Many of the books and products I write about I purchased for my own use. Some were sent to me specifically for reviewing purposes.
Links within my blog posts sometimes are affiliate links that pay me a very small amount (pennies, really) for referring you to them. Any concerns? Please contact me.
Many of the books and products I write about I purchased for my own use. Some were sent to me specifically for reviewing purposes.
Links within my blog posts sometimes are affiliate links that pay me a very small amount (pennies, really) for referring you to them. Any concerns? Please contact me.
I've decided that I have to be those two things if I want to see the scale move.
The weeks when I have a slight gnawing in my stomach are the weeks when I lose weight. I think it's my old, shot metabolism. I really don't need many calories -- probably only around 1,300.
And I need to workout at least four days a week. I'm working up to five. Lately I've been making sure my workouts have some sort of resistance training, although today's workout was pure cardio fun. The DVD is called Cardiokeand it's led by Billy Blanks Jr. It's super fun and requires singing!
Most of the soreness goes away the more I exercise, so maybe I'll just be slightly hungry and slightly sore.
Here's one of the Cardioke routines. See if you can keep up -- I had to follow the old ladies in the back.
I know I'm late with this post but we were flying all day.
Now that we're here, I am bound and determined not to gain weight on vacation. And I have no excuses; there are three options for fitness:
The hotel has a modest but useful gym with strength and cardio equipment.
There's a 24 Hour Fitness Sport gym about 2 blocks from the hotel (and I remembered my membership card).
And I just discovered that we have Exercise TV on demand in the room!
So regardless if we're going to spend the day walking or hit some sort of gym, I fired up the TV and did a 10-minute standing abs routine with Jennifer Galardi (that's her and her abs at right). I'm calling it my insurance exercise.
I've had the flu all week, and even though I didn't exercise one lick, I still lost 4 pounds this week and have kept it off.
Perfect timing for vacation. I've already scoped out the nearest 24 Hour Fitness near the hotel (just around the corner) and I'm planning on packing the workout gear and the membership card.
My husband looks at working out as "the more I workout the more I can eat." To me it's "I'll workout so I don't gain vacation weight." Either way we'll start the day at the gym; any other trekking around town will be gravy.
I'm going to try and post while we're on vacation, I may even try blogging by phone (just in case you wonder why the posts might look weird).
I'm also packing a food journal even though I plan to journal with the mobile application from SparkPeople. But I need a backup plan. I'm also going to be checking out CalorieKing Mobile, which is a great buzzkill at restaurants. ("Do you really want to order that burger? I dunnoo....")
My regular Jazzercise class has been shoved into a tiny conference room for the summer. Besides the fact that it smells like an armpit halfway through class, it's far too small and the acoustics seem to magnify the infantile shrieking of some of the participants (I don't mind an occasional "whoop!" now and then but this is ambulance-style noise).
So while I wait for the return to the rec center gymnasium, I'll happily be working out to the new Jazzercise DVD. Just out, it's called Dancin' Abs by Jazzercise and it's fantastic.
The lead instructor is Jazzercise VP Shanna Missett Nelson (Judi's daughter) and she takes turns leading the workout with the energetic Young McCarthy. There are also 4 background exercisers who are Jazzercise instructors.
It's basically one workout, like nearly all Jazzercise DVDs are, but you can choose whether to do a 60-minute or 30-minute workout. Both workouts include an active warmup and cooldown. There's also a little behind-the-scenes video of the making of the DVD.
The workout is innovative in that it's designed to work your core without the traditional floorwork. There are lots of standing crunches, oblique work and core-strengthening work. But it's all done in a funky dance-oriented way. You won't realize your toning your midsection until the next day when your core will feel tightened and activated (I know mine did).
For Jazzercise class enthusiasts, you'll recognize routines done to the songs Repeat Performance, Love Will Save the Day and the reason I bought the DVD, Text Me. It is an awesomely funky routine and works the core like crazy. Plus you'll pick up some mad dance-floor skills.
Couple of important points: The workouts are modified a bit for the home workout, so you won't need a lot of floor space (it's not a "floor hog"). And like any dance aerobics workout I suggest doing it on a hard surface if possible. It really helps with the moves and can prevent knee injuries from bad twists.
