Exercise Journal Day 5

Hello everyone!  Had another great workout this morning.  Upper body and cardio:

*100 toe push ups
*lat pull down machine (3 sets/12 reps 50lbs)
*standing shoulder press (30 lb barbell/ 3 sets/ 12 reps)
*tricep overhead extensions (20 lb dumbbell/ 3 sets/ 12 reps)
*alternating bicep curls (15 lb dumbbells)
*seated tricep push down  (30 lbs 3 sets/12 reps)

30 minutes on the elliptical (while watching the Sopranos...I love that show....I got caught up in the episode and probably could have worked harder.)  Yikes!)

http://www.makeitfittraining.com/

CARDIO DAY 4

Well, I am on Day 4 and going STRONG!  I have had some great workouts this week.  Today I took a break from weights.  I'm sore and I want to give each muscle group 72 hours before I rip them apart again.  So, I did all-out cardio today for 50 minutes.  Here is the breakdown:

30 minutes on the treadmill at about a 6.2-6.5 pace
20 minutes on the precor elliptical.  This is one that i usually don't use so it kicked my butt!  My heart rate was up there and i was breathless (where we all should be on moderate to vigorous cardio days)

Feeling great.  Just put on a bathing suit, getting ready to go to the pool and I must say...things are tightening up!  Except for the damn cellulite.  Please, someone....could you find a cure for it?  For now, I have learned to live with it and to be grateful that at least i have a booty and thighs...even if they do look like a golf ball....sigh....

tune in tomorrow for push up day....

www.makeitfittraining.com

THE DREADED LEGS AND BOOTY!

Leg day isn't one that i look forward too.  However, now that it's over, i feel GREAT!  Here are the details:

*walking lunges (3x around YMCA track.  About 300 lunges..this counts as cardio too!)
*loaded squat press (DREADFUL....180 lbs 3 sets/10 reps)
*leg extension machine (60 lbs 3 sets/10 reps)
*stiff legged dead lifts (50lb barbell...careful...perfect form is crucial here.  2 sets/10 reps)
*butt blasters (20 lbs behind each leg...3 sets/10 reps)
*adbuctor/adductor machine (inner/outer thighs...70lbs 3 sets/12 reps)

plus 20 minutes of the elliptical.  legs were so shaky and tired, it was tough...but felt GREAT!

Accountability Day 2

What a beautiful day.  My kids and I went to the town pool today and had such a great time.  I love summer.  Here is my workout for today:


Upper Body and Cardio:

3 sets of 12 of the following exercises were performed in approximately 45 minutes:

*assisted pull-up machine (gravitron)
*same machine for tricep dips
*single back rows with 25lb dumbbell (on weight bench)
*lying chest press (flat bench) with 25 lb dumbbells
*shoulder flyes with 15 lb dumbbells
*seated concentration bicep curls with 15lb dumbbell
*tricep dip between benches (legs on one bench, arms on another)
*tricep push downs (pulley machine)
*lots of abs and core work between sets during rest

plus 30 minutes on the elliptical (moderate intensity)

have a great night!  tune in tomorrow for leg day!

http://www.makeitfittraining.com/

Accountability!

I have less than a month to prepare for the following:  photo shoot for the September issue of Healthy Life magazine; two presentations at the National Boot Camp Challenge conference in St.  Louis; and one week of lounging in a two piece bathing suit on the beach for a week.  Yes, I could wear a one-piece to cover up a bit more.  However, the functional purpose of a two-piece is to get as much of me as tan as possible.  I know, I know....the sun is bad for you....blah blah blah....this is the ONLY week out of the year that I allow my God-given Italian genes to take over.  It's my job to see how tan I can get while on vacation.  Yes, I wear  a little sunscreen, but for the most part, I let the sun do it's work.  Dang it feels good.  And I'll be darned if I wear a one-piece.  Gotta get the after-baby, double c-sectioned, double hernia surgery, belly tanned too!  Lots of reasons to stay MOTIVATED!  I will be pumping iron as much as I can to tighten up some of the excess jiggle that I have going on.  Just like me clients, I also need accountability sometimes. So, in order to stay motivated and accountable, I will be keeping an exercise journal and BLOGGING my exercise every day for the entire week.  Be sure to check in every day so I have my readers to answer to :)

