Oh the sights you will see

Depending upon where you live, walking can be a beautiful experience.  While not all paths lead to such a picturesque view as the one I posted here (somewhere in the Black Hills, SD); that doesn't mean you wont get your own amazing views, like watching the sun rise on those early morning walks.

Just remember!  What ever you do for your 30 days, make sure it's something you can stick to for 30 days and is enjoyable.

Keep going fans!

The Holidays Are Coming!

That's right 30-day-er's!  The holidays are just around the corner.  Time to start thinking of getting in shape before there is a pile of Halloween candy in the cupboard, before the caramel apples, pumpkin pie, and overly stuffed family get-together's!

Remember a 30 day challenge doesn't have to start on the 1st of the month, so long as you complete 30 days.

With cooler weather, maybe a brisk morning walk will help you wake up instead of a cup of coffee. (Cutting out anywhere from 80 calories [home brewed black coffee] to almost 1000 calories [fancy coffee from a barista]) while adding an additional 100-200 calorie burn (depending on the length of your walk).

Keep track of your steps, your weight, and your calories with Fitbit.  An all inclusive electronic genius system that can sync to your smart phone and home computer while keeping all of your healthy metadata all in one place.

Last time I featured the pocket sized Fitbit pedometer. This time its the smart scale that will sync your weight to Fitbit's website, keeping you up to date on pounds/kilograms and body fat percentage.



Staying healthy and fit has moved into the technological age, so why not join the movement?!

#30DAYSTOSUMMERFIT

OMG! It has been so long since I've done a 30 day challenge. Though I am still in the throes of my Masters degree, I really feel my mood and energy need a boost. As you probably know, if you've followed along, I have a FitBit tracker -an electronically syncing pedometer. I received an e-mail today from their newsletter asking if I wanted to join their 30 Days to Summer Fit challenge. And Why Not?! Below is a copy (in quotes) of the challenge. If you want to join you do not have to have a FitBit pedometer anyone can sign up with the website and log activities and meals.  Below you will find the introductory email to the 30 day Challenge hosted by FitBit.
"Summer is fast approaching, which means great weather, vacations, and extra fun. So we’re challenging each and every Fitbit user to recommit to their fitness goals! And to help get things started, we’ll be here every day until summer arrives with a daily challenge. You can follow along here on the blog, or with our calendar. We’ll have plenty of workouts to try, tips on getting (and staying!) healthy, and more! But before it all begins, here are a few general tips you can start today to help you on your road to a healthier, more active you. Drink plenty of water. To find out how much water is enough for you, halve your body weight, and aim to drink that many ounces. So if you weigh 170 lbs, aim for 85 ozs of water each day. TIP: Keep a water bottle by your side to help remind yourself to drink more. Commit to eating healthy. There’s no one-diet-fits-all, so figure out what works for you and stick with it for this month. We’ll be here with new healthy recipes along the way. TIP: Start in the produce aisle of the grocery store and avoid processed and packaged aisles as much as possible to help eliminate temptations. Move 30 minutes every day. Even if you don’t have time to hit the gym, commit to moving at least 30 minutes every day. Whether you’re going for a walk or doing plyometrics along with your favorite TV show, don’t go to bed without having done your 30 minutes. TIP: You don’t have to do it all in one batch! Set yourself reminders throughout the day to get up and move – it all adds up. Get social. Whether online or in person, find yourself a workout buddy to keep yourself accountable. TIP: Keep an eye on your Fitbit leaderboard so you can taunt and cheer each other along the way – or send each other messages to brag about your workouts. Even if you don’t complete a single one of our daily challenges to come, doing the above will set you up to start forming healthy habits moving forward. What habit will you try and form? Let us know in the comments, or by using #30DaysToSummerFit!"

Electric Run ™ - Official Video 2013

It's happening again! And it is something for me to aim for again.  Even with school.

December's Challenge: I don't have time to work out

I know that it is half way through the month so it may seem silly to start a challenge now.  But I figure 30 days is 30 days should not matter when it starts.
I'm currently wrapping up my first semester of graduate school so will have some free time -well at least more time- to do something healthy for myself.  My trainer friend who urged me to join her 10 day challenge earlier (I think it was August) has invited me to her "I don't have time to work out" challenge.  It is a clean eating try to get any amount of exercise in as often as you can challenge.
With that in mind, I purchased the Beach Body 10 minute workout set of DVD's along with a 1 month supply of Shakeology- this time it's chocolate (yum).

