Even though this class is mostly the lower body TRX workout, it has some challenging core exercises as well. Your students who are new to TRX as well as advanced level students can enjoy the variety of progressions in the lower body TRX workout.
July 16, 2014
30 Days Active Challenge Follow Up Report – Week 2
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Hey guys! The Hump Day is here!
Are you having a good week so far? I’m pretty excited to be back here with my Week 2 of the 30 Days Active challenge report.
This challenge to myself started with this post where I wrote a Tough Love Letter to myself following a session at FitBloggin’ 14.
And I’m happy to report that the challenge is going very well and I am staying active every day. Here’s how:
{WEDNESDAY} last week was a yoga night! My legs were SORE from biking and running the week before, so yoga just felt super nice and relaxing.
I chose to walk to the Y instead of driving
{THURSDAY} was HOT! Didn’t really feel like spending any time indoors though, so hubby and I went on a nice long walk together.
Sporting our Vibram Five Fingers (Stats on the right are for the day. Yeah, I know…I have a desk job)
Check out what we saw in one of the yards while walking:
Some people are amazingly creative!
{FRIDAY} was another run day – this time my husband decided to join me and train for a 5K too!
And that run marked the end of my Week 1 of 8 with Coach to 5K.
{SATURDAY} I did not feel the energy AT ALL.
All I could push myself to was a yoga class and a few laps in the pool. But I did it! And that was it 🙂
{SUNDAY} was another C25K Day
Hubby and I agreed to leave the house early in the morning (before the major heat kicked in) and go for a run. It was supposed to be the hottest day of the week, that’s why we wanted to get that run in early so we don’t have to suffer through it.
Well, Mr. H slept in and I waited for him patiently (because I am a good wife, you know). And then we suffered through it.
Not only was it miserably hot, but it was also the day in C25K when you switch to longer running sets.
That run was the worst of my life so far! I was drenched in sweat, breathless and a little dizzy when we got home. It took me a while to recover from that one…
The numbers above probably look funny to someone who runs regularly – nearly 14 minute miles… But I’m not sweating it. I’m getting there and working on it.
And I’m still lapping everybody on the couch 🙂 🙂 🙂
{MONDAY} was a work day – I taught my regular Indoor Cycling Class at the Y.
It was raining outside, so I had 7 (!!!) people in my class – a record number for summer time 🙂 It also so happened that the class mostly consisted of my regular riders and good friends (Mr. H attended, too!).
We had a BLAST! I felt such wonderful energy exchange and inspiration! Don’t forget to check out the latest playlist right here to get the feel of what it was like 😉
{TUESDAY} was a weird day…
Mr. H and I were originally planning to go for another run with C25K, but he had to get up really early and leave, so we decided to re-schedule that run for Wednesday.
I had to do SOMETHING! I felt like peace and quiet. So I went upstairs, lit up some candles and did yoga.
And that was it, my friends!
Missed the Week 1 Report? No problem, check it out here.
Do share: what was your most favorite workout of the past week or so?
Stay fit, friends!
This post was shared on the Workout Wednesdays linkup.
July 15, 2014
Pro Cakes Review and Tasty Tuesday Linkup
Good morning, Healthy Eaters 🙂 Happy Tasty Tuesday to ya!
As always, I am sharing my tasty finds with you today and hosting a linkup for you to share yours!
Don’t forget to check out other link up participants and there’s only one rule to the linkup – link back or grab the link up badge from the sidebar. Let’s spread the word so we can have more participants next week!
So, let’s get down to the tasty business here. A while ago, I got an opportunity through FitFluential to review Pro Cakes.
Pro Cakes is a high protein pancake mix, which is also gluten free, wheat free, contains 14 net carbs and over 20 grams of protein per serving.
I received this single serving of pancake mix in the mail shortly after I signed up for the review with an information card and a thank you note from the Pro Cakes founder.
I have to say – pancakes are my guilty pleasure – I could eat them for breakfast every day. Making a batch from scratch is not always feasible with my busy schedule. Making a batch from the store bought mix is not always healthy. So we make pancakes very occasionally.
