Quick and dirty today and probably for the next couple of days.
Hopefully the pace will slow down a bit on Monday so I have more writing time.
Today's exercise is the standing version of yesterday's exercise. You might want the standing one because it fits in better with your circuit or because you're working out in a place where you don't want to lay down on the floor. It's good to have options.
I would like to point out that the wind is still blowing like crazy here and Tia says that we are supposed to get snow tonight. Hello? Desert? May? Snow? Come on!
Have a great weekend everyone. I'm going to meet Billy Currington tonight and see him in concert. Never heard of him. Must be country. Yayy y y y y y . . .
***
I am an Independent BeachBody Coach for BeachBody.com, a company that offers fitness programs, supplements, and equipment that have absolutely changed my life.
Have you heard of P90X? That's BeachBody. They also have Insanity, Turbo Jam, RevAbs, Brazil Butt Lift, and many more. They have some of the best exercise programs on the market. These aren't just DVDs but are complete programs to transform your body. They also have the hugely popular, and what they call "the most important meal of the day", Shakeology. Go HERE to learn the most inexpensive way to get Shakeology.
They have equipment and supplements in addition to Shakeology and popular exercise programs. Visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Shop" link to see everything they offer.
There is also a business side to all this fitness that you can take advantage of. Whether you're looking to just make a couple hundred extra dollars in fun money or are looking to take complete financial control of your life, BeachBody can help you get there. If you have a desire to be more fit and would love to help other people do the same while making some money at it, visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Coach" link. Team up with me and I'll help you reach your goals, in fitness and finance.
Trey wanted his picture taken with his new game. A trophy, I suppose. He earned it. He does things around the house to earn certificates that he can trade in for stuff that he wants.
The wind is STILL blowing. Hard enough that Trey's teeball coach texted that practice was canceled today. It's been bad for 3 days now. We are still running around in long sleeve shirts. This Saturday, we are going into town to buy spring clothes for Trey but I'm not sure when he's going to get to wear them. Last year, it was cold halfway through June. I'm really hoping that's not the case this year. I'm ready for some warm weather.
Today's exercise it a basic move but I wanted to cover it before moving on to the next couple of moves. It's they Lying Bicycle where you pump your legs back and forth like you're pedaling, plus you touch the opposite elbow to the knee that you are bringing in toward your chest.
Here's yesterday's food journal:
First thing - Shakeology.
Breakfast - Eggs, turkey bacon, and grapefruit.
Snack - Nothing.
Lunch - Leftover shishkabobs and rice.
Snack - Grapes.
Dinner - Met RX protein bar. I wasn't hungry but I knew I would be before karate was over so I switched dinner with the last snack of the day.
Snack - Leftover pork chop and asparagus.
Remember, for one more week, Wednesdays are every man for himself days and I used up all the leftovers from the previous couple of days.
That's all I have for today. It's been kind of a busy week and it shows no signs of slowing down until next week. There's always time for a workout though. ;) If I can do it, anyone can do it.
***
I am an Independent BeachBody Coach for BeachBody.com, a company that offers fitness programs, supplements, and equipment that have absolutely changed my life.
Have you heard of P90X? That's BeachBody. They also have Insanity, Turbo Jam, RevAbs, Brazil Butt Lift, and many more. They have some of the best exercise programs on the market. These aren't just DVDs but are complete programs to transform your body. They also have the hugely popular, and what they call "the most important meal of the day", Shakeology. Go HERE to learn the most inexpensive way to get Shakeology.
They have equipment and supplements in addition to Shakeology and popular exercise programs. Visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Shop" link to see everything they offer.
There is also a business side to all this fitness that you can take advantage of. Whether you're looking to just make a couple hundred extra dollars in fun money or are looking to take complete financial control of your life, BeachBody can help you get there. If you have a desire to be more fit and would love to help other people do the same while making some money at it, visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Coach" link. Team up with me and I'll help you reach your goals, in fitness and finance.
The wind continues to blow here today. Not as hard as last night but hard enough that I took a pass on running today. Running, for me, has to be fun and running against the wind is NOT fun.
Speaking of running, I ordered some new tanks for running in the hopes that the weather is going to eventually turn back to being nice. Just some plain white ones that are supposed to be super light. Last year, I threw out all my tanks because they had been used long past their usable lifetime. I didn't remember that until last week when I was looking for a tank top because the weather was actually nice for one day.
