Hey-hey guys!
Happy Hump Day to ya. How is your week going so far? Off to a good start?
I’m back here today as usual with my weekly exercise recap. The highlight this time – I’m back to running with C25K!
Here’s a day-by-day recap.
August 13, 2014
Weekly Workouts Recap: Walking and Yoga
Hey-hey, it’s Hump Day!
As promised, I continue posting my weekly workouts recap on Wednesdays for you guys, even though my 30 Days Active Challenge is over.
I had a pretty crappy week as far as activity goes. It’s been a while since I ran! I just wish there were 48 hours in a day 🙂
So here’s what happened in the past 7 days workout wise:
{WEDNESDAY}
Hubby and I went for a walk. I was a beautiful evening, low humidity and nice breeze. We covered some good ground there 🙂
{THURSDAY}
We had a Yoga class at work. It was won-der-ful!
There’s nothing better than yoga, and especially in the middle of the work day – it’s my chance to recharge, reset and rewind.
I love that my company offers this free opportunity for its employees.
I didn’t make my steps goal that day… I guess I could count Thursday as a rest day.
{FRIDAY}
Totally slacked on my regular yoga class at 5:30 PM. The steps were really low, too.
{SATURDAY}
I didn’t really care for the cycling class that was going on that day, so I slept in and did some yoga late morning. We had an active Saturday (with berry picking and a soccer game), so I finally met my steps goal of 6000 steps that day.
{SUNDAY}
On Sunday I pretty much worked on my Kitchen Mileage all day – getting food ready for the first week of my Whole30 while my husband was working on our water heater in the basement. I made a bunch of food and took a bunch of steps.
{MONDAY}
I finally decided to do something about my steps and went for a walk at lunch time.
The weather was beautiful for it! I walked around the housing development near my office, and then headed to my Monday cycling class after work.
The class went very well this Monday – I had 2 new students (always exciting), one returning student after her first class with me (yay!) and a bunch of regulars.
My riders had such a quiet determination this Monday! I don’t think anyone said a single word during the class – they were so focused on what they were doing!
Now can you believe that with a goal of 6000 steps a day I went to bed on Monday with the following on my FitBit screen? My OCD was obviously off duty that night.
{TUESDAY}
Another rest day and lazy steps.
So, my friends, I officially declare myself a looser this week – 2 yoga classes, 1 indoor cycling class, and 2 days out of 7 I met my 6000 steps/day goal.
Looking at this post you could think I’m 80 years old. I don’t feel that way and I refuse to be that way, but I’m not loosing sleep over the past week.
All that matters is that I see it, and I’m going to take action.
I’ve just bumped up my goal on my Fitbit to 10 000 steps a day and I’m intended to meet it.
Wish me luck 🙂
Tell me: how was your week workout wise? Have you been full of energy or tired and sluggish lately?
Take care, friends, and come back next Wednesday for another report!
August 11, 2014
So…Whole30 Gets a….YES!
After careful consideration, my Whole30 Challenge is a go!
Won’t go into much detail as to why – I guess there’s both pro and con opinions out there – and plenty of both, too. I just feel it’s the right thing for me to do at this point in my health journey.
I’m missing something. And I’m hoping that Whole30 will help me find that “something”.
Anywho. It just so happens that Yuliya over at Welcome to Mommyhood is starting another round of hers over there in the Netherlands as well. How exciting is that? I have a Whole30 buddy!
We decided to cheer each other on and post recaps on our blogs for every 10 days of the challenge.
We will also be posting daily highlights over at Lean Lena and Welcome to Mommyhood Instagram pages.
Make sure you follow both our blogs and Instagram pages if you would like to follow along and find out what the first Whole30 feels like (that would be me telling you that) and how to make it enjoyable with Yuliya’s recipes and previous experience with this program. 🙂
Don’t miss out on the real experience and true recaps!
So… Whole30.
This weekend I sat down to plan my meals for the week. I’m saying “my” because my family is not following me along. They’re not crazy enough 🙂 Joking. They are. They just love pizza too much 🙂
The good thing is we don’t have the kids with us for the first 7 days of my Whole30, my husband is very flexible with food so we can eat program-friendly meals and hopefully, I will ease into it pretty quickly with less temptations.
So, back to the weekend prep.
On Saturday we went berry picking. It was so awesome! The place is wonderful and we had so much fun. If you’re in the area, check out the Yellow Hill Farm.
We picked a ton of blackberries.
We made blackberry cobbler that night, and I lie to you not – on Sunday morning my family sat down for breakfast and put away the whole 8″x8″ of it – right out of the pan 🙂 Ok, well…that wasn’t very Whole30 friendly 🙂
Back to the good stuff now.
On the way back from the berry picking we stopped by at the Peach Festival, and got a whole huge bag of peaches!
On Sunday our hot water heater said “I’m done!” My husband and the girl worked on it all day and ended up replacing the whole thing, while I was getting busy in the kitchen.
I made these awesome Turkey Ginger Breakfast Patties (stay tuned for the recipe tomorrow):
Got the pork roast in homemade marinade ready and in the over for dinner.
Cut up some fruit for my smoothies during the week:
Boiled some eggs, too.
I may or may not have made another 2 cobblers (peach and blackberry) for my hungry family 🙂
So, there you have it, guys! I’m ready for the Whole30 and I feel good about it. Bring it on!