SUNDAY JUNE 26th
6-mile run
Off to a good start!  Woot woot!

www.makeitfittraining.com

Blog SLACKER

I'm so sorry that my blogging has been sporadic lately.  We are in the middle of a move and the end of the school year, amongst some other things so it has been CRAZY around here and will continue to be crazy for the next several weeks.  I promise to get back into my blogging groove soon.  Until then, here is a fantastic dinner I made the other night that took 5 minutes to prepare.  It's the "Summer of Salads" for me:

1 rotisserie Turkey breast from PC or Hannaford
romaine lettuce
cucumbers
tomatoes
any other veggie (those are the only two i had in the house)
chopped avocado
reduced fat feta cheese
light dressing

slice the turkey breast while it's warm and top salad with it!  have your dressing on the side or drizzle it on.  A TEENY BIT!  Do not let your salad go for a swim in your dressing.  High, lean protein from the turkey breast, good fat from the avocado and your veggies!  if you want to add good carbs and a serving of fruit, chop up and apple or a peach or throw some grapes in there!

ENJOY!  Here is a photo....

www.makeitfittraining.com

Today is a Sad Day...

Today was a very sad day because it was the last time that I will ever in my life, be able to enter my age as "37" into the treadmill.  Tomorrow I will have to enter "38"....that's way to close to "40".  Not that there is anything wrong with 40, but I do not feel a day older than 25.  I have noticed however, that gravity is taking over a bit.  I have to twice as many tricep exercises to keep the bat wings from flapping away and a few more walking lunges to prevent my tush from mopping up the floor. Oh well....it just makes me work harder :)  So, tomorrow is my birthday.  I'm not big on birthdays.  I don't dread getting older by any means and I don't HATE birthdays...I just don't like to make a big deal of mine.  One thing I do religiously on my birthday, however, is to weigh myself.  I do NOT weigh myself often, but I do every year on June 15th.  I have seen way too many people slowly gain weight year after year and then end up with health problems when suddenly they are 50lbs overweight.  I refuse to let that happen.  My goal is to weigh no more than 125 lbs on my birthday each year. If allow myself to gain one pound each year, when I'm 88 I'll be 50lbs heavier than I am now.  Not an option.  Therefore, I work hard all year to maintain a healthy weight of 125.  Some years I may be a few lbs more than that, but then my goal for the next year is to be back down to 125.  Now that I've thrown my crazy, insane philosophy out there, I suppose I have to report my weight tomorrow...No biggie...I never did care much about keeping my weight a secret....

www.makeitfittraining.com

Restaurant Find AWESOME!

Those of you that live in Clifton Park that like sushi...you have to try the Sushi Thai Garden.  It is delicious.  I went for lunch today and have been there about a handful of times.  Every time the service is great and the food is delicious.  The place is SPOTLESS too (very important to me).  I ordered seaweed salad and a brown rice california roll.  High in protein, low in fat and low in cals.  My entire lunch was under 400 cals and I was plenty satiated.  My friend Kate ordered the spring rolls and I tried those too.  They were delicious!  Loaded with veggies and some shrimp and no fat.  DELISH!  I highly recommmend it.

Happy Eating!

http://www.makeitfittraining.com/

Workout Of the Day for ANY Fitness level

Ah!  What a gorgeous DAY!  Get your buns out of bed and perform the following TOTAL BODY WORKOUT three times this week:

30 minute run/jog/or brisk walk
100 walking lunges (on EACH leg)
100 push ups on wall, knees or toes
50 sit-ups or crunches (break them into sets of 10 if you get tired)

That's it!  It will take out about 60 minutes.  This is doable for anyone out there.  Modify to the beginner level if you need to and take as much time as you need to complete it.  You will hit ALL of your major muscle groups.  In lay terms that covers your back, chest, arms, abs, buns and thighs.  The running/walking covers your cardiovascular workout.   Your weekly schedule should look like this:

MON:    total body workout
TUES:    30 minutes of cardio (walk/jog/run)
WED:     DAY OFF
THURS:  total body workout
FRI:        30 minutes of cardio
SAT:       total body workout
SUN:       DAY OFF

You CAN do this!  If you can't, then consider joining my next Boot Camp Challenge session!  It starts June 18th, runs 6-weeks/ 3x per week.  I am running a $199 special.  That's a $51 savings for new recruits! 

Be well!

www.makeitfittraining.com

Let's Talk about Moderation

So, I'm on my way to Four Winds with my son Anthony to see the wonderful, Dr. Daley, Psychiatrist.  Because of Anthony's Aspergers and high anxiety, he is monitored by Dr.  Daley.  I just love this guy.  He has helped us tremendously.  Today I have a concern that I need to talk with him about.  My son doesn't understand moderation.  Granted, he is on a medication that increases his appetite, but this kid could eat and eat and eat and eat.  He is a bottomless pit and when there are sweets around, forget it.  He tunes out, glazes over and shovels it in as if he will never eat again.  I want my child to have a good relationship with food, so I allow my kids to eat sweets in moderation.  They gets one sweet per day or so.  They can have some ice cream after dinner, a few cookies at a family BBQ, etc...However, once Anthony starts with the sweets, he cannot stop and when I cut him off, he perseverates over it.  I am at a brick wall on this one.  I do NOT want my child to develop a negative relationship with food.  I see way too many eating disorders in kids these days and the cycle needs to be broken.  Let's see what Doc comes up with. 

I bring this up because I have many clients that struggle with the concept of moderation.  What a hard concept to master (if mastery is even possible).  My advice is not to rate food as "good" or "bad".  Be conscious of what goes into your mouth and as you work through the process, you will hopefully find that you begin craving the nutrient-dense foods more than the "sometimes" foods.

Personal example...when I started caring about my health (about 17 years ago), I went from fast food every day to fast foods only on the weekends.  Then I went to only once during the weekend.  With time, I found myself only having fast food on the road when nothing else was an option (alert:  there are ALWAYS options).  Now I clearly remember the last time I had fast food.  It was 9 years ago.  I NEVER crave it.  Not in the least bit.  It took time, however....LOTS of time.  My advice is to be patient with yourself and remember...getting healthy is a process.  The concept of moderation is a process.  Changing exercise and nutrition habits is a process.  Work on it every day for the rest of your life :)  It does get easier...I promise.

www.makeitfittraining.com

Exercising In Extreme Heat PRECAUTIONS

It has been unseasonably BOILING hot over the past few days in good old upstate, NY.  I scheduled an evening, outdoor boot camp challenge class for the month of May for the Times Union employees.  I thought that if we end the camp before summer kicks in, we would be fine.  Well, I didn't expect 90 degree sweltering heat in May!  So, the past few nights teaching there have been tough....NOT ideal weather for exercising.  Though I ran class, there were many warnings, precautions that I made all of my clientele aware of.  I was also careful to move from the sun to a 100% shaded area, which made a huge difference.  Some precautions to take in the summer heat:

1.  If you can avoid it, do NOT workout in the extreme heat.  During the hot summer months, exercise in the early morning or at dusk, when it is a bit cooler.  Or choose an indoor club or gym.

2.  STAY HYDRATED!  I cannot stress this enough.  Drink half of your body weight in ounces of water EVERY day and even more when you exercise and in extreme heat.  How do you know if you are hydrated enough?  Check your urine.  If your pee pee is clear, you are hydrated.  If it's dark yellow and smells like pee, then you need to drink more water.  No need for sugary sport drinks.  Just good old H 2 O with a squeeze of lemon or lime. 

3.    If you feel light headed, dizzy, crampy or nauseous while working out, stop immediately, get some water, go into an air-conditioned area and if it doesn't improve quickly then seek out medical attention.

Two people I know ended up in the ER over the past week due to dehydration/heat.  Be in tune with your body and don't let that happen to you!

Be well :)

www.makeitfittraining.com