Today's video is the last circuit of the month. Abs with a pinch of shoulder thrown in. I didn't focus too much on the shoulders this month. Not that they don't get worked out. Chest and Back day involves a lot of shoulder work, at least the fronts and backs of them. I threw in the Pike Press to work the top of the shoulder muscles.
The jackknife and the kayak get really hard after a few circuits. It's hard to stay balanced in the kayak after all the muscles have been worked really hard. I really like this circuit and I found out something surprising after doing a couple hundred Scorpion Twists. My abs run up my sides all the way to my armpits. Who knew?
Here's yesterday's food journal:
First thing - Shakeology.
Breakfast - Eggs, turkey bacon, and grapefruit.
Snack - Whey protein.
Lunch - Posole, barbecue ribs, and pot stickers. You know, I said that I was probably a pretty boring eater but the fact that I eat in a buffet several times a week actually makes me a very eclectic eater for many of my meals. Who would have ever thought of putting posole, ribs, and pot stickers together? I just walk around looking to see what catches my eye. No fruits or vegetables this time, which is unusual but I was full.
Snack - Nothing. Too busy.
Dinner - Teriyaki beef shishkabobs, pineapple, strawberries, and merlot. I've picked two pineapples so far this year and have managed to pick very yummy ones both times. My brother gave me a pineapple cutter tool that peels, slices, and cores a pineapple all at the same time. It's such a time saver.
Snack - Great conversation with friends.
I heard an author say that how we eat is more important than what we eat. The human body has adapted around the world to all sorts of different kinds of diets. All the different diets out there work. Some work for some people while others work for other people. The important thing that this author brought up is that we should be relaxed when we eat. We need to take the time to enjoy. Enjoy the food, enjoy the ceremony, enjoy the company, and just enjoy the entire experience. Slowing down, breathing, and savoring a meal increases the bodies ability to use the food and makes people more healthy.
Over the last couple of decades, the focus has been on how quickly we can get eating out of the way. Fast food drive thru so you can get your food in a minute and eat in the car so that eating doesn't interfere with the rest of life. Fast food isn't good for you but eating it on the go makes it even worse.
My dad used to make us eat in the dining room as a family every night. There was no TV and there was no rush. It's was family dinner, where we visited with each other, and my dad taught us English. It's something that I do with my family. Our life can be pretty crazy but on the nights that we are home together, we make dinner and sit at the dinner table to eat as a family.
***
I am an Independent BeachBody Coach for BeachBody.com, a company that offers fitness programs, supplements, and equipment that have absolutely changed my life.
Have you heard of P90X? That's BeachBody. They also have Insanity, Turbo Jam, RevAbs, Brazil Butt Lift, and many more. They have some of the best exercise programs on the market. These aren't just DVDs but are complete programs to transform your body. They also have the hugely popular, and what they call "the most important meal of the day", Shakeology. Go HERE to learn the most inexpensive way to get Shakeology.
They have equipment and supplements in addition to Shakeology and popular exercise programs. Visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Shop" link to see everything they offer.
There is also a business side to all this fitness that you can take advantage of. Whether you're looking to just make a couple hundred extra dollars in fun money or are looking to take complete financial control of your life, BeachBody can help you get there. If you have a desire to be more fit and would love to help other people do the same while making some money at it, visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Coach" link. Team up with me and I'll help you reach your goals, in fitness and finance.
Quick one again today. We are having friends over for dinner tonight and I'm making shishkabobs. I'm going to prepare as much as I can before we have to take Trey to teeball practice. Then I can put on the final touches and start cooking when we get home. I'm going to be cooking them on the grill so there is, of course, a hellacious windstorm building up. The manager at the grocery store today said that the gusts are supposed to get up to 65 mph. Let's hope that's after I'm done cooking.
Today's video is the Arm Circuit we are doing this month. In fact, I did it today with one minor tweak. I did the Triangle Push-Ups on a medicine ball this morning (all month actually) but this gives you the basics of the circuit. You can always do different variations of the different exercises. Well, since you get to decide, you can even change all of the exercises if you want. I'm not the bossayou.
Here is yesterday's food journal:
First thing - Shakeology.
Breakfast - Eggs, turkey bacon, and grapefruit.
Snack - Whey protein.
Lunch - Turkey club wrap and salad with raspberry vinaigrette.