Take care and stay healthy. Come back tomorrow for the awesome breakfast patties recipe!
August 8, 2014
5 Things You Can Do to Help New Students in Indoor Cycling Class
Hey guys! The latest post I wrote with tips for new indoor cycling / Spinning® instructors totally exploded my blog stats. Thank you so much to everyone who came over to read it, comment on it, share it and I hope you found it helpful.
I thought I’d talk about indoor cycling / Spinning® tricks again today since it is something that I really care about, and this blog is a way to share the information I have hoping that it can help somebody one day. Hmm…I sense a new blog series starting 🙂
So you’re an indoor cycling / Spinning® instructor. I bet you were once a newbie student in somebody’s class. Remember that?
Most likely that instructor who taught the very first class you attended was pretty good since you decided to make teaching indoor cycling your job! Either way, I’m sure you remember the experience of taking the very first class, feeling weird and out of place with all those guys in cycling jerseys and funny shoes around you. Oh and that soreness in the saddle area the day after (ouch!) – but I digress.
We all once were very new to indoor cycling. Whether or not we came back to that class or indoor cycling in general depended a lot on the instructor of that very first class we took.
Now the roles are reversed and you’re on the other side of the room hoping you’re doing a good job and your students like your class enough to come back for more.
Here’s some more insider information for you from someone who was a newbie not so long ago and is now teaching indoor cycling. 🙂
{ONE} Have Your Radar On
Before your class begins, as people start entering the room… Keep your “radar” on. It is a great skill to be able to remember people’s faces and names, and to remember exactly if they’ve been to your class before. Not all of us have mastered it just yet – especially if the studio you teach at has 50 bikes in the room.
Do your best and try to remember new people as you meet them.
Back to that radar – it’ll help you spot the new people you haven’t seen before.
Asking if anybody’s new to cycling when you’re already on the bike and ready to start doesn’t work. Everybody knows it’s time to start. If you were new, would you say “Yes, I’m new. Can you please help me?” in the room full of people eager to start pedaling away?
Exactly.
Do your radar screening and walking around before the class. Spot them. Come up to them and introduce yourself. Ask if they need any help. Be proactive.
Keep an eye on them during the class and get off the bike to help if you see them struggling with form, etc..
That radar is called “I CARE” and it’s a shame that many instructors have it off most of the time. If yours is on – the new riders will come back. You know, because you care.
{TWO} Warn them in advance and keep it simple
We teach every day/week. Many things we do and say in the class seem natural and obvious to us, but they are not so obvious to new students in indoor cycling.
“What in the world is RPM and how do I find it on this little computer? How do I even turn it on?”
When you spot them and come up to talk to them before class, after the bike set up (see, I don’t even mention that as one of the 5 things – it’s a MUST) – go over the bike computer (if applicable) and basic terminology you use in the class (RPM, resistance, climb, flat road, etc..). You won’t have time for a lecture, but try to explain the basics briefly.
Consider changing up your cueing to “less jargon” if you have new students in that class.
Example:
Instead of:
“Gimme more of that hill!”
Say:
“Add resistance”
Remember, this terminology is new to them. Keep it simple.
{THREE} Magic Box
Let’s face it: they won’t remember the bike set up numbers next time they come to your/other instructor’s class.
They will feel embarrassed to ask for help again and will set it up themselves “by the feel”. They will end up doing it wrong and hurting themselves.
Don’t let it happen – all it takes for you to help them is one trip to Wal-Mart and about $10.
Buy an index card box, couple packs of index cards and a pack of alphabetic dividers:
After you’re done setting up the bike for them, write the settings and their name down on an index card and file under the letter their name starts with.
Now, I know they don’t show up with enough time for you to do all that before class. If you’re running out of time, mention this option to them and come back with that index card after class.
If they run out before you can get to them with that card, go over to their bike, write the numbers down and file. Mention it to them next time they come to your class.
{FOUR} Now about that saddle…
I mentioned being sore from the saddle earlier in this post.
Do you remember how miserable you were after the first ever indoor cycling class? I still do and it hurts to even think about it.
Talk to your manager and see if you can purchase a couple gel seat covers for newbies. Experienced riders come prepared (padded shorts, gel seat covers, tough rears 🙂 ) – new riders will not know about this “drawback” of the first class. I know a woman who never returned to cycling for that very reason.
Offer them a gel seat cover. It won’t take care of the issue 100% and they will still be sore the day after, but it will help. A LOT.
{FIVE} New Student Handout
Put together and print a handout for new students – anything they might need to know about indoor cycling for beginners. Here are some suggestions on what to include into the handout:
- the importance of proper riding form,
- a column with basic terminology,
- contraindicated moves,
- “dress code” guidelines and what to bring to class,
- hand positions and moves,
- cycling class types offered at your facility (junior, senior, introduction to cycling, express, 1 hour long, etc..),
- schedule on the back for just the cycling classes your facility offers – for easier reference,
- quick introduction of the cycling instructors on the back (add photos and let instructors write up the introductions themselves),
- and any other information that might be specific to your facility.
What you include in that handout is entirely up to you and your Physical Director, but make sure it is a fun and engaging introduction to your club’s indoor cycling / Spinning® program. You want them to come back for more!