Well the 30 day challenge starts tomorrow, just in time for the onslaught of holiday cheer and right before the dreaded New Years Resolutions.  Class for me ends on 12/24 and will restart on 1/8 so I will have at least a week with no excuses.

Keep challenging yourself!!!

If you'd like to check out the deal you can visit trainer Lois's personal page: http://teambeachbody.com/shop/-/shopping/BCPTM180?referringRepId=94925

Apologies

Fans!

No, I have not fallen off the face of the earth, though it may have certainly looked that way.  School started for me in the middle of October and has appropriately taken over my life.  I did attempt to continue some semblance of exercise those first few weeks, but between all the reading and papers, I have just not had the time.

Please bare with me as I continue on this educational journey.  I shall at some point be able to pick up my monthly quests again.  I ask that you enjoy past posts and past experiments.  Feel free to comment or even share your own successes.

Thanks again!!!!

ab ripper x complete

For anyone brave enough to do the ab ripper -it's from the P90X series and is more involved than the rest of this month's challenge but really does some major core work!  I did do a 5 minute ab work out on day 4 but that was just from a workout app I found and it certainly made me realize it has been a while since I've done any sit ups of any kind.  Shame on me! ;)

Exercise Tutorial - Superman

I was discussing with a co-worker about this month's challenge and she sounded very interested, but it's hard to explain how to do some of these exercises so I will be posting some how-to videos for everyone.

Keep up strengthening that core!

Beginner Fat Burning Exercise: The Burpee

Running Plank

Tomorrow I have to do a running plank and cross over planks.  I had no idea what a running plank was so I had to look it up.  I do of course know what the cross over plank was.

Good luck planking if you're following along with this month's challenge!

Plank Challenge Video

Here's Coach Lois giving a brief rundown on the different planking positions.

September's Challenge: 5 Minute Plank

As promised here is September's Challenge a little early.
August's challenge was awesome and I really did feel wonderful not to mention the perks of losing some inches and gaining some definition.  My coach (Coach Lois) for the extra 10 day challenge handed me a BeachBody 5 minute Plank Challenge sheet which gave me a wonderful idea for my next challenge.  I couldn't find a good image of the calendar for the challenge so I recreated it below.  If you want more information you can contact Coach Lois @ http://www.loistiedemann.com/

Planking Information:
A = side plank (left)
B = side plank (right)
C = elbow plank
D = high plank (straight arms)
E = LSP (long slow plank -to failure)
F = push ups (on or off knees)
G = running plank
H = right/left knees to opposite elbows
I = Superman
J = Burbees with push up in between
K = AB ripper

Day 1 30 seconds: A, C, B, D & J repeat Advanced do: K	Day 2 Do E to failure record time Bonus do F (15-20 reps)	Day 3 REST	Day 4 30 seconds: A, C, B, & D repeat Advanced do: K	Day 5 Do 30 seconds each: G, H, G & repeat	Day 6 Do E to failure record time Bonus do F (15-20 reps)	Day 7 REST
Day 8 30 seconds: A, C, B, D & J repeat Advanced do: K	Day 9 Do E to failure record time Do I for 60 seconds Bonus do F (15-20 reps)	Day 10 REST	Day 11 30 seconds: A, C, B, & D repeat Advanced do: K	Day 12 Do 30 seconds each: G, H, G & repeat	Day 13 Do E to failure record time Do I for 60 seconds Bonus do F (15-20 reps)	Day 14 REST
Day 15 30 seconds: A, C, B, D & J repeat Advanced do: K	Day 16 Do E to failure record time Do I for 60 seconds Bonus do J (15-20 reps)	Day 17 REST	Day 18 30 seconds: A, C, B, & D repeat Advanced do: K	Day 19 Do 30 seconds each: G, H, G & repeat	Day 20 Do E to failure record time Do I for 60 seconds Bonus do F (15-20 reps)	Day 21 REST
Day 22 30 seconds: A, C, B, D & J repeat Advanced do: K	Day 23 Do E to failure record time Do I for 60 seconds Bonus do J (15-20 reps)	Day 24 REST	Day 25 30 seconds: A, C, B, & D repeat Advanced do: K	Day 26 Do 30 seconds each: G, H, G & repeat	Day 27 Do E to failure record time Do I for 60 seconds Bonus do F (15-20 reps)	Day 28 REST
Day 29 30 seconds: A, C, B, D & J repeat Advanced do: K	Day 30 Do E to failure record time Do I for 60 seconds Bonus do J (15-20 reps)

Last Hurrah!