This mix is a great solution to both issues above – you get a mix that just needs 1/3 cup of milk and an egg added to it (substitute with almond milk and an egg white if you feel like it) and is healthy and packed with protein. (see the full list of ingredients here)
Another thing that I loved about Pro Cakes mix is that it comes both in 13 oz bags and in 1.6 oz singe serving bags (makes 3 medium size pancakes) that are super convenient if you’re making breakfast for one or two people on a busy morning when you just have no time to measure those ingredients.
I made 4 small pancakes from my single serving sample that I received.
The pancakes were fluffy and oh SO delicious! I have to say I was skeptical to begin with – mostly because I don’t like the artificial taste of pretty much any type of added protein.
I could not taste anything funky in these pancakes.
There was no artificial powder aftertaste whatsoever.
I punched in the numbers for just the pancakes into MyFitnessPal that morning and here’s what I got:
Of course that’s not everything I ate that day, but looks pretty balanced to me for one meal – especially taking into account that the meal was PANCAKES!
I loved these pancakes and the fact that they are packed with protein without the artificial aftertaste. I would definitely recommend them!
Now tell me all about your tasty finds, guys, and don’t forget to link up your tasty posts below. Please, share, link back or grab the linkup party badge from the sidebar.
Have a wonderful week!
DISCLAIMER: Pro Cakes has provided me with the complementary product in exchange for this review. All the opinions above are my own.
This post was shared on Healthy Tuesday Blog Hop.
Loading InLinkz ... July 9, 2014
30 Days Active Challenge Follow Up Report – Week 1
Hey guys! Happy Hump Day!
As you may remember, last week I posted a Tough Love Letter to myself where I promised to go back to basics and workout every day for 30 days, and post weekly progress reports here.
So here is Part 1 of the 30 Days Active challenge recap, as promised.
{WEDNESDAY}
Last Wednesday, after I published the tough love letter, I was all jazzed up to get started on my new challenge!
So I grabbed my husband and we hit the weight room together (followed by a yoga class for me).
It felt awesome to be back in the weight room! I ran into a couple of my cycling students, which is always a pleasure. Love my people!
{THURSDAY}
Oh, was I sore on Thursday! I think I pulled a muscle in my arm as it still hurts today – been working too hard 🙂
Since I couldn’t really use my arms to workout, hubby and I went on a long walk on Thursday evening.
{FRIDAY}
On Friday I woke up with an itch only a run could “scratch”. 🙂
If you’ve been reading this blog for a while you know that I got injured running about a year ago (on my first run in forever), went through a long and expensive PT, got a pair of expensive running shoes and never got back to running – story of my life…
Until the 4th of July 2014.
So at about 7 AM on the 4th of July, I dusted those Brooks off, laced ’em up, left a note for my husband (who was still asleep like most of sane people out there), and went for a run with the C25K® – 5K Trainer.
No, my bad knees didn’t give out and I ran/walked for about 1.7 miles. I know people who eat marathons for breakfast, and I’m awful proud of them and proud to be friends with them. But you know what? There’s no feeling like being proud of yourself for making those first 1.7 miles after a long period of being a lazy ass injury!
I felt horrible every step of the 1.7 miles, and felt awful proud of myself afterwards!
No knee pain so far (and it’s been almost a week), so I decided to stick with the C25K for now.
{SATURDAY}
It was my turn to teach Saturday Cycle at the Y at 8:00 am last week. The Y has dropped the 9:00 am class for the summer and made the 8:00 am class an hour long instead of the usual 45 minutes.
I have to admit, I dislike an hour long cycling classes. I think 45 minute format is ideal for getting a good workout and not overdoing it.
But hey, the boss is the boss, so I put together a hilly, one hour long nightmare plan on Friday night 🙂
It is VERY schematic though – the height and steepness of the hills in the drawing above had nothing to do with the actual intensity of the class profile elements. I just did that so I could better visualize the terrain I planned out for the class.
