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Thursday, October 24, 2013

Workin On My Fitness

When I was in Vegas, I was surrounded by lots of fitness pros & models in great shape with rock hard bodies.  I felt like a powder puff.  I mean I work out & eat healthy, but this took it to a whole other level.  So when I got back, I decided to change things up with my workouts & eating.  Talked about my new eating habits yesterday so today is all about fitness. 

I love working out in the mornings because it gets me off to a great start & keeps me feeling good throughout the day.  But my efforts to really push myself were starting to fade.  I was more exhausted each day and thought I needed a change.  I didn't want to totally skip morning exercise but wanted something that wasn't so intense after jumping out of bed.  It thought I'd give my yoga routine a try in the mornings & then workout again after I get home from work.  Yoga is hard & strenuous but in a different way.  It's calming, very zen & I definitely work up a sweat but it eases into the hard stuff.  And it's only a 40 minute workout so I get to sleep in a bit.  So far (minus my sick week) it's been working out great this way.  I feel really stretched & strong after the workout in the morning.  I got tons of energy drink samples so I've been having those after I get home from work to get pumped up for the afternoon workout.

Ok now on to some new workouts.  I'm working on toning up my shoulders so I'm working them out twice a week.  Also, I switched out Core for Plyo (P90X).  I've never been a fan of plyo since it's all about jumping & my knees always seem to get really sore after the workout.  But I wanted to try it & it's been a long time since I've done the workout.  Well I love it now.  I focus a lot on my form while doing the exercises.  It's like adding in an extra leg workout for the week, so good.  Also, last week I wanted to get a leg workout in before the run so on Thursday, I did legs.  I like getting all my strength training done during the week.  It leaves me more time on the weekends to focus on my running, yoga & walking Ferg a lot.  I'm still doing abs twice a week.  One routine is part of my power yoga I usually do on Sundays that pretty much kills me.  The other is a new routine I found on Instagram from someone I follow & it's really hard.  My abs were feeling it the next day.

Strength Training Circuit #1

Set 1

  • 1-arm chest press on bosu ball
  • chin ups
  • shoulder shrugs

Set 2

  • decline push ups (prop feet or knees up on a chair)
  • supermans (5 sets holding for 10 seconds)
  • deep swimmer press (bicep curl into shoulder press, reverse curl)

Set 3

  • regular push ups
  • chin up/pull up (switching every 2 reps)
  • in & out shoulder flys

Bonus Set

  • military push ups
  • pull ups
  • upside down shoulder press (in downward dog position)

Strength Training Circuit #2

Set 1

  • standing tricep extentions
  • in & out bicep curls
  • shoulder shrugs

Set 2

  • chair dips
  • bicep curls
  • deep swimmer press

Set 3

  • tricep kickbacks
  • hammer curls
  • in & out shoulder flys

Bonus Set

  • front & back extensions
  • concentration curls
  • upside down shoulder press

For both circuit workouts, I repeat each set 2x, one right after the next with 25 jumping jacks in between.  Then, after the bonus round, I go through one more round of each set (not repeating 2x) & then one more bonus round.  Really makes my muscles burn.

The P90X Plyometrics workout is basically 5 rounds of different moves.  Each round is 3 moves for 30 seconds then a 4th move for 1 minute.  Repeat it all 2 times.  There's just a short break in between each round for 30-45 seconds.  At the end there's a bonus round.  You're heart rate is totally racing through this whole thing.  Major fat burner & leg toner. It's really hard but in that good way! 

Here's the new ab routine.  I did 2 rounds the last time.  My goal is to get to 3.  I use this routine after my leg workouts on Thursday.



















So that's what I've been doing since back from vacation.  I'm liking my new workout schedule.  It has been challenging on some days to stay motivated to workout once I get home.  But this week I started to see some change in my body & that gave me a good boost.  I've ordered another yoga DVD to add in my morning mix.  And if I get bored with plyo or just want a change for that week, I have some other options.  Kenpo is a great cardio routine & P90X2 has a plyo routine that I like.  I get bored really easily so I'm trying to change things up every 2-3 weeks to keep my muscles guessing.

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