Today was 20 minutes walk/jog/run and then 10 minutes "total body" which was a rotation of 5 push-ups, 10 crunches, and 15 squats.
I'm on my first day of feeling like I can breathe fully, my nose is dry and my head is clear(er). I decided to take it easy so I don't relapse just in time for another work week. So for the walk/jog/run, I put in a movie (But I'm A Cheerleader - total cheese and I LOVE it!), and fast marched/jogged in place.
I did 6 rotations total in the 10 minutes and wasn't pushing myself. That's a total of 30 push-ups, 60 crunches, and 90 squats. I think I have Beachbody programs to thank for this! I haven't done crunches since I was a sophomore in highschool (1994 to be more specific!) so I'm not entirely sure if I did those right. I seem to remember I'm not supposed to go all the way up. Basically, I laid my feet flat with bent knees, had my lower back against the floor but my shoulders off. I crossed my arms on my chest and basically curved my stomach in. Whether it was correct form or not, it definitely was working my abs. I was getting shaky on that last set. Squats were super easy. All of the Beachbody programs have been squat intensive so I'm pretty sure that's why. The push-ups have always been a weakness for me and I'm hoping to improve throughout this workout schedule! Those last 5 were pretty shaky but I got them done.
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Friday, February 3, 2012
Yoga
Last night I did 2 segments from "10 Minute Solution: Yoga" (linked to Amazon) on Netflix Instant. Max was very concerned and seemed stressed while I was doing this so Sweetie took him into the other room while I continued. This was my first time doing a 'real' yoga workout. My previous exposure was a few moves on Wii Fit, and apparently the Insanity workout.
I figured a good place to start would be with The Basics segment. I learned Mountain, Sun Salutation, Upward Facing Dog, Downward Facing Dog, and Warrior. She moved pretty fast and didn't hold the stretches as long as I expected from what I'd heard about yoga - but then again, this was a 10-minute segment so that's probably why. I think there were 3 rounds of that cycle. By the 3rd time I almost had it down without watching her.
I didn't want to do any segments that were geared toward "toning" since my body was pretty tight from the Deck of Cards workout. I skipped to the end and did the Flexibility and Relaxation segment. This one felt good and I probably should have done it twice. It started with a butterfly stretch, lateral bend over left leg, twisting stretch to left, lateral bend over right leg, twisting stretch to right, bridge pose, ham string stretches by hooking my fingers over my big toe and trying to extend the leg (then also bring leg to side for inner thigh stretch), and finished with a lying spinal twist on both sides.
The segments I skipped were Buns & Thighs, Abs, and Burn.
I'm undecided whether I want to look for another Yoga workout or keep doing this one. Since I'm only scheduled to do it twice a month, I'll probably just stick with this one. Next time though, I think I'll do The Basics & Flexibility and Relaxation twice each instead of once.
I figured a good place to start would be with The Basics segment. I learned Mountain, Sun Salutation, Upward Facing Dog, Downward Facing Dog, and Warrior. She moved pretty fast and didn't hold the stretches as long as I expected from what I'd heard about yoga - but then again, this was a 10-minute segment so that's probably why. I think there were 3 rounds of that cycle. By the 3rd time I almost had it down without watching her.
I didn't want to do any segments that were geared toward "toning" since my body was pretty tight from the Deck of Cards workout. I skipped to the end and did the Flexibility and Relaxation segment. This one felt good and I probably should have done it twice. It started with a butterfly stretch, lateral bend over left leg, twisting stretch to left, lateral bend over right leg, twisting stretch to right, bridge pose, ham string stretches by hooking my fingers over my big toe and trying to extend the leg (then also bring leg to side for inner thigh stretch), and finished with a lying spinal twist on both sides.
The segments I skipped were Buns & Thighs, Abs, and Burn.
I'm undecided whether I want to look for another Yoga workout or keep doing this one. Since I'm only scheduled to do it twice a month, I'll probably just stick with this one. Next time though, I think I'll do The Basics & Flexibility and Relaxation twice each instead of once.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
A Cold, A Deck Of Cards, And Me
I started my new workout schedule this evening. Today was the Deck of Cards Workout. I had mentioned before that I didn't think I was to the level yet of being able to get through the whole deck, because it would have meant I'd done 105 reps of each suit (lunges, knee-to-elbow planks, chair dips, and jumping jacks).
In addition to just guessing I wouldn't be able to do that, I also came down with a cold today. So far it's not in my chest and I don't have a fever so I went ahead with the workout. I really didn't think I'd be able to do much.
Oddly enough, I felt better while I was doing the exercises! The box of kleenex went untouched after about 3 cards. Before I knew it, there were no more cards in the deck. I checked the time and only 30 minutes had passed. I had completed the deck! I was shocked. I was so excited about it, I got on my computer to update my log before showering!
A few notes on the exercises I did:
Lunges - I counted each leg as a rep
Knee-to-elbow Planks - I counted each left/right pair as a rep
Jumping Jacks - I started doing a squat jack toward the end of the deck because it seemed too easy
Chair Dips - I didn't have any sturdy furniture to dip between so I just used my dumbbells. I basically got into the position of a bridge and dipped my body down and up from that. I don't think I worked my triceps at all. I have since looked at the proper form of a chair dip (using a chair) and I don't trust myself to do it right without supervision. I'm not in a hurry to mess up my shoulders or back so I think instead of chair dips, I'm going to do Tricep Kickbacks with my dumbbells.
In addition to just guessing I wouldn't be able to do that, I also came down with a cold today. So far it's not in my chest and I don't have a fever so I went ahead with the workout. I really didn't think I'd be able to do much.
Oddly enough, I felt better while I was doing the exercises! The box of kleenex went untouched after about 3 cards. Before I knew it, there were no more cards in the deck. I checked the time and only 30 minutes had passed. I had completed the deck! I was shocked. I was so excited about it, I got on my computer to update my log before showering!
A few notes on the exercises I did:
Lunges - I counted each leg as a rep
Knee-to-elbow Planks - I counted each left/right pair as a rep
Jumping Jacks - I started doing a squat jack toward the end of the deck because it seemed too easy
Chair Dips - I didn't have any sturdy furniture to dip between so I just used my dumbbells. I basically got into the position of a bridge and dipped my body down and up from that. I don't think I worked my triceps at all. I have since looked at the proper form of a chair dip (using a chair) and I don't trust myself to do it right without supervision. I'm not in a hurry to mess up my shoulders or back so I think instead of chair dips, I'm going to do Tricep Kickbacks with my dumbbells.
Tomorrow is Yoga. I think I'll do the "10 Minute Solution: Yoga" (linked to Amazon) on Netflix Instant and just bring my laptop down with me. Or I'll do it upstairs if sweetie is okay watching me stretch and bend :-)
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