So on Saturday morning I grabbed my husband again (gotta love that guy for everything he takes from me!), and we headed out the door for the morning cycling madness 🙂
We killed it! It was a wonderful class – great energy from my students, lots of compliments from the class on my playlist. By the way, you can check out the playlists I use in my indoor cycling classes here.
After getting home, taking a quick shower and grabbing breakfast, I went back to the Y for a yoga class. Oh did that feel good to my sore legs and arms and shoulders!
{SUNDAY}
Regular workout was just not playing out for me on Sunday. The evening was approaching fast so I had to come up with something to stay active.
When the family decided to drive to our local swim club, I decided to bike there.
It’s not far – just about 1.73 miles one way, but that was better than nothing.
It felt great to do some laps at the pool afterwards, too!
{MONDAY}
On Monday I taught my regular indoor cycling class to my regular 3 summer students 🙂 You know, you might see a lot of instructors complaining about attendance numbers dropping in the summer time. I LOVE this time – I use this opportunity to try new things in the class that I wouldn’t be able to try with a bigger group, use it to bond with my students and give them more attention during and after class.
Love-love-love small classes. They might not be blasting the bigger class energy, but they sure feel rewarding and challenging!
{TUESDAY}
It was HOT here on Tuesday. I kind of gave up on the idea of going for a run since early morning – it was sticky! Options were: home yoga DVD or weight room at the Y.
Since my arm is still not 100%, I decided to wait with the weight room.
Home yoga DVD seemed a little boring….It cooled down after the rain…So I ended up going for a run 🙂
I love that feeling of freedom running gives you…All you need is a pair of shoes and some motivation to lift yourself off the couch and get out of the door – and you won’t regret it.
I felt so much energy after the run last night!
So, friends. Here are the results of Week 1 of the 30 Days Active Challenge:
- I. AM. SORE. Like, all the time and everywhere 🙂
- I am 2.8 lb lighter (that’s after a 6 months plateau and then a gain – I couldn’t believe the number on the scale finally moved in the right direction!)
- I look at my FitBit more than I look at my watch 🙂 Sometimes I feel like I look at my FitBit more than I look at my husband! 🙂 🙂 🙂
- I feel empowered!
That’s it for now, guys.
Remember to check back next Wednesday for the Week 2 recap of my 30 Days Active challenge I brought onto myself 🙂
Stay strong!
This post has been shared on the Work Out Wednesdays Linkup. I am also a featured blogger there this week! Check it out – it is a great weekly linkup with wonderful people.
April 11, 2014
Five on Friday: Cycling, Photography, Reads and More
Hey-hey! Happy Friday!
I think that rhymes 🙂 Nope, I didn’t do it on purpose this time!
Anyway, are you guys happy it’s Friday? I am! It’s been a long-long week. Even though hubby has been traveling and kids are gone, too I feel like every day I was hopping from one thing to another with the last thing being hopping into bed. So glad the weekend is coming!
But it is still Friday morning and on Friday I share my 5 recent favorites with you. Here we go 🙂
{ONE} Reads
I’ve ordered a couple more books from Amazon in the past week and just got them in the mail yesterday.
I’m especially interested in the “buying your first bike” of this one as you know from this post.
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Cycling
And also to get ready for this:
I can’t wait to start reading all this goodness 🙂 I’ve recently realized that I don’t read enough. Not nearly as much as I used to. Read as in books, where you actually turn the pages 🙂 We’re so overwhelmed by the internet, social media and the constant flow of information that we forgot how to sit down, tune out and just read a book. So, my goal from now on is to read at least one book a month! And you guys get to hold be accountable 🙂
Here’s what my promise to myself looks like for the next 10 months (at most):
{TWO} Indoor Cycling Association Summit
I found this event through…oh gosh, let me restore the chain of events in my memory here 🙂 I was first introduced to the Indoor Cycling Association by my Spinning® MI Meg McNeely who shared this article by Jennifer Sage (the Association founder) on her FB page.