And that’s it, my dear indoor / outdoor cyclists 🙂
I hope you found this post helpful. If you did – please, SHARE to help more instructors make their newbies feel welcome in their classes and come back for more benefits that cycling has to offer.
Thanks for stopping by today.
Ride on!
August 1, 2014
5 Things I Don’t Teach Indoor Cycling or Spinning® Class Without
Hey guys! It’s Friday finally!!!
I hope you had a great week and are ready for even better weekend.
I thought I’d share some more tips for new indoor cycling instructors today. Being fairly new to it myself, I still remember very well what it is like to struggle with every class you have to teach – especially the first one. If you can relate and you’re lost in the world of information, check out my posts on how to get ready for teaching your first class and the recap of my own first class I taught.
It’s been a few months now that I’ve been teaching at the YMCA and yes – it does get easier. You get in the groove and don’t get so nervous before every class.
I now have my little “tricks” that will hopefully help you be more prepared to teach indoor cycling, whether you’re a new instructor or not.
Are you ready to receive some secret insider information? 🙂 Here we go!
{ONE} JOBY Gorillapod
It is a flexible tripod for point & shoot digital cameras + smart phone adapter with 1/4×20 standard tripod thread For iPhone and all smart phones.
To be honest with you, I have no idea what I’d do without this handy thing.
Most of the indoor bikes don’t have anything on the handlebars for your music projecting device to attach to or rest on.
Throw in some cords from the stereo system hanging around and it just gets a little unsafe to ride your bike with all that around.
I initially bought this flexible tripod for what it is intended to – photography. But having started to teach indoor cycling I thought of this handy use for it – just attach the tripod with the cell phone adapter onto the handlebars (mine usually sits right by the “Pilot”), tuck the cords behind the tripod “legs” and you’re all set!
If you use something other than your phone to play music in the class, I’m pretty sure they have adaptors for that, too 🙂
Buy this super tripod on amazon
{TWO} Class Builder™ App by Cycling Fusion
It is not free, it costs $19.99 and it is worth every penny!
This app allows you to put together ride playlists from your iTunes playlists or by adding songs to class profile one by one, integrate timed cues to show up on the screen at a certain time during a song, intervals, play pre- and post-class music, it keeps all your profiles right there handy at your fingertips.
You can copy an old class profile if you just want to adjust it a little for your next class.
You can copy a profile segment (that killer climb your class loved a few months ago) and paste it in your new profile.
You can e-mail a .pdf of your class profile, playlist and cue sheet to yourself and print it.
You can see the class elapsed time and each song elapsed time on the screen all the time.
You can teach with video or photo.
You can see your profile intensity chart based on the data you enter for each segment.
You can view your class play list, cue sheet or “now playing” song at any time during the class.
You see your latest AND the next cue (with the countdown to it!) on one screen at any time.
I’m sure you can do another 1000 things with this app that I have yet to learn.
I LOVE getting ready for my classes with this app. I think it is very helpful to have it – especially when you’re new and are just starting to build your confidence teaching.
Cycling Fusion has videos up on their website that will make it super easy for you to use their app.
Buy Class Builder™ by Cycling Fusion on iTunes, I promise it will be the best $19.99 you ever spent!
{THREE} Belkin F8Z492ttP Bluetooth Music Receiver
We al know that a good instructor is not there to get their own workout, and that getting off the bike and walking around the room is extremely important – it gives you a chance to keep an eye on your students, correct their form if needed, keep an eye on their cadence and even heart rate.
A lot of new instructors absolutely dread this part of their job. One of the reasons why they are afraid to get off the bike is because (being a new instructor), they don’t feel comfortable leaving their music streaming device “tied” to the stereo. If you ask me – I need to have my phone in my hand when I walk around – all my cues are in the Class Builder app, I need to see the time, effort and the next drill. If I had to walk away from that in my first few classes it would have given me such anxiety I wouldn’t be able to concentrate on anything else.
What if I told you that you can walk around the room with your phone in your hand, see your music, cues, intensity zones, playlist AND be able to control the volume from your phone?
Belkin F8Z492ttP Bluetooth Music Receiver
Then turn on Bluetooth on your phone, pair your phone with this little device and walk free while streaming your music in class.
You’re welcome 🙂
{FOUR} Backup CD and Cue Sheet
How many times have you been struggling with that stereo? Someone who taught before you did something and you can’t get that thing to play music from your phone.
Or (God forbid) the cord you need has mysteriously disappeared from the room and you simply can’t connect your device to the stereo system.
Burn a CD with the “go to” profile in case of emergency, and print out the cue sheet to quickly look over before you start the class if you need to use it.
You might never need it, but it just might save your reputation one day 🙂
{FIVE} Regular Athletic Shoes
Keep them in your locker at the gym or in your car, or just wear them when you go to class.
I’m assuming you have learnt the benefits of clipping in by now and do have a nice pair of cycling shoes. If not, this article here has great information on how to choose the right pair of cycling shoes.
Now why would you need to bring a pair of regular shoes with you, you may ask?
