UNDER CONSTRUCTION

By the way, I'm working on the layout + two new workouts...Sick baby = Busy week...But look for new stuff soon!!

Why Excuses Are Lame...

It's so easy to come up with reasons NOT to work out. Lack of time most commonly tops the list...
Try this for a little motivation:

Make a list of 10 reasons why you didn't or don't work out. Then, go here and see if your reasons are legit...Mine weren't. Here's a sample:

1. I'm too tired to go to the gym.
38. Gives you more energy to meet the demands of daily life, and provides you with a reserve to meet the demands of unexpected emergencies.
40. Helps you sleep easier and better..
2. I don't have enough money to get a gym pass.
33.Reduces medical and healthcare expenses.
3. I get sick when I'm pregnant.

20. Helps relieve many of the common discomforts of pregnancy

4. I have a headache.
8. Can help relieve the pain of tension headaches -- perhaps the most common type of headache.
5. I hurt my knee.
13. Increases the density and breaking strength of ligaments and tendons.

Food is Good #2: Capellini Caprese

I LOVE anything with the word "caprese" in it. Fresh basil...Hello, friend.

Here's a kraftfoods.com recipe:

CAPELLINI CAPRESE

1/2 lb. capellini or spaghetti

1/2 c. KRAFT Tuscan House Italian Dressing and Marinade

1 onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 c. halved grape or cherry tomatoes

1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese (if you buy it in the ball form, it's hard to shred, so I buy a block because it's cheaper and shred it myself. Feel free to buy pre-shredded.)

1/3 c. fresh basil, chopped roughly

Cook pasta like package tells you to.

Heat dressing in a large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic; cook and stir 2 minutes. Add tomatoes; cook 5 minutes or until heated through, stirring occasionally.

Drain pasta. Add to tomato mixture; toss lightly. Sprinkle with cheese and basil. Consume.

Food is Good #1: Confetti Burgers with Cilantro Sauce

This recipe is from Shape magazine, August 2008. And it's good.

CILANTRO SAUCE:

1/2 c. cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped

3/4 c. nonfat plain Greek yogurt (or Mediterranean yogurt...same same)

2 T. lime juice

1 t. EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Place cilantro, yogurt, lime juice, EVOO, and S + P in a blender or food processor and pulse, scraping down sides until cilantro is finely chopped and ingredients are combined. Transfer to a bowl, cover and chill.

BURGERS:

1 lb. lean ground beef, turkey or chicken (I used beef so Husband would eat it)

1/4 c. sliced scallions (green onions)

1/4 c. finely chopped red bell pepper

1/4 c. corn kernels, fresh or thawed frozen

2 t. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 t. kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

4 whole-wheat hamburger buns

Sliced tomato and whole grain lettuce

Combine everything but the buns, tomato and lettuce in a bowl. Form into 4 patties about 3 1/2 inches wide and 1/2 inch thick. Place patties on a lightly oiled grill and cook for 5 minutes. Flip and cook 4-5 minutes more or until a meat thermometer says 160 degrees F. Toast your buns (hamburger buns) on the grill and put burger, tomato, lettuce and cilantro sauce on bun. Serve.

(I decided to add guacamole to ours because my avocado was going bad, and it was MMMM...Good!)

GUACAMOLE

1 squished avocado, a few tablespoons of diced tomato, maybe 1/4 c. minced onion (fresh), 1 clove garlic, squeeze of lime juice and a few shakes of chili powder.

Workout #2: Pushup Pleasantness

I intended this workout to be geared towards the male reader(s) of this blog, but I did it myself and LOVED it. The thing I loved most about it was that it took absolutely no equipment...except a chair.

SUPERSET 1:

Wide pushups: Focus on keeping your head up and touching your chin to the floor. Perform 10 repetitions. To make it a little easier, you can do the pushups on your knees.