The DVD is available at Jazzertogs.com (HERE) and it's $16.99 plus $5.95 shipping, which is extremely quick. I got my DVD within three days of ordering. It's also available from Collage Video for the same price.
Most of the time, the backyard pool is something to clean, stare at and occasionally throw buckets of money at to repair.
So why not use it?
In many Sunbelt states a pool is standard equipment for many backyards and we tend to take them for granted. So last week, with the kid home from school, I decided I'd take the plunge with him instead of watching from the sidelines.
I jumped into the pool and quickly realized that I was wearing the wrong suit. The two-piece "jogkini" (fitted waist-length top and boxer-style shorts), is fine for hanging around the beach or the pool but not good for jumping in and swimming. Too many air pockets made me look like a Macy's balloon.
I swam some laps, did some underwater handstands, paddled on a float and jogged across the pool a bunch of times.
But I'm on the prowl for a SWIMsuit. And thanks to Biggest Loser season 7 contestant Laura Denoux, I found a great place. Over on Twitter, she tweeted about a photo shoot she was doing for SwimsuitsForAll.com, so I surfed over and was really impressed with the selection and the prices. (What's up with the price of women's swimsuits anyway? Guys can get a pair of swim trunks for $10 and women can't find a decent suit for under $50 most of the time.)
At right is an example of a suit from Swimsuits For All that's great for serious swimming but still looks cute. It's from Longitude and it's $49. It has a sexy mesh top and the neckline is high enough for diving in without things going all kablooey. I noticed that certain styles are very limited in size (this one's only available in sizes 18 and 20), so you have to move quickly.
And if you have issues with your thigh area (yikes, who doesn't?) just get a breezy sarong to wrap around your waist when you get out of the pool. They have them in black, brown and navy for a measly $12.
I had a session left with my trainer, and because I had a previous appointment (which ended up canceling on me), we made the training time for 6 p.m.
I'm a big fan of morning workouts, simply because it's a quick check on the to-do list and you don't have the whole day to come up with excuses not to work out.
I also like to think that the theory of the post-workout metabolic rev-up is correct. But hey, any time you work out is the best time.
The gym was packed with the after-work crowd, but we stuck to the cable machine and the training room so crowds weren't an issue. Actually the crush of people made the workout more fun because my trainer loves to people-watch, as do I, so we spent the time commenting on the workout crowd.
"Why are those women working out with their hair down? Sweaty hair is gross."
"That woman has eyebrows tattooed on!"
"Oooh, not a good outfit for her."
Sure, it's catty but this is South Florida where there is no shortage of colorful characters.
Aside from the people watching, I did learn a great way to do squats. By holding on to the waist-high handle on the cable machine, I was able to go down 90 degrees while keeping my back straight, maximizing the effectiveness of the squats.
I am still sore from two days ago -- that's when I did Day 1 of the 30-Day Challenge of the new EA Sports Active
personal trainer (Electronic Arts, $59.95) for the Nintendo Wii.
I might have been a little more sore than I should have been because I had the leg strap down too low on my leg. This makes a big difference because one of the exercises is squats and your virtual personal trainer makes sure that you are squatting low enough. So if the leg strap is down too low, your squats become preposterously deep. "Oh, come on!" I screamed at the TV. Then I realized that the position of the leg strap may be the problem.
Squats are just one of the exercises in the EA Sports Active program. You may find yourself jogging on a track to a soundtrack of your choosing, doing a little boxing or jumping over ramps on inline skates.
The inline skating was pretty brutal for me. It consists of staying in a squat and then leaping over ramps -- really tough on my quads. And apparently I'm a lousy jumper because my avatar (customized in a workout outfit of my choosing) was pretty wobbly.
The intro to the program is done by Oprah's trainer Bob Greene (who gives this his Bestlife seal of approval). Other helpful videos show you exactly how to do the exercises, and if you get confused, you can return to those instructional videos.
The kit comes with the game software, the leg strap (which holds the nunchuk) and a resistance band that you use for upper body exercises such as bicep curls and shoulder presses. (You can buy extra leg straps and resistance bands if you want to work out with a buddy.)