Snack - Dried fruit. My stash is gone for the week so I'll be switching to something else for the rest of the week.
Dinner - Pork chops cooked on the grill and asparagus. I love pork chops that are cooked on the grill. The juiciness seems to get trapped by the searing. Yummy.
Snack - Nothing.
There you go. Quick and dirty. I'm off to start cutting up some meat and veggies.
***
I am an Independent BeachBody Coach for BeachBody.com, a company that offers fitness programs, supplements, and equipment that have absolutely changed my life.
Have you heard of P90X? That's BeachBody. They also have Insanity, Turbo Jam, RevAbs, Brazil Butt Lift, and many more. They have some of the best exercise programs on the market. These aren't just DVDs but are complete programs to transform your body. They also have the hugely popular, and what they call "the most important meal of the day", Shakeology. Go HERE to learn the most inexpensive way to get Shakeology.
They have equipment and supplements in addition to Shakeology and popular exercise programs. Visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Shop" link to see everything they offer.
There is also a business side to all this fitness that you can take advantage of. Whether you're looking to just make a couple hundred extra dollars in fun money or are looking to take complete financial control of your life, BeachBody can help you get there. If you have a desire to be more fit and would love to help other people do the same while making some money at it, visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Coach" link. Team up with me and I'll help you reach your goals, in fitness and finance.
It's going to be a crazy couple of days for me so I'm going to try and blast through this but I have to tell you a funny story from this morning's workout.
I showed you how you can make X Crunches harder by adding weights to your ankles. Well, the reverse is true and this morning after 5 Ab circuits, one of my students took her shoes off so that her feet would be lighter. After that circuit, she took off her socks. She had us all laughing and laughing is good ab work too.
Here's the Chest/Back Circuit we are doing this month:
And here's my food journal for the last couple of days.
Saturday:
First thing - Nothing. There is no "first thing" on Saturday and Sunday.
Breakfast - Ham, eggs, and grapefruit.
Snack - Shakeology.
Lunch - Nothing. I get up too late in Saturdays and Sundays to have breakfast AND lunch.
Snack - Shakeology.
Dinner - Pork tenderloin, salmon, and these potato thingies that have the texture of a baked potato but they've been quartered and are crispy all around. I had 3 chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. They don't have them often so I indulged.
Snack - Whey protein and peanuts.
Sunday:
First thing - Nothing.
Breakfast - Ham, eggs, and strawberries.
Snack - Shakeology.
Lunch - Nothing.
Snack - Nothing.
Dinner - French onion soup, turkey, pineapple, blueberries, and 3 more of the chocolate covered strawberries. They don't have them for months at a time and suddenly they have them two days in a row?
Snack - Casein protein and some dried fruit.
Alright. I'm off to mow the lawn.
***
I am an Independent BeachBody Coach for BeachBody.com, a company that offers fitness programs, supplements, and equipment that have absolutely changed my life.
Have you heard of P90X? That's BeachBody. They also have Insanity, Turbo Jam, RevAbs, Brazil Butt Lift, and many more. They have some of the best exercise programs on the market. These aren't just DVDs but are complete programs to transform your body. They also have the hugely popular, and what they call "the most important meal of the day", Shakeology. Go HERE to learn the most inexpensive way to get Shakeology.
They have equipment and supplements in addition to Shakeology and popular exercise programs. Visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Shop" link to see everything they offer.
There is also a business side to all this fitness that you can take advantage of. Whether you're looking to just make a couple hundred extra dollars in fun money or are looking to take complete financial control of your life, BeachBody can help you get there. If you have a desire to be more fit and would love to help other people do the same while making some money at it, visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Coach" link. Team up with me and I'll help you reach your goals, in fitness and finance.
The BeachBody newsletter this week was all about sugar. Most of the information was stuff that I already knew but there was one point that caught my eye. There was a study done where a bunch of poor unfortunate rats were split into two groups. One group was fed a solution of sucrose (sugar) and the other group was fed a solution of High Fructose Corn Syrup (a chemically engineered sugar made out of corn). The rats on HFCS got fatter than the rats on sugar. Here's a quote from the study:
"Some people have claimed that high-fructose corn syrup is no different than other sweeteners when it comes to weight gain and obesity," said study leader Bart Hoebel, "but our results make it clear that this just isn't true, at least under the conditions of our tests."