After I read the article, which I think is great and a must-read for all the cycling instructors out there, I subscribed to the ICA newsletter and that was how I learnt about the summit.
Karma works wonders 🙂
Anyway, this is an online summit and it runs April 3 through 16 with 2 sessions a day, and it is FREE!
24 sessions led by the top professional instructors, cyclists and scientists. FREE. OF. CHARGE.
Even if I don’t get ECE’s for that – uuuhm, yes, please!
I am just loving the sessions so much! Despite the lack of time and the fact that the sessions are only available for 12 hours each day, I work hard to find time to listen to them, because staying current with your education is key for being an awesome instructor. And I really want to be one!
If you are interested, you can still join this wonderful event for FREE right here.
You can also get an all access pass and have all the sessions + bonuses + handouts available for you anytime for 6 months after the summit.
{THREE} Shutter Starz Tabletop Complete Photo Studio Kit w/2 Light Tents & 8 Backgrounds
Well, I am just about to take my food photography to the next level, friends 🙂 I think this is a good investment, which just so happens to be a lot of fun to play with, too 🙂
Here’s what’s in the kit:
- 2 professional photo tents 32″ and 13″
- (8) Colored Internal Sheets for background modeling (White, Red, Blue, and Black)
- (2) High output 30 Watt 5500K lights
- Includes a tripod adjustable from 13.5″ with extension up to 40″
- 100% pure white nylon velour fabric and stainless steel spring frame.
It is a food blogger’s dream – hands down!
{FOUR} Magnetic Purse Hooks
I don’t know if you ever heard of such a thing or not, but I got one as a Christmas present from one of my friends in Russia and I am loving it! I have pretty much no room for my purse at work. I tried gluing a purse hook onto the side of my desk but it doesn’t take long for those to break (yep, I am a crazy heavy bag lady alright). Getting the glued part off takes quite a while though.
So. Anyway. I gave up on those hooks and shortly after that I got my magnetic hook for Christmas. Here’s what mine looks like:
Check out these other awesome creations! So neat!
This one is my favorite :):
I think they should have had the text facing the other direction though – for the bar tender to see 🙂
{FIVE} #FFAprilAbs Challenge by FitFluential
I am loving this challenge! Even though it is not easy to remember and find time to plank (I know, I know), I am doing it and haven’t missed a day so far.
I’m up to 1:45 as of today 🙂 Working my way back to my previous record of over 5 minute plank 🙂
Your turn: what are the things you’re loving lately?
Have a great weekend, guys, and stay fit!
March 19, 2014
A Hectic Week Recap – Eats and Exercises
Hey guys! Happy Hump Pump Day! 🙂
I’ve had a very hectic couple of weeks as you probably noticed by the lack of my “What’s on my plate” Wednesday and Motivation Monday posts this and last week… Well, guess what? I am making it all up to you today by combining the two 🙂
Not much was going on on the exercise front last week – between the sharp right shoulder/arm pain and busy schedule I managed to squeeze in just a few workouts/classes last week.
{MONDAY} Cycling and Chicken
Cycling class with Jim on Monday
I don’t like Mondays most of the time. I am excited about Monday being a new beginning and all, but by the end of the day I am beat. It is usually the busiest day of the week for me – at work, exercising after work, etc. etc.. What do I make for dinner when I am busy? That’s right – crockpot anything 🙂
Last Monday it was chicken! I used to put it in the crockpot in the morning, set on Low and turn it off when I get home at 5 PM. It made the chicken a little overcooked to my liking…So what I’ve been doing lately is I would come home for lunch, and throw the chicken into the crock pot (Low) for 4-5 hours. That’s plenty of time to cook it and it comes out just perfectly juicy.
Hubby made wok veggies on Monday night – and we got a perfect dinner right there!
{TUESDAY} No Exercise and Lamb
Took a rest day on Tuesday night.
Foodie’s highlight of the day was lamb for dinner – grilled to perfection by my husband.
and this fruit and veggie platter I had at work for my snack throughout the afternoon:
{WEDNESDAY} Yoga and Pork Chops
I did make it to yoga on Wednesday but didn’t take any pictures so you’ll just have to trust me on that one 🙂
And then I got home and made rosemary pork chops and a salad for my tired husband.