Because things happen. If one of the cleats on your shoes breaks, falls out, gets lost, etc.. – are you ready to teach an entire class off the bike because all you have on is your flip-flops? 🙂
If yes, no problem at all – other that your riders thinking you’re a weirdo teaching in flip-flops. 🙂
If you’re not ready for that – the spare pair of shoes might be just what you need so you can get on the bike and into those cages if something goes wrong with your cycling shoes.
And that’s it, my dears! Just 5 things to remember – easy, right?
Good luck to you if you’re just starting this exciting journey of teaching Indoor Cycling or Spinning®. I’m rooting for you!
Have a wonderful weekend!
July 30, 2014
30 Days Active Challenge: Week 4 Recap
Hey-hey my fit friends! It’s Hump Day and that means what?
Correct! Time for another 30 Days Active Challenge recap.
The past week was hectic and busy-busy-busy with both mine and my husband’s birthdays – I feel like all I ate was cake all week 🙂
But yes, I did have this challenge I put myself through on my mind all the time and even on the days when I didn’t have an “official” workout, I tried to stay active or eat extra healthy.
So here’s what happened last week:
{WEDNESDAY} was my birthday, so official workout didn’t really happen. I had a wonderful birthday celebration both at work and at home.
My awesome husband took me out to Rock Bass Grill for dinner where I had the 2nd best crab cakes in my life!
Guess what I got for my birthday? 🙂
Yep, I’m married to the BEST guy in the world, you know? 🙂
Exercise on Wednesday: walk-walk-walk!
{THURSDAY}
We had a yoga class at work over lunch time. I love those classes! It’s like somebody pushes your reset button in the middle of the day and you come back to your desk all balanced and calm.
Then somebody pisses you off again, but that has nothing to do with yoga 🙂
Anyway. After work on Thursday I needed to go to CVS. So instead of driving a few blocks like I usually do, I walked there.
{FRIDAY}
There was so much cake on Wednesday at work, and then dinner at the restaurant….so we didn’t get to my birthday cake at home until Friday 🙂
No official workout, but lots of activities and walking that day.
{SATURDAY}
On Saturday I finally got a chance to try an indoor cycling class with a recently hired instructor at our Y. She teaches in the mornings on weekdays, which of course I can’t make because I work.
So I was pretty excited to see her name on the Saturday rotation class schedule this past week. I signed up and bam! I was there at 8:00 AM on Saturday.
Here’s my blurry “Pilot” at the end of the class 🙂 It’s blurry because taking a picture while still pedaling is not the best idea in the world 🙂
The class was good, just a couple “funky” moves and that’s it 🙂 I still got an awesome workout, which was nice – just being able to concentrate on your own effort without having to guide anybody else. 🙂
After the class, hubby and I took a long walk to Cole’s bicycle shop where I almost agreed to buy a $1200 road bike… Crazy woman 🙂
That didn’t happen, though. $1200 is waaaaaaay over the budget I was planning for my first road bike. So…we’ll keep looking 🙂 I got fitted though and tried several bikes which was A LOT of fun!
Here’s the bike I was trying out on Saturday – Trek Lexa SLX:
$1200 is a good price for this bike. Just not good for my budget 🙁 (sigh)
Good steps that day!
{SUNDAY}
No official exercise on Sunday. Hubby and I had something planned which ended up taking up most of our day (More on that this coming Tasty Tuesday).
So…steps, steps, steps.
{MONDAY} Cycling
Monday was my husband’s birthday. As I usually teach indoor cycling on Mondays, and he wanted to come to my class this week, I designed a riding profile just for my him – with the happy birthday song in the beginning and some of his most favorite songs throughout.
My class is called “Road Trip”. So I announced this past Monday class as a “Rocky Road Trip” because most of the songs in the class were rock 🙂 If you would like to see the latest class playlist, check out this page here.
Good burn and fun class. My birthday boy was happy with the ride 🙂
We then got home and celebrated his birthday with his favorite coffee chocolate chip ice cream pie, and gave him a special birthday present he requested.
{TUESDAY}
Steps-steps-steps. No official workout.
Healthy choice of the day:
Watermelon, strawberry, mint and cottage cheese smoothie
And that was it, my friends.
I am not particularly happy with the past week for a few reasons: I didn’t run once (my knee was being funny pretty much all week), I had too much cake, I had too many days with no official workout. I did stay active every day, I did what I could when I could. I guess it’s the most important thing, but somehow it doesn’t feel like it’s enough…
Ok, so today is Wednesday and it is the beginning of the final week of the challenge. I’m gonna make it count!
Stay tuned for the next week’s recap and more!
This post has been shared on: Work Out Wednesday Link Up, The Hump Day Blog Hop
July 24, 2014
Pro Compression Socks Review and Special Discount!
Hey guys! Happy Monday!
How was you weekend? Mine was busy and active, as always 🙂
Even though I am just training for my first 5K, you might remember me wondering about the benefits/lack thereof of running in compression socks. Well, shortly after I wrote that post I got an opportunity to review Pro Compression socks through my Sweat Pink Ambassadorship.
I decided to see for myself if compression socks make any difference while training and recovering!
We were given the choice of reviewing Marathon Socks or Calf Sleeves. I opted for the socks.
I ordered the Marathon Socks in white and got them in the mail just a few days later.
Well, I just couldn’t wait to try them in action!
That same day when I got them in the mail, hubby and I had our next run scheduled with the C25K, so I put my socks on about 15 minutes before the run, kept them on and off we went!
Ok, here’s what happened: I felt like my legs were running ahead of the rest of my body that day. One of the reasons why was that it was the first cool day after a few sweaty exhausting runs. Another reason was that we had a 2 day rest since last run, and 1 day rest since the leg-related activity (the cycling class I taught that Monday).
But I know my legs – it wasn’t just cooler weather and rest. Those socks worked, too! For the first time since I re-started running I felt like moving my feet was not hard work, but pleasure.
I got home, took a shower and put them on that evening for a while for recovery.
Added in some foam rolling and next day my legs felt like that run never happened! No. Tightness. At. All.
From that day forward, I’ve been running in those socks and leaving them on for 15-30 minutes after runs.
Here are the Key Features of the Pro Compression products:
1. True Graduated Compression
2. Arch support with just the right amount of compression
3. Stabilization zone through the sides to mid foot. Helps provide foot bed comfort.
4. Open toe box so it will not keep your toes to tight.
5. Wide cuff for added comfort.
6. Moisture wicking materials
7. No blisters!
Testified: ALL TRUE! I have decided that I am definitely a compression socks kinda girl! 🙂
Best part?
You guys can use the discount code “PINK” to get 40% OFF an entire purchase at the PRO Compression online store.
Click on the link below to tell your twitter friends about this awesome chance to get high quality product at 40% OFF:
Tweet: I #KeepItTight w/ @PROCompression! Use the code PINK for 40% OFF your entire purchase! http://ctt.ec/W2UDL+ @fitapproach #sweatpink
Stay fit, friends, and #keepittight 🙂
July 23, 2014
C25K and Week 3 of 30 Days Active Challenge
Hey-hey my fitness gang! How is that hump day going over there?
I’m feeling pretty happy here 🙂 Oh! That’s right! Happy Birthday to me 🙂
Yep, I get to eat at least one of those today 🙂 Image Source
So I’m done with the 3rd week of my 30 Days Active Challenge and I have to say – it has been the toughest yet. Not only because I felt unmotivated for most of it, but also due to the family/life circumstances playing against me.
So here’s the Week 3 recap of the 30 days active challenge I brought onto myself.
{WEDNESDAY} was a C25K run day.
Hubby and I went on another adventure with C25K – Day 2 of Week 2 is where we’re at. We ran/walked for 2.3 miles at about 13 min. average pace.
The stars were stacked against us that night – my Mr. H. pulled something around his knee and is out of running for now 🙁
{THURSDAY} His knee didn’t start hearting until Thursday night after we got home from work.
I ended up staying at home and taking care of him/dinner/house stuff. I tried to make up for no official workout on Thursday by eating well and at least walking more.
{FRIDAY} was a nightmare
Family issue came up big time, which pretty much screwed up my entire weekend until late Sunday evening.
No official workout on Friday, but I did try to stay active and take more steps (I think I pretty much went up and down the stairs at work like every 30 minutes).
{SATURDAY}
I was so tired after Friday events that I was only capable of yoga – or so I thought in the morning anyway.
So I did yoga with Fiona.
I haven’t been to her class in a while and was so happy to get a chance to go – it was wonderful to see how her teaching style has evolved to showcase the strength that I always knew she had. It was a great class and really helped me relax after the stress of my Friday and tune out of everything but what my body was doing in that hour.
Thank you, Fiona. I’m really grateful for that class.
{SUNDAY} Active Day
The family train got back on it’s tracks – everybody was relieved and happy again.
I took a quick bike ride to the swim club choosing to move my legs rather than take a car ride with my folks:
Got a quick refreshment in the pool, got back home and went for a run with C25K!
Lessons learnt: more that 2 days’ gap between runs does not feel good; it’s not the heat it’s the humidity that’s the “run killer”. Temperature was nice and pleasant, but it was still very humid. Besides, I chose a route that had me going uphill most of the time (silly). Oh well. That was done and felt good afterwards.
All my efforts on Sunday were rewarded by the FitBit stats in the evening:
{MONDAY} is my new favorite day of the week.
Why? Because that’s when I teach at the YMCA at 5:30 PM and get to see my cycling gang, ride with them and share this incredible energy they create.
I had 7 people in my class this Monday, no newbies, all my regulars and familiar faces. We had a blast!
If you’re a cycling/Spinning® instructor looking for new ideas for your playlists, check out this page here to see the playlists I use for my rides.
{TUESDAY} Swimming
It was hot yesterday! Really-really hot. So we grilled some chicken thighs, packed some watermelon and went over to the swim club, where I did some laps and then we had dinner there.
And then I got home and picked all this goodness in my garden to fuel my challenged body 🙂 🙂 🙂
So, what did I learn from this week of the Challenge?
First of all – I learned not to turn one slip up into a slip up week. Life got in the way of my workouts on Thursday and Friday, but I didn’t quit or stop the 30 Days Active Challenge. I kept going. Because it is not a failure. It’s a slip up. You get up and keep going.
Because I pretty much missed two days, I am going to extend my challenge until August 2 instead of finishing on July 31.
And that’s how it’s going to be. Bring on the final week of the 30 Days Active Challenge!
Tell me, guys: what was the best work out you had this/last week?
Stay fit, and keep going!