Video game novices will have no problem with this. I'm not a big Wii user (I leave that to my kid) but I wasn't tripped up by the whole Wiimote-nunchuk handling thing.
The program is fully customizable:
You choose whether you want a male or female trainer
You customize your avatar with hair color and style, skin color, body type and outfit (down to the shoes)
You plug in your sex, age, height and weight so the program can tell you how many calories you burn doing the program
You fill out a journal that asks you about your eating and exercise habits
You can choose the level of intensity you'd like to do on any given day
You also don't need the Wii Fit balance board, but if you have it there are exercises that utilize it, such as kickboxing, dancing and baseball.
I really like this program -- it gives you a solid workout and the calories burned meter up in the corner is highly motivating. I haven't fully explored the program (it's not a game) but look forward to a game of volleyball and breaking out the Wii Fit balance board for some kickboxing. And my 10-year-old got a good workout with it, too, which will be a great way for him to stay in shape over summer vacation. Something to think about if you have an exercise-averse Nintendo-loving child.
More than 600,000 units have been sold since its release a few weeks ago, and there are more exercises in the works. An expansion pack will be out in time for the holidays that features 30 new exercises and sports, including an emphasis on core strengthening.
Here's a presentation that EA Sports did at this week's E3 video game conference in Los Angeles. Biggest Loser host Alison Sweeney is a fan of the program and shared her experience with it.
Big confession: I haven't done a thing, exercise-wise this week.
A lot of it has to do with staying up too late blogging, watching basketball, stomach bug -- you name it, I had an excuse this week.
Yet I still managed to lose a pound.
Because, given the lack of physical output, I ratcheted down my calorie count.
But boy do I feel guilty about not working out.
I did wash all the tile floors (which is a ridiculous three-step process of sweep, steam clean, sweep again). I am planning on going to Jazzercise tomorrow and getting back in the swing of things next week.
Is my non-workout guilt common? Do you feel guilty when your exercise plans go out the window?
So I'm in the section of the gym set aside for trainers to work with their clients, and this guy comes in and starts doing crunches and stretches and whatnot.
I'm on the floor with my trainer, abs quaking as I do planks, and the guy blurts out: "Have you tried the treadmill? A buddy of mine lost 40 pounds just by walking. I lost 30 pounds on the recumbent bike."
Thanks, yeah, I know what a treadmill and a bike are. I just thought I'd try something harder.
I get a good deal of unsolicited exercise advice -- probably because I'm overweight. But just because I am doesn't mean that it's my first time in a gym. Did you see me holding that plank? Did you see me heaving those dumbbells over my head? How about those step-ups?
The condescension is insulting. Yes, I have a ways to go, but that doesn't mean I can't beat the living daylights out of you in an arm-wrestling match.
Underneath this "fluff" is a lot of muscle; the fluff is coming off slowly but surely. And, yes, I'll use the treadmill, and the recumbent bike, and the dumbbells, and the aerobic classes and the medicine ball. I'll go to the gym, I'll go to Jazzercise, I'll do DVDs in my living room. My trainer is giving me great ideas for adding sweat-inducing strength exercises to my routine.
And I'll continue writing about my fitness goals every Friday.
Sponsored by 24 Hour Fitness: We believe in changing lives through fitness, including yours.
Just got back from my first session with a new personal trainer. And she doesn't want to kill me! (BTW, that's not me in the photo.)
My last experience with a trainer was less than inspiring. He was a muscle-bound knucklehead who liked to throw extra plates on the leg press. Granted, I do have the quads of an East German swimmer but I'm not training for a powerlifting contest -- I want to lose fat and build muscle and endurance.
So this time around, I asked for a female trainer. Call me biased, but a female trainer can better understand my fitness needs.
I've been doing three hours of aerobic exercise a week and want to build onto that with more strength training. But with a myriad machines at the gym, I want to know which ones are worth my time and which ones work a multitude of muscles -- compound exercises.
So we worked out a full-body strength routine that I can do in less than an hour. I'll be alternating the strength days with the Jazzercise and throw in another "machine" day once a week of either bike, elliptical or treadmill.
personal trainer (Electronic Arts, $59.95) for the Nintendo Wii.
Recent Comments