Yesterday ended the 10 day additional challenge, here's what I added as far as exercise goes and how I adapted the yoga challenge to fit.

10 Day Challenge started 8/19/13; ended 8/28/13

Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4	Day 5
regular challenge	regular challenge	Cardio Dance	regular challenge	Cardio Dance
Day 6	Day 7	Day 8	Day 9	Day 10
Insanity	rest	regular challenge	1 hr run	Cardio Dance

 

Week	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4	Day 5	Day 6	Day 7
1	sets  2	4	6	8	10	12	Rest
2	16	18	20	22	24	26	28
3	30	Rest	34	36	38	40	42
4	44	46	48	Rest	52	27/partial rest	56

Already did my 29 this morning and will do the other half this evening.  I have found that splitting the routine up has made a big difference not only building strength but in preventing injury to my wrists as that can end up being a long amount of time as far as wrist strain can go between plank, cobra, and downward dog.  Just one more day -a whopping 60 total for tomorrow!  I feel GREAT! I've lost inches and gained some nice definition in my arms and of course a bonus with the 10 day challenge I lost 2.7 pounds in those 10 days.

Surprise!

The wonderful woman who invited me to join in her 10 day challenge invited me to her "Insanity" workout this morning.  While it has been a long while since I've done anything that intense.  I am happy to say I was, for the most part, able to keep up.  There was one point where I thought I could potentially collapse -so I modified.  The best thing that surprised me the most was the fact that I could do a partial push up in full plank mode.  I have NEVER in my life been able to do any distance of a push up in full plank mode, so clearly my sun salutation challenge for this month has already drastically increased my upper body strength; and that is something I am very proud of!

Peace

When not rushing through my exorbitant number of repetitions, some good old fashioned slow meditative poses are always an awesome way to end the day.

Centering on your breath helps to reduce stress and has been known to cause epiphanies so use with care. :)

Strength

I don't know if one day I will be able to do a handstand like this... that is not really my goal but I still wish that I could.  Strength is something that we all need to keep working on, not just in body, but in mind and soul as well.

Flexibility

There are many wonderful things about yoga, flexibility is just one of them.

Beaching it Yoga Style

I would love to join this crowd and do tomorrow's 38 sun salutations with the smell of sea air, the rush of the waves, and the wind through the palms.

Bear Plank

Image from: http://yogaashram25.blogspot.com/2012/09/animals-doing-yoga.html

Additional or Bonus Challenge

Call me crazy!  I joined a 10 day fitness challenge on top of my already 30 day challenge, so I will be making some adjustments to the calendar as well as showing what I have actually been doing since I blew by the rest day this past week and I wasn't looking at the calendar anyway to know what number I was on, I have been just doubling the number of the day of the month and that has been how many I have done.

Week	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4	Day 5	Day 6	Day 7
1	sets  2	4	6	8	10	12	Rest
2	16	18	20	22	24	26	28
3	30	Rest	34	36	38	40	Rest
4	42	44	46	48	50	52	Rest

This morning I rocked out all 34 repetitions in record time.  Talk about muscle fatigue! Phew!  Since I have been splitting up the routine into two sets due to early morning time constraints this morning's 12 minute stretch was a real scorcher!

10 Day Challenge starts 8/19/13; ends 8/28/13

Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4	Day 5
Day 6	Day 7	Day 8	Day 9	Day 10

I just have to figure out what I am going to put in those empty slots for those 10 days.  The challenge is a part of the Beach Body family involving Shakeology and clean eating.  I've done P90X in the past -unsuccessfully- so maybe I'll dust off those dvd's and try it again, for at least 10 days anyway.  The bonus is that I have a 5 day weekend starting on Wednesday of next week so I will have plenty of time to rock out what ever routine I feel like doing.  Though those 5 days are my last ditch effort to have some summer fun with my son before he goes back to school and I restart school.  I'll keep you posted on what happens.

Keep up the Challenges!