The only thing worse than the fact that HFCS is poison is the fact that manufacturers put it into just about everything on the planet. If it has been processed at all, there is a good chance that there is HFCS in it. I was looking for a site that shows foods that have HFCS in them and it turns out that there are a lot of sites that list the foods that DON'T have HFCS in them. It's easier.
In fact, from looking over the list, if it's not a one ingredient food (you know, like what's the ingredient list for an apple?), you should probably assume that HFCS is in it.
I was listening to or reading something this week (dammit, now I can't remember where I heard this information) and the speaker or author said that HFCS was in everything so that people stayed addicted to it. I'm sure you've heard the fat, salt, sugar thing. It's the same theory. All foods, no matter the logic, are trending toward having fat, salt, and sugar in them to keep people addicted to food that isn't good for them. HFCS is a cheap way to implement that plan.
Of course, then the US government pays lip service to "fighting obesity" while subsidizing corn production and the FDA approval system sold to the highest bidder.
If you want to be healthy, it's up to you. Shop the outside aisle of the grocery store, buy as many one-ingredient items as you can, read labels, and avoid HFCS as best you can.
I want to be clear that I haven't nothing against sugar (in moderation and eaten intentionally) but HFCS is not good for you and it's especially not meant to be part of every. single. thing. you put in your mouth.
Allow me to step off my soapbox and introduce today's exercise. It's just like yesterday's except different. The Underhand Row is another back exercise and I actually like it better than the Overhand Row. The difference between them is the hand position (as you would guess from the names) and where you pull the weight to. They can be done with barbells, resistance bands, and as shown here, dumbbells.
We are doing both the overhand and underhand version this month. They both target the back but hit it from different angles.
Tomorrow, I'll show you the whole circuit. "Whole" makes it sound like there's a lot to it. There's only 4 exercises in the circuit. Yesterday, I did the circuit 12 times. I strongly suggest that you don't do that unless there is something wrong with your brain.
Here's my food journal for yesterday:
First thing - Shakeology.
Breakfast - Eggs, turkey bacon, and grapefruit.
Snack - Nothing. I was asleep. I stayed up late (for me) the night before and then did 12 of my Chest/Back circuits. When I was done exercising, I ate breakfast so my muscles had some fuel, and then I went to bed for a nap. Friday's are long days for me so there usually has to be a nap in the day somewhere and today I chose to go right back to bed.
Lunch - Chicken tenders, crab salad (very little because it wasn't good), and a sugar-free Monster drink (one of my guilty pleasures).
Snack - Grapes.
Dinner - Chicken breast, cottage cheese, cantaloupe, honeydew, and grapes.
Snack - Shakeology.
When all the planets line up, I like to go for a run on Friday but that rarely happens. The nap takes priority over the running on Fridays. Without a nap, I would be awake for about 22 hours every Friday and that gets old in a hurry. So for this Friday, it was a nap in the morning and some writing in the afternoon that had to be done before I went to work.
It's all a balancing act.
***
I am an Independent BeachBody Coach for BeachBody.com, a company that offers fitness programs, supplements, and equipment that have absolutely changed my life.
Have you heard of P90X? That's BeachBody. They also have Insanity, Turbo Jam, RevAbs, Brazil Butt Lift, and many more. They have some of the best exercise programs on the market. These aren't just DVDs but are complete programs to transform your body. They also have the hugely popular, and what they call "the most important meal of the day", Shakeology. Go HERE to learn the most inexpensive way to get Shakeology.
They have equipment and supplements in addition to Shakeology and popular exercise programs. Visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Shop" link to see everything they offer.
There is also a business side to all this fitness that you can take advantage of. Whether you're looking to just make a couple hundred extra dollars in fun money or are looking to take complete financial control of your life, BeachBody can help you get there. If you have a desire to be more fit and would love to help other people do the same while making some money at it, visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Coach" link. Team up with me and I'll help you reach your goals, in fitness and finance.
I had never heard of it before drinking Shakeology. After reading the ingredients list, I had then heard of it but didn't know what it was. I think it's going to be that way for a lot of things in Shakeology. Hence the Friday blog posts where I go in search of one of the Shakeology ingredients.
Acerola is a small berry, at least the fruit part is a small berry. It's high in Vitamin C. I mean HIGH in vitamin C. 3000% more than orange juice, which makes it a great antioxidant. Nutritiondata.com rates acerola 5 out 5 stars for weight loss and 4.5 out of 5 stars for optimum health.