Bike Kicks: Lying on your back, with your hands behind your ears, gently roll your body up until your shoulder blades are off the mat/floor...extend one leg and then the other as if you're riding a bike. Perform 20 repetitions. (That's 10 for each leg if you're a separatist)

Classic pushups: Same rules apply for wide pushups, except you should have a straight line from your wrist to your shoulder in the starting position. Do 10 repetitions.















Leg Raise Crunches: Lying on your back with your legs raised 6-8 inches off the floor, crunch your upper body until your shoulder blades are off the floor. In a controlled movement, lower back down to the floor. Repeat 20 times.

Tricep Pushups: With your core in plank position, place your hands on the floor with your elbows touching your sides. As you lower your core, the inside of your elbows should brush your sides. Perform 10 repetitions.















Leg Lifts/Reverse Crunches: Lying on your back, lift both legs together until they are perpendicular to the ground. Lower and repeat 20 times.

For an extra bump on this one, hold your shoulder blades off the ground as shown. And breathe weird and then have Husband take a photo.

Oblique Leg Lifts: Lying on your side, lift both legs together as you crunch your upper body towards your hip. Complete 10 repetitions on each side. (I didn't do a picture of this one...oopsie)


SUPERSET 2:



Wide Pushups: Repeat from superset 1, except put your feet up on a chair, bench, or other raised surface (as you can see, we used the ottoman). 10 repetitions.















Plank: In tummy-down (prone) position, keep toes on the floor and raise body up onto your elbows. Keep your abs strong and your bum tucked in (don't sag down or push your bum up in the air). Hold that position for 30 alligators (improvising without a stopwatch).
Classic pushups: Repeat from superset 1, except put your feet up again. 10 repetitions.

Plank: Repeat as above, except hold it for 45 alligators. Hint: count out loud so you don't cheat. It takes longer to say "alligator" out loud than it does in your head.


Tricep Pushups: Repeat from superset 1, except feet up again. 10 repetitions.


Side planks: Lift your body of the ground and balance on one forearm and the side of your foot. Contract your abdominals and relax your shoulders. And breathe. Hold each side for 30 alligators.
SUPERSET 3:


Wide Pushups: Same as superset 1, but this time put your hands on the chair. 10 repetitions.















Toe Touch Crunches: Lying in a supine position, take your right hand and lift your left leg, touching your hand to your toe (ideally, but sometimes it's more like your shin) at 90 degrees. Repeat 10 times, and then use your left hand and right leg to complete the set, performing 10 repetitions on this side.

I was kind of caught mid-movement here, but your hand should touch some part of your leg/foot to complete the movement.

Classic Pushups: Same as superset 1, but this time, hands on the chair. 10 repetitions.


V-Sit: Basically, we could call this one the "bum balance." Bring your upper body to about 45 degrees, and do the same thing with both legs together, so your body is forming a V. Maybe a really wide V. Hold it for 30 alligators.

See? Wide V.

Tricep Pushups: Same as superset 1, but with your hands on the chair. 10 repetitions.

V-Sit with Oblique Twist: Keep your feet on the floor with your knees bent, and bring your upper body about 45 degrees. The higher you get, the easier the exercise will be, so try to stay low. Twist your upper body from side to side. Pretend you're holding a ball and trying to touch it to the ground on each side of you. Perform 12 repetitions on each side.

Weird face...Why do I do this? I don't know. I can't control it.

By the way...

Due to my ridiculous lack of blogging skills (and blog laziness) I can't fix it so that comments show on the first two posts. Feel free to leave comments here...

Workout #1 - The Burn

*WARNING* You will be awesomely sore after this workout. Unless you have bionic legs.

This workout is mainly a resistance workout, but the warm up will involve some cardio.

YOU NEED: a set of 5- to 8-pound dumbbells, a wall, water to keep you hydrated!

WARM UP

15 Seconds each of jumping jacks, squats, and running in place, followed by 15 seconds rest. Repeat series 4 times. (This means this should take about 6 minutes...)

