Fitness Wish List

In no particular order... here are some things I have my eye on :)

1.  New Training Shoes - Nike Free XT Quick Fit+
I have heard good things about the Nike Free product line.  I have had my Under Armour shoes for a while now - which I use both for training and running - and I think I'm 'serious' enough now where I have earned the privilege of owning separate pairs for each sport :)

2.  New Running Shoes - Women's UA Assert Running Shoe
Some people are loyal to one brand.. You're either a Nike girl, or a U/A, etc.  I'm not that fancy.. lol.  I like both!  Plus - my pink under armours hold a special place in my heart because that's what I used to train for and run my first 5k.  So, therefore, I'll stick with U/A for my running shoes. 

3.  18 lb. dumbbells
All I can say is sometimes 15s are too light, but 20s are too much  =)

4.  Weighted Gloves
I heard these are fabulous to use during KenpoX and other cardio.  They could also be a good solution to my 15 lb vs 20 lb problem.  Maybe 15s + weighted gloves will do the trick?






5.  Insanity
I think I'm more of a P90x girl at heart... but there is something in me that says I'd like to be able to say I've done both!  There are also some really awesome hybrid programs out there that incorporate both P90x and Insanity...

6.  Gym Bag
Well.. not just for the gym, but also when i got out running.  I just want something to keep my stuff in one place... Doesn't have to be this one - but thought it was cute.

OK... That's all that is coming to mind right now.  Am I forgetting anything?
TGIF :-)

Check out some of my FAVE P90x'ers!

Head over to S&S Express and check out their video podcasts and blog!  They post about their fitness adventures with P90x as well as other workouts.... They're sassy and fun to follow... AND they have a GIVE AWAY going on today! 

Enjoy!

Post-Surgery Woes...

I am one week post-op as of yesterday.  Everything went fine and I feel great!  Still sore.. but healthy!  I am SO anxious to get back to working out though!  Being so 'careful' about what I do and what I lift is really getting old quickly!

Oh well, its all part of the process.

Another thing I"m doing differently during my recovery time is adjusting how I eat.  I don't know about you, but when I'm not working out and being healthy, I tend to crave bad stuff more!  But when I'm in full on training mode, I do better about not craving M&Ms every. single. day!  SO, its been a struggle, because while I can "afford" to eat bad stuff here and there.. I don't want my body to get used to it.  I am trying to eat lower cal right now too due to my lower activity level.

Anyways - I'll hopefully be back to normal soon.  I think I can now start doing some lower intensity stuff - so I hope this good weather keeps up so I can take the dogs for long walks :)

I made it 11 weeks...

P90x is a total of 13 weeks... I have gotten thru 11 of them.  I think that is pretty good.... I'd love to finish out the last 2 weeks - - but I'm having surgery tomorrow.  I'll be out of commission for a little while.  I can start doing some lower body stuff in a week-ish.  Then I can be back to full workouts in 2-3 weeks or so.

I definitely want to start over again with P90x.  But I also want to start running again - now that Winter is FINALLY coming to an end.  Just being realistic, I don't have enough time for both!  I know alot of people switch out some of the cardio days for running...But on the other hand, I have a gym I pay for each month, and I'd like to get back to that too!  Ahhh - I just need to quit my job and devote ALL my time to working out apparently! lol

Anyways - I'm sure I will be able to figure out a happy medium...
I hope everyone had a fun Valentines Day yesterday!  It was fun seeing all my friends FB post yesterday with pics of their flowers and chocolates :)  The only chocolate I had yesterday came in the form of a protein shake! lol

AM Workouts

I got up early this morning and did P90x Chest/Shoulder/Tri.  My alarm went off at 5:15.. I hit snooze a bunch of time... and was finally out of bed at 5:45 a.m.  I stumbled downstairs - got a protein + energy shake mixed and started my workout by 6 AM.

Even after the warm up - I didn't feel totally warmed up.  My shoulder was making clicking noises... it was awful!  I couldn't even get thru a full set of scarecrows..  But that particular exercise is always a little hard on me for some reason.

Anyways, I like the idea of AM workouts.  It gets it out of the way so that no matter what else comes up later on, you know your workout is done.  But, I wish I could be up earlier and have a little more time to wake up before jumping into a routine like this!

Happy Valentines Day!

Why can't I get to that 20 lb dumbell?

When I started working out - a few years back - I was always so hesitant to increase my weights.  I always went for the toning method of low weight + high reps.  And you know what?  I never really saw any results.  THEN, my Husband made me come to a revelation about my own body and my progress.  The problem was I had no muscles to tone up!  In order to tone, first I needed to build muscle!  At that time, I was just a skinny bean pole girl, no muscles, no definition, just skin and bones.

Now that I have a better concept of what I want, and the 'look' that I am after, I understand what I need to do to get there.  It's neat to look back and see where I was using a 3 lb. or 5 lb. dumbbell for certain things and now use a 15lb. and even 20s on certain things.