Mmmmmm….
{THURSDAY} Rest Day and Orange Salsa
Yeah, that was the day my shoulder and arm started acting up. It was that kind of muscle paralyzing pain that makes it hard to lift even a cup of coffee.
That did not prevent me from making an awesome orange salsa to go with tilapia and rice for dinner on Thursday evening, though 🙂
{FRIDAY} Another rest day and Beet Root Salad
On Friday my shoulder/arm was hurting so much it would wake me up at night. So…another rest day for the Lena 🙁
The food highlights of the day included the beet root salad I made for lunch on Sunday during my meal prep.
Canned beet roots, lettuce, feta, roasted pepitas and purple onions
{SATURDAY} Yoga and Big Family Breakfast
By Saturday I felt good enough to go get some gentle stretching done in a yoga class.
Yoga was followed by a breakfast fest made by my husband!
I also had a super-delicious lunch – leftover pasta with scallops from eating out the night before:
YUM!!!
{SUNDAY} Food Prep
Well, that decision to go to yoga the day before was a little pre-mature. My shoulder and arm were not ready for any Sunday workout.
They were good for Sunday meal prep, so I went wild 🙂 I actually started on Saturday with this:
Apple-Cinnamon infused water, sweet potatoes and quinoa
and then continued on Sunday by making lunches and snacks for the week days:
No working out on Sunday either 🙁 Some nice kitchen time though 🙂 🙂 🙂
And that was my week of eating and non-exercising at a glance 🙂
Do share: How did you do last week? Anything fun? Anything delicious cooking?
Take care, friends, and stay fit!
March 14, 2014
Five on Friday – Fitness Geek and a Little More Bling
Hey, guys! Happy Friday!
I hope you had a great week!
Traditionally, Friday post is about five things I am loving lately, want to own, already own and adore, etc. etc. – Five on Friday.
So, here we go.
{ONE} More Swatch Watches
Did I mention I am addicted to them? No? I am addicted to them.
Here is another one from my collection.
There is an interesting story behind this one – I got it in China in 2007, at the Beijing International Airport duty free. I didn’t have enough money with me to get it at that time, so I had to borrow some from my travel companion. 🙂 Ever since – where ever I go wearing this watch – I always get a compliment.
I have never seen one like that anywhere else.
In fact, I was having trouble finding a picture on the internet until I got on Swatch Official Website and used their search function.
So, for those of you who want one, the model name is Swatch Affecting SFK292G.
{TWO} This awesome T
I think I am going to buy it as a present for one of my fellow “inmates” 🙂
{THREE} Stability Ball – Gold’s Gym
I’ve been eyeing those for a while wanting to get one to exercise at home, and I finally did. I got mine at Walmart. If you ever go out to get one, pay attention to the sizes they come in – the ball diameter you need depends on your height, so read what’s on the box before you grab it – otherwise you will have to go back and deal with the people of Walmart trying to exchange it 🙂
Can also get it on Amazon:
What I like about this particular one is that it comes with an air pump and an exercise chart! This Wednesday I did some ball exercises every commercial break while I watched Criminal Minds on TV 🙂
{FOUR} Yoga Props – Blocks
You guys know that I have a couple of rest days a week… Well, what’s a rest day without some home yoga practice in it, right? 🙂 So. I’ve been getting some props for my yoga practice at home. It is amazing how much you need when you try to “do it at home”!
So, I recently read this article by Christine and it inspired me to order yoga blocks.
If you’re into yoga – check out Christine’s blog. She has a great series of posts titled “Ask a Yogini” where you can ask her any question about your yoga practice!
{FIVE} Homemade Granola
Been addicted to it lately. I made a whole batch last weekend, and I have to tell you – put some yogurt on top and you got a perfect filling snack that will keep you going until lunch! That’s pretty good if you’re trying to limit your snacking.
