same area, but I have never had a set bike that I long for. There are ones that I know that have little kinks that I stay away from, but again never a set bike. Hey that way I am never let down if it is taken.

There are two regulars in my class. They are both older. There are 5 of a different kind of bike in the room. The older people love these bike for some reason-I don't know why, I have never tried one. One guy gets there almost an hour early at times to get his bike. The other lady has started to come a little earlier, but Monday she has a friend save it for her. Her friend doesn't come on Wednesday. So a lady was in her bike today. She sat right next to her. The lady in "her" bike isn't always able to keep up and stops quite a bit, not a problem-it is your workout you put in what you want to get out of it. Well the regular who's bike it is-every time she stops the regular gives her a stare like-you are using MY bike and you can't even keep up.

Little funny and some drama and pretty funny to watch. She even said-oh somebody took MY bike. So if you are new to spin and you take "someones" bike-don't worry-it was never theirs to begin with. Relax have fun and spin away smiling. You got there first!

January 26, 2011

So it is much better if I don't leave this off until the night because then I actually blog. So I wanted to get some before pics up, because a friend saw the other picture and said-you need a new picture because that isn't at all how you look. I just wanted to post my picture at my heaviest weight-I have never been back there since that point even after 2 other pregnancies, I never got to that point. I need to take better pictures, but these will have to do for now. I just took them so they are very up to date.

So there you have it. Here is my starting, which really isn't true because of the weight already lost since I started this. So far I am down 9 lbs. So enjoy and hopefully we will be seeing more change soon.

On a different note, I am looking for personal training opportunities. I just tried to talk myself up to Xcel Fitness so we will see what happens there. Wish me luck!

January 24, 2011

Okay, so I have skipped a few post. I got very sick this weekend and lost 6 lbs. I like losing weight, but not this way. This meant the last 3 days off at the gym too-well Sundays are my normal day off so I guess just two days. So hopefully things will be able to get back to normal this week. I am feeling a little better today, but not 100%. My husband has been trying to get me to stay home from school tonight, which is probablly a good idea, but I am going to go and see how long I will last. I need to be there. First I can't miss exercise psychology and second we are going over some good stuff in exercise design.

So between diffusing the war between my oldest and trying to keep my house in shape with studying and school, sickness didn't help this. Wish me luck for tonight and hopefully being able to work out tomorrow.