Linked to: Work Out Wednesdays Linkup, The Hump Day Blog Hop, Wine’d Down Wednesday
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 11, 2014
Five on Friday: Running and Fitness Edition
Hello, hello, my friends!
It’s Friday!
I’m tired this week! I’m tired OF this week and I want it to be over already. Things are not so bad, no. I’m just tired.
But anyway, guys, it’s Five on Friday time – talking about 5 things I’m loving/hating lately – this time it’s Running and Fitness Edition. Here we go!
{ONE} Lifestyle Accountability Show.
If you follow me on Facebook and Twitter, you probably saw this news already. If not – I’m super excited to share the link to my interview with Adam and Devon Bate for this show.
I met Adam at FitBloggin’ in Savannah this year – he’s a super nice guy and it was great to put a face to a name and chat with Adam in real life.
Anyway, click here to hear what your blogger sounds like 🙂
Thank you, Adam and Devon, for having me on your awesome show!
{TWO} Women’s Tek Gear Active Clothing + Soybu
Love the Tek Gear brand! Relatively inexpensive and SO comfortable!
Got me this outfit before going to FitBloggin’ 14 and I’ve been enjoying working out in it ever since (erm…yeah, I washed it quite a few times).
Tek Gear Performance Capris – $20.99 at Kohl’s
Tek Gear® Striped Racerback Yoga Tank – $17.99 at Kohl’s
Top that with the Soybu headband that Kia gave us at her yoga class at Fitbloggin’ and I got me a perfect outfit!
Sweaty post-run selfie
{THREE} Garmin Forerunner 210
Yeah, I know…I’m just trying to get back into running and I already want an expensive dedicated running device. Well, that’s just the way I am – gadget-head 🙂
Doesn’t mean I’m gonna go buy this $200 watch, but we’re talking things I’m liking, tight? So I like me this watch 🙂
{FOUR} Compression Socks
Yey or Ney?
I need to do some research on that one – as to whether there are actual benefits of wearing them while running or not – there seems to be a lot of different opinions out there. At this point I just love that there are so many fun designs out there! Check it out:
I’d run in those! I’d even walk around in those 🙂
{FIVE} Google “Running”
Google “Running”. It’s amazing what you find!
Here’s a cool visual on how NOT to run:
Cool T’s like this one that I need desperately:
You’ll find inspirational quotes:
And inspirational people:
Yeah…I don’t know what she’s doing 🙂
That’s one of my favorite things this week – google “running”. Then get inspired and go run.
Have a great weekend, guys!
And move – all the time.
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.
July 4, 2014
Five on Friday: Random Likes and Dislikes
Hey-hey, guys! Happy Friday and the 4th of July!
What fun things are you doing today? Grilling? Family visiting?
It is Five on Friday time and I have five things to tell you about that I’m loving/disliking lately. This week these are totally random likes and dislikes without any theme.
{ONE} FitBit Flex – Wireless Activity Tracker
Isn’t it a pretty blue I picked out?
I’ve been eyeing activity trackers of all sorts for a while… It is very easy to get lost in the variety offered by Nike, FitBit, Polar….Besides, I am not the kind of person who reads instruction manuals for more than 2 minutes, and that’s usually when it is trouble shooting time 🙂
Anyway, I got lost – in the variety.
I am a Polar girl…but their Loop seemed a little too big to me.
Then two of my co-workers showed up at work with 2 different activity trackers! One had Nike and the other had Fitbit. That was just what I needed!
I asked both if I could try their activity trackers on and the decision was easy to make. Fitbit felt much lighter, much more flexible and compact. Fitbit it was!
I ordered mine on their official website and got it in the mail a few days later.
Fun Fact: you can connect it to your My Fitness Pal account – Fitbit will get the calories consumed data from My Fitness Pal and sync the activity calories back to it. FUN!
It also supports a whole bunch of other apps. Told ya – FUN! 🙂
If you read The New Yorker – there was a fun article about Fitbit in one of the latest issues – “Stepping Out” by David Sedaris. Click here to read online.
{TWO} Gardening
I just realized the other day that I haven’t shared my gardening pictures with you yet this year! Here we go.
Left to right, top to bottom: peppers, tomatoes and more peppers, sage, basil and cilantro, tomatoes, purple basil, egg plants, more peppers
Never thought I’d be so excited about gardening! But hey, those tomatoes taste a whole lot different from store bought ones. They just TASTE.
Salads with home grown tomatoes are to die for!
Besides, it is super Zen to tend to a garden 🙂 Try it! Best meditation practice ever 🙂
{THREE} Worst Smoothie Recipe – EVER!
So last Friday I made myself a smoothie. I did it before work and I was kind of in a rush…So I threw in everything I had that I could classify as a smoothie ingredient into my blender. That included:
- fresh strawberries (not bad)
- frozen banana (done that before)
- almond milk (well, that turned out to be bad, so I dumped it and added some regular milk)
- vanilla extract (ok, I guess)
- watermelon (oooooops….baaaaaad idea)
So anyway, it looked beautiful! I snapped a picture and rushed to work.
Imagine my surprise when I got to work and decided to sip on my smoothie. It. Was. Disgusting! I have no idea why, but the combination above tastes horrible – must be the watermelon and milk 🙂
{FOUR} Roasted Vegetables
Roasted carrots and potatoes
It seems like any roasted vegetable becomes a great hit in my family this summer. They are so good for you and super easy to make: just mix with spices and olive oil and roast in the oven at 400° F for 40 minutes, turning at 20. Done! Comes together while you’re grilling and makes a great side for pretty much anything.
{FIVE} Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
You guys probably read this book in high school 🙂 I’m from a different country so I’ve just discovered it for myself before going on my trip to Savannah last week.
The action actually takes place in Savannah and that’s the reason why I wanted to read it. LOVE this book. Still working on but I don’t think it’s going to get worse 🙂
And that’s my Five on Friday! Have a wonderful weekend, guys, and I’ll see you next week!
DISCLAIMER: I have not been compensated in any way by any of the brands mentioned in this post for writing about their product/service. All the opinions above are my own and provided voluntarily and independently from any brand mentioned herein.
July 2, 2014
Tough Love: I Choose Today To Be My Hump Day
Tough love letter to myself we all agreed to write at the “Fitblogger Tough Love” session with Mrs. Fatass last week at FitBloggin’.
Dear Lena.
You’ve been slacking a lot lately – both in terms of healthy eating (yes, there’s a lot of ice cream pictures that didn’t make it to this blog) and exercising.
I guess when you reach a certain point in your journey (for you it was loosing 20lb) you start thinking that this is it – you’re happy with what you have accomplished, you can cut yourself a little slack.
You start saying “yes” to more and more of those ice cream outings with your family.
You start saying “10 more minutes” in the mornings more often and snoozing your alarm set to go to the gym, and never going after all.
You start saying more often “Oh, I’m so tired, I can skip my workout today”.
You start snacking when you don’t really have to.
You reach for that extra helping at dinner thinking “I worked out today, I deserved it”.
You choose elevator over stairs.
You think teaching indoor cycling one-two times a week is going to be enough to keep you in good shape.
You think that goal set on your FitBit is going to reach itself if you just walk up and down the stairs a couple extra times during work day and say to yourself “Tomorrow for sure” when you don’t hit that goal; and then tomorrow it doesn’t happen either.
You think that as long as this blog looks like that of a fit person you can slack and no one will know (that is horrible hypocrisy by the way).
You forget that all that is EXACTLY what led you to the tipping point when you decided to change everything.
You need to get your shit back together, Lena.
And you’re going to start by going back to basics: 30 days of working out every day – just as you did when you first started this journey.
STARTING TODAY!
No excuses and no slacking.
Just doing it – one day at a time.
No, it’s not the first of the month, but we’re not going to hear that “I will start on Monday/the first of next month/new moon” crap again, are we?
We’re going to start today, Lena.
You will then come back here weekly on Wednesdays and report to all the people reading this blog what you did on every one of the past seven days.
I will check back with you in 30 days to see how you did. Remember, that I will also see you every one of those 30 days.
To remind you where you’re going and how it all started.
To kick your butt and give you the tough love you need to wake up and keep going.
There will be no consoling hugs and patting on the back.
Just kicks and cracking the whip.
Because this is what you need right now.
Let’s see what you’re really made of in the next 30 days.
I choose today to be your Hump Day.
Love,
July 1, 2014
FitBloggin’ 14: Tastes and Sights of Savannah
Hey guys! How was Monday?
I was dragging after the FitBloggin’ weekend. Lil’ better today, but still catching up on my sleep and getting back to my routine.
So! As you may have noticed, yesterday’s brief overview of the whole experience did not touch the two exciting parts of the trip to Savannah – food and sights 🙂
Since it is Tasty Tuesday, I’m going to tell you what I ate in Savannah as well is what I saw.
If you get to Savannah by air, here’s what you see when you get to the airport:
yep, that is INSIDE the airport
Most of the meals were provided so we had just a few chances to go and explore Savannah and eat out. Here’s a glance at our typical breakfast:
fruit, eggs, sausage, potatoes and a muffin
On the first night, Jennifer and I decided to eat at the hotel we were staying at (Hyatt Regency Savannah) at their Lounge called “Windows”
I ordered a crab cake sandwich looking forward to tasting the delicious fresh crab in it!
Mmmmmm
Well, that crab cake was HOT! It was so spicy I could not eat it. Thankfully Jennifer came to my rescue and we swapped halves of our sandwiches. The lounge was so nice as to give us 50% off that crab cake sandwich since I didn’t like it.
After dinner we headed out for the Ghost Tour with Peg Leg Ron and his shipmate Jacob 🙂 It was a ghost tour in a real hearse!
Ready to Roll! Photo credit
I didn’t take many pictures on the tour. I mean I did but none of them really turned out. Mysterious, isn’t it? 🙂
except this one pic of this spooky house!
But don’t you think Savannah is all that spooky and dark. It’s not. It is a very beautiful place – full of history and beautiful places to see and go to.
View from our hotel terrace
One of the 23 squares in Savannah
City Hall
But back to the food….
FitBloggin’ 14 was sponsored by many yummy brands 🙂
California Almonds had a whole snack bar set up for us to use!
California Avocado Commission made THE BEST blueberry muffins ever!
Run Disney provided lunch one of the days while presenting to all the runners in the audience 🙂
We also had a chance to explore Savannah and grab some food outside of the conference venue, so Jennifer and I went wondering around and found this:
Pralines from River Street Sweets
Remember I got a Foodie Penpals box from Tiffani with a bear claw from this store in Charlston? Yep, that was the same chain and their sweets are ahhhhhh-mazing! They deliver, you know? 🙂
On Saturday we had dinner to ourselves (not arranged) so we ventured out to Ruan Thai Cuisine where I had this delicious reminder of my days in Thailand:
Fried rice with scallops. YUM!
All in all, guys – I am in love with Savannah! Despite the heat and humidity – I’m ready to go back TODAY!
Now link it up! Share your recipes or any food related posts below. Nothing to share? Tell your friends!
Take care and talk to you soon!
Loading InLinkz ... June 25, 2014
Latest Playlists for Indoor Cycling Classes and a Couple Learning Moments
Hi friends! Happy Hump Day!
Today I’m packing for FitBloggin’ 2014 and sharing my latest playlists for indoor cycling classes with you!
FitBloggin’ starts tomorrow, so I fly out tomorrow morning and get to Savannah around 2:00 pm.
I have SO many people I am excited to meet in person there that I had to make the list! Not kidding you. I did totally just make a list.
Don’t want to rank my list – I will be equally happy to meet everyone on it, and whoever is not on it, but here are a few people I am particularly excited about meeting:
Fit and Free with Emily and many-many-many other wonderful bloggers!
I am pretty sure I won’t have time to blog while I’m there – it is my very first blogging and fitness conference, so I will probably walk around with my mouth open most of the time 🙂
I will sure tell you all about the adventures in Savannah when I get back on Monday!
Now back to our regular broadcasting 🙂 It is workout Wednesday after all!
So after the previous post I took a couple yoga classes as part of my stretching/recovery/rest day routine (that was on Saturday and Wednesday).
On Saturday I taught one of those super exciting cycling classes where you don’t know whatcha gonna get 🙂 Meaning the crowd is changing from week to week and there are a few regulars.
This past Saturday I had a wonderful group of people! Most of them experienced cyclists (either indoor or outdoor). It was easy and super rewarding to teach them!
I got a thousand compliments on the playlist – one from one of my regular students (“Good sounds, kid”), another one from another fairly regular attendee of Saturday classes (“You were born too late! Love your music!”), another one from a teenage girl (“I LOVED your soundtrack”) and more. 🙂
SO nice to hear that people are happy about the music in the class. It is hard to please everyone. So, may be those who didn’t say anything didn’t like it all that much. But everybody was sweating 🙂 That’s for sure.
This time the class was a lot quieter that the Saturday before – it was a gloomy rainy day, 8 AM…I guess it took my students a while to wake up and stop asking themselves the “what the heck am I doing up and on a bike so early” question 🙂
Anyway, here’s the playlist everybody liked on Saturday in case you need song ideas to incorporate into the playlists for your next indoor cycling classes.
On Monday I suddenly found myself teaching my regular class to 8 (!!!) people instead of my regular 3-4 summer indoor riders 🙂 That was exciting!
Here’s what we rode to:
Couple of people in my class were indoor riders getting back on tack after a couple years of break, so I had to set up their bikes and remind them how the Pilots work. Thankfully they came in with enough time before the class so I could do that.
But here’s a tip and note to self: GET THERE EARLY. Make sure you’re the first one in the room and greet your students when they come in. ASK them if they have ever done indoor cycling before. If they say “Yes” and you see them struggling with the bike set up – GO HELP. A lot of people feel embarrassed to admit they’re new thinking “It’s just a bike. I can figure it out myself”.
No, they can’t.
You need to help them.
It’s like being a doctor – you can’t walk by someone who needs medical help. You simply MUST NOT or you’re in the wrong job.
Anyway 🙂
The Monday class also got me thinking about something else…
Every time we’d get out of the saddle to a standing flat, there would be this one person leaning forward onto the handlebars and isolating the upper body.
I kept saying “Light grip on the handlebars, just to keep you balanced. Don’t lean forward. Relax your shoulders”.
Nothing helped.
I tried getting frustrated but I’m too kind 🙂
Just kidding.
He stopped by after the class and said his back really hurt whenever he was out of the saddle, and that’s why he was leaning forward carrying a lot of weight on his arms on standing flats.
I told him to just stay in the saddle next time if getting out of it bothers his back.
But here’s the thought: next time you see that stubborn rider in your class who just wouldn’t do the right thing despite your instructions – think twice before getting frustrated or thinking they are just another “know-it-all” and “know-it-better”. I’m glad this person told me after the class what his issue was and let me help him out the best way I know how. Think how many of them will never talk to you about their health issues and why they can’t do certain things. Think about how many of them will never admit it even to themselves.
Talk to them. Offer help. Ask questions. Be discreet and polite. Find the key to every one of them.
That’s what this job is about for me: building your own community of like-minded people and making everybody feel welcome and “at home”.
There you have it – a couple playlist ideas and a couple pieces of valuable advice 🙂 🙂 🙂
Ready to start this Wednesday now!
Question of the day: What’s the worst case of a “know-it-all” student you’ve ever witnessed in your/somebody else’s class?
Take care, friends, and talk to you soon.
This post has been shared on Workout Wednesdays Linkup.
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