Nutrtiondata also rated it very high for its anti-inflammatory-ness. I don't understand their inflammation scoring system but they say your diet should be a score of 50 or more. Acerola scores at 684 points. That's got to help bring up the average from eating stuff that's not so good for a body.
It also might help explain why Shakeology is so good at reducing cholesterol scores in people. From what I've read lately (and I'm no doctor and don't even play one on YouTube videos), cholesterol is the body's response to inflammation. That's what statin meds rarely work to prevent heart problems "caused by cholesterol". Statins reduce cholesterol, they don't reduce inflammation. It's the inflammation that's the culprit. Reduce inflammation and you'll reduce your cholesterol and reduce your chance of heart problems.
So, get some acerola in your body and be more healthy.
Today's exercise is the Overhand Dumbbell Row. It's a great exercise for the back muscles.
We do these about every month. It's one of those exercise that helps build the foundation of muscle. For those of you that are building the simple morning circuits that I've been advocating as a bare minimum, these (or the barbell or resistance band versions) should be part of your weekly circuit.
Yesterday's Food Journal:
First thing - Shakeology (with acerola, you know).
Breakfast - Eggs, turkey bacon, and grapefruit (which most likely has less vitamin C than acerola but is good for you nonetheless).
Snack - Shakeology.
Lunch - I made a huge Italian themed salad with a mountain of romaine lettuce, some mozzarella cheese, and a bunch of pepperoni slices, topped with Italian dressing of course.
Snack - Mixed fruit and cashews. I keep bags of frozen fruit on hand in case fruit's what I'm jonesing. Frozen fruit is also good to throw into a blender with some ice, water, and a scoop of protein or Shakeology shake mix.
Dinner - A friend came into town so we went out to the best restaurant in town where I had a bunch of great tasting and not necessarily good for you food. Bread, deep fried lobster, salad with ranch dressing, fillet mignon, stuffed prawns, and wine. So yummy.
Snack - Are you kidding? Did you see what I had for dinner?
It's been several years since we've seen our friend and when we met him, he asked if I had lost weight. I suppose that I have since I've seen him. Riding around in a cop car eating fast food can be hard on the weight control front. Something that he pointed out about himself because he has gained weight since we saw him last.
When we went in the restaurant, the manager asked me if I had lost weight. This one actually surprised me because I don't think I have lost much since I saw him last. My weight usually holds around 200 pounds. I currently weigh 195. When I stopped P90X, I weighed 187. My weight just doesn't fluctuate much but I do think that my body composition is changing. I probably have more muscle and less fat than I did when I last saw the restaurant manager.
If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that I don't worry much about the scale. I worry about a couple of real things like strength and health and about the illusitory vanity - looking good. None of those things are tied to the scale. I still weigh myself each week just to keep track but it falls in a distant fourth behind the other factors.
***
I am an Independent BeachBody Coach for BeachBody.com, a company that offers fitness programs, supplements, and equipment that have absolutely changed my life.
Have you heard of P90X? That's BeachBody. They also have Insanity, Turbo Jam, RevAbs, Brazil Butt Lift, and many more. They have some of the best exercise programs on the market. These aren't just DVDs but are complete programs to transform your body. They also have the hugely popular, and what they call "the most important meal of the day", Shakeology. Go HERE to learn the most inexpensive way to get Shakeology.
They have equipment and supplements in addition to Shakeology and popular exercise programs. Visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Shop" link to see everything they offer.
There is also a business side to all this fitness that you can take advantage of. Whether you're looking to just make a couple hundred extra dollars in fun money or are looking to take complete financial control of your life, BeachBody can help you get there. If you have a desire to be more fit and would love to help other people do the same while making some money at it, visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Coach" link. Team up with me and I'll help you reach your goals, in fitness and finance.
I've had a couple of people asking me about my early morning class this week and that's the best word that I have come up with to describe it. Let me add a caveat to that though.
It's a resistance class, mostly. That means that you get to pick the resistance. It's only as brutal as you make it on yourself. You can lift lighter weights are ease back in other areas. Today, we had one person take the day off to rest. Two people quit after 5 circuits. You can always start strong and ease up.
Let's say that you're going to do 3 of these circuits. Me, I like to *try* to do as much weight and as many reps on the last circuit as I did the on the first circuit. That can be incredibly hard, brutal even, when you start getting up toward 10 circuits but that doesn't mean that everyone has to do it this way. You could do the lunges in the first circuit with 30 pounds, 20 pound the second circuit, and 10 pounds the third circuit. You could do the same thing with reps and keep the weight the same. You could do 30 reps the first circuit and step down each circuit after that.
So, I say that it's "brutal" but that's because that's how I've decided to go this month. Next month, I may ease back. I've already got an idea of what the workouts are going to look like and I think that it's going to be more cardio. Circuit training always has some cardio-ness to it but this month's workouts are on the lower end of that spectrum. Heavier weights, lower heart rate. Next month, I want to drop the weight a smidge and up the heart rate a bit. I'm still tinkering in my mind and next week, I'll start putting things down on paper.
Here's a running tip for anyone that's thinking about taking up running. I know, where did this comment come from? Welcome to my ADHD world. You should have two pair of running shoes and alternate each day. This is more important if you are running on consecutive days. This will help your shoes last longer. Moisture from sweat, rain, snow needs a chance to completely dry out between runs.
Today's exercise is what I did to take the X Crunches up a notch. I strapped some ankle weights on and did my entire ab circuit with the weights. Let me tell you something. Kayaks are incredibly difficult with ankle weights. Especially when you've done Jackknifes right before the Kayak. The lower abs are exhausted and then you are trying to sit in a V shape with weights on your feet. Yeah, I didn't get too many reps done.
Anyway, here's the Weighted X Lifts:
Here's yesterday's food journal:
First thing - Shakeology.
Breakfast - Eggs and turkey bacon.
Snack - Shakeology.
Lunch - Salad, cheddar broccoli soup with some ham thrown in. What can I say, I'm addicted to protein.
Snack - A couple pieces of dried fruit. Mostly because it was sitting on my desk. There were a couple pieces of apple left and 2 apricots so I just finished them off. This brings up a good point about water though. For people that say that they struggle to drink enough, one of the absolute best things that you can do is keep a big glass of water nearby. You'll be surprised how much water you sip in a day if it's close by.
Dinner - Dinner on Wednesdays this semester are an "every man for himself" affair. I made extra soup for lunch so I just heated some up for dinner.
Snack - Nothing. By the time that I finished karate, finished editing the videos, and sat down for a visit with Tia, I wasn't in the mood to eat. A great diet strategy is to stay busy. A lot of people eat just because they are bored or because they are doing trigger activities like watching TV. Take up a physical activity of some sort and you'll be too busy to eat junk food.
Today, I think I'm going to actually treat myself to sitting down and watching a movie. Anyone seen "Gamer"? It's been sitting in my TV stand for about 3 weeks. Netflix has to just love me. They are definitely making money on me considering how many movies I watch. And honestly, I probably won't be able to watch the whole thing today because I have too much going on but I should get a fair way through it.
***
I am an Independent BeachBody Coach for BeachBody.com, a company that offers fitness programs, supplements, and equipment that have absolutely changed my life.
Have you heard of P90X? That's BeachBody. They also have Insanity, Turbo Jam, RevAbs, Brazil Butt Lift, and many more. They have some of the best exercise programs on the market. These aren't just DVDs but are complete programs to transform your body. They also have the hugely popular, and what they call "the most important meal of the day", Shakeology. Go HERE to learn the most inexpensive way to get Shakeology.
They have equipment and supplements in addition to Shakeology and popular exercise programs. Visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Shop" link to see everything they offer.
There is also a business side to all this fitness that you can take advantage of. Whether you're looking to just make a couple hundred extra dollars in fun money or are looking to take complete financial control of your life, BeachBody can help you get there. If you have a desire to be more fit and would love to help other people do the same while making some money at it, visit BeachBody.com and click on the "Coach" link. Team up with me and I'll help you reach your goals, in fitness and finance.
Yesterday it was in the 70's before the wind came up. Today, it's in the 50's and raining. I'm trying to decide between going out for a run or heading back to bed to snuggle in where it's warm and catch a little extra rest. I really want to go back to bed because that's what the weather is encouraging me to do but I'll probably end up running.
This morning, I did my arm circuit until I couldn't lift my arms anymore. I'm going to have to hire someone to come over and brush my teeth tomorrow.
Today's video is in response to a couple of people telling me that there was no way in hell that they could ever do Scorpion Twists. Sure