You can find a recipe for it here.
Do share: what’s your latest favorite finds/likes/addictions?
Have a great weekend, guys, and I will see you on Monday 🙂
March 10, 2014
Motivation Monday: FitFluential March Miles and last week’s exercise round up
Hey guys! Happy Monday!
As always, I am sharing my last week’s exercise recap with you today! I can finally do that as I am back in the game – no more skipping, slacking, etc. etc. Last week was as close to my normal exercise routine as possible – that was my goal and I have accomplished what I’d planned! Here’s how it was:
{MONDAY} Cycling class with Jim.
I am still working on my resistance loading – it is amazing how hard it is psychologically to put more resistance on the wheel and push yourself, as opposed to pushing yourself to go faster with a lighter wheel. I only went for 9.2 miles this time, but oh did I sweat for those nine point damn two miles!
Totally rocked my Spinning® bandana! Those things are great for blocking sweat. I have no idea why I’ve never worn one before!
I am also doing a 100 mile March challenge by FitFluential! So I walked 2.80 miles on Monday, too to get my #ffmarchmiles in 🙂
I am loving this challenge! It is amazing how it makes you realize that despite all the workouts you do during the week, you don’t spend all that much time walking at all…
Note the good use I am putting my Reebok pedometer to 🙂
{TUESDAY} Rest Day
Had a rest day from exercise, but did some walking for the March miles!
{WEDNESDAY} Yoga and more
Wednesday night is yoga night! Oh it felt soooo good to stretch!
I also hit the gym for a quick walk/run on a treadmill and some weights before yoga.
And of course I had to log some FF March miles, too!
{THURSDAY} Treadmill + Weights
I initially planned a rest day on Thursday, but that didn’t happen 🙂 I did go to the gym – walked/ran on a treadmill and did some weights after work!
I am feeling very good about my latest treadmill “adventures”. It is hard to get back into running when you have never actually been a runner in the first place, and when you decided to start being one – you got injured. I am smarter this time. I take it slow. I am being careful. I take it one minute at a time. And it feels great 🙂
Here’s what Thursday #ffmarchmiles looked like:
{FRIDAY} Yoga
Friday night is yoga night too, you know. I kind of figured it counts as a rest day 🙂
Friday FitFluential March Miles:
{SATURDAY} Cycling + Yoga
I did my double – indoor cycling and yoga:
{SUNDAY} Rest Day
Well, so called “Rest Day”…My husband is working on our kitchen, so there were a lot of miles done around the house – cleaning, cleaning and cleaning some more:
And that’s all she wrote 🙂
Do share: what fun workouts did you do last week? Which one was your favorite?
Stay fit, my friends!
March 3, 2014
Motivation Monday: Farewell February – a Month at a Glance
Hey guys! Happy Monday!
February has come and gone. Let’s wrap it up, shall we?
It was a busy month for me (even though it didn’t feel like it most of the time) – full of events, emotions, changes, achievements and more! Here it is at a glance…
{February 8}
I went through my Spinning® Instructor Training – something I’d been dreaming about for quite a while has come true! It was also a great opportunity to meet a whole bunch of awesome, driven, like-minded people!
Thank you, Mad Dogg Athletics!
{February 13}
I passed my assessment test and officially became a certified Spinning® Instructor.
On this day I also got accepted to be a Sweat Pink Ambassador!
Always knew 13 was my lucky number!
{February 25}
I posted the very first guest post on this blog! Thanks so much to Amber for sharing her recipe in that post!
{February 28}
What an awesome end to an awesome month! I have been accepted to be a FitFluential Ambassador!!! That is another dream come true right there! I am so grateful and so excited to become a member of this great community of fitness enthusiasts!
And…I spent 19.8 hours exercising in February. That is not too bad!
If I ever lose my motivation – I should go back to this post…February felt like a very slow month where a lot of times I felt like I am stuck in place, not moving anywhere. It wasn’t until now that I realized how much I have accomplished in February!
Do share: what are the highlights of your February?
Stay fit and warm!
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