The thing that is making me frustrated is my weight for bicep stuff.  I've been using the 15 lb. dumbbells for a while now.  Every time I try to up it to 20lb, I just can't get done.  Maybe the problem is that 5 lbs is a big jump?  The weights I used before the 15s were 12, 10, 8... so on.  I wonder if they sell 17 or 18 lb dumbbells?

Anyways - did CardioX this morning!  That is such a great mix of different workouts... I love it!  And I love that its only 45 minutes!  I don't know why - but I just felt like I needed a extra dose of cardio lately.

SO... Come on 20s!  Hopefully I'll get more use with them on my next back/bicep day! :)

Hello Green Tea :)

I have posted before how sugar seems to be the culprit in my nutrition plan.  Normally I have come close to or exceed my daily sugar limit by 10 a.m.!  I have known for weeks that there is one way I could help cure this problem and come semi-closer to meeting my nutrition goals.  This is by cutting out my daily cup(s) o' joe.  I just can't be one of those people that enjoys a black cup.  I need lots of sugar and lots of sweet flavored creamer to totally mask the coffee flavor!

SO - today, I skipped the coffee and went straight for the green tea.  It definitely leaves me craving something a little more sweetly satisfying.  But on the other hand, there is something to be said for meeting your daily goals.  Also, green tea has some really good health benefits - so they say...

I will try to make it all week minus the coffee.  Lets see how it goes :)  If all goes well, I'm totally rewarding myself with a Venti Starbucks Latte (skinny, of course!)

I got Airborne!!

Last night was P90x Legs & Back.  I don't mind Legs/Back day.. but its not one of my favorites either.  Anyways - I had a good workout.  I cheated a little bit because I was short on time.  I went through the first set of pull ups - but during the 2nd half of the workout - I just skipped passed the second set of each pull up.  It was a good time saver - however, those pull ups give your legs a brief break.  So I missed that during the 2nd half... oh well.  You gotta do what you have to do in order to make it work!

Anyways - another new milestone.  You know the very last exercise - the Siebers Speed Squats.  There are 30 each leg I believe.  Usually around the 15 mark, Tony will say to get airborne.  Normally I'll do it a couple times, but I'm just too tired normally to finish it out.  But this week I did it!!  Both legs - I was airborne!  Yay! 

Here is a video of what I"m talking about (from youtube - this is NOT me!)

I would say this little nugget of improvement is thanks to working diligently on my Plyo!  SO - I can't believe I'm saying this - but I can't wait to see how well I do on my next Plyo date :)

Protein packed breakfast

I saw a breakfast idea posted on the hardbody.com facebook page:

• 1/2 cup oats (I used organic steel cut)
• 1 tsp peanut butter
• 1 scoop banana protein powder
• 1 packet splenda

Cook your oats how you normally would (stove top/microwave/whatever), but make it a little 'soupier' than usual.  While its still hot, add in the peanut butter, sweetener and the protein powder.  Mix it up - and enjoy!

I eat oatmeal for breakfast regularly.  I LOVE the steel cut oats, if I have time to make them at home (takes 25 minutes to cook).  Otherwise, I am okay with the instant that I can make at work.  The idea of adding protein powder sounded kind of gross to me.  But, I figured I'd give it a try.  The result was really good!  It was easy, tasty and got one more serving of protein for the day out of the way!

Try it!

Pushups galore!

Yesterday was Chest/Shoulder/Triceps.  Out of all the weight training days - C/S/T & Back/Bicep are the hardest by far!  I LOVE them!  I don't know about you, but I'd rather do 20+ different exercises rather than 2 sets of a lesser number of exercises (like in Chest/Back). 

This workout is full of push ups - lots and lots - all different styles, varieties and speeds.  I am pretty good at most of them.  There is something just so 'satisfying' about being able to do them. 

I am up to about 15 +/- of the one arm push ups (on knees still)...

And I can do 15-20 of the clap push ups (on knees).  I am not getting as much height during the clap as showing in the picture below... but I'm still doing them - and that's all that counts!!

Anyways - another great workout in the books!!  Tonight is XStretch.. and to be honest, I have not spent much time at all on this one.  I'm looking forward to it!  After this workout, and going skiing on Sunday, I really need a good stretch - and a massage would be nice too!

Home Gym vs. Gym Memberships

I am about 9 weeks into P90x now... so that means I have paid for 2 months of my gym membership and have not walked thru those doors in MONTHS.  We are under contract, so cancelling is not an option.  And of course, they will not allow you to 'freeze' your account temporarily.  Boo!

It got me wondering though... even if they did allow me to cancel my membership, would I want to?  P90x is just a 90 day program.  Will I be returning to the gym after my P90x sentence experience is over?  I'm not sure.  I really enjoy working out from home.  Its so much more convenient.  I don't have to pack a gym bag with me to take to work... I don't have to rush there at 5 PM with all the other 9-5ers who are anxious to get their bodies moving after having sat behind a desk ALL day.  However, I miss seeing my gym friends.  I miss the access to certain machines and equipment that I don't have.  I miss the pool/jacuzzi/sauna/steam rooms (even though I RARELY uses them!).

Oh well, cancelling my membership is not an option anyways.  But, just curious how everyone else feels about it.