~Modifications: Replace jacks with side steps. Replace running in place with toe touches on a step. (Not the cheerleader kind, just touching your toe to the edge of a step and then doing the other foot.)

1. Bicep curls with wall sit - Holding one light dumbbell in each hand, lean against a wall and squat into a "chair sit" (pretend there's a chair you're sitting in...there really isn't a chair) position. While holding the sitting position, alternate curling right and left arms to shoulder. Complete 12 repetitions on each side. Stand and shake out your limbs, then repeat to complete 3 sets. (That means you did 36 lifts on each arm, so good work.)

2. Quad Rocks - Kneel on a mat or soft surface with your thighs perpendicular to the floor (me gusta the carpet). Hold either an 8-pound dumbbell (easy) or two 5-pound dumbbells (not as easy) in front of you with arms at shoulder height. Lean back in a slow, controlled movement until your torso (from knees to shoulders) are about 70 degrees from the ground...If you don't remember your angles so well, you don't have to lean back too far, but it should burn a little in the front thigh muscle. Using your stomach muscles, raise your body back up to a 90 degree angle. Complete 16 repetitions, rest for 15-30 seconds, then repeat to complete 3 sets.

~Modifications: Forget about the weight...Your body weight will do you just fine. To make it harder, try a 15 lb. weight or plate, or a baby of the same size. Totally using a 25 lb. plate here...oops! It was really hard!
3. Plie Squats - Stand with feet a little more than shoulder width apart, with toes pointing out. Hold two 8-pound dumbbells at your belly button. Keep your shoulders back and head up. Lower your body as your knees extend over your toes. Raise back up to start position. Complete 12 repetitions, then repeat to complete 3 sets.

So, I'm clearly NOT a model and don't know what to do with my awkward face. Don't be a hater.

~Modifications: Lose the weights and just perform the plie. For an extra little oomph, at top of your plie, raise onto your toes, lift the weights over your head, and slowly lower weights back to your belly button.

4. Walking Lunges - Place the 8-pound weights on your shoulders. Take a step forward with right foot and lower your body so that your thigh is parallel with the ground. Be careful not to hyperextend your knee; keep it in line with your ankle and don't let it go in front of your toes. Bring your left foot forward to meet your right and repeat with your left leg to complete 1 rep. Complete 12 repetitions (that's 12 steps for both feet) and then repeat to complete three sets.

~Modifications: Ditch the weights; once again, body weight and gravity will give you plenty of resistance. For an extra oomph, at the end of each set, perform 12 calf raises, lifting your heels from the ground and putting your weight on the balls of your feet.

5. Hip Extensions - Lie on the floor (or mat) faceup with your knees bent about 90 degrees. Keep your heels on the ground with your toes lifted and your arms at your sides. Lift the left knee so your thigh is perpendicular to your torso and raise your hips a couple of inches off the ground. Then squeeze your bootie and slowly lift your hips without arching your back until your body is straight from the shoulders to the knee. Lower your hips back down until you're about an inch from the floor (but don't let your body touch!) and perform 12 repetitions. Switch legs and do 12 repetitions on that side to finish a set. Do 3 sets. Once again, that's 36 repetitions on each leg all together.
**If you aren't sore after this workout, let me know what you've done to make your legs so strong...

Glad You're Here...

Bienvenidos to the new blog. If you're here, you must like me. I'm so glad.

Reason behind this blog: Since I received my certification to do personal training, I've had many requests for programs, advice, help with working out, etc. In order to streamline my life a little bit, I decided to create some generic workouts that would work for most people.

Disclaimer: PLEASE discuss with a doctor any concerns you may have, especially if you are just starting to exercise. Mind you, this blog's sole purpose is to give suggestions regarding exercise. I am not your trainer, but I am your friend, so be safe and careful. I don't want you to die.

Also, please feel free to leave comments on what you do and don't like about the workouts, or suggestions for what you'd like to see (besides less of my face...not possible. It's my blog).



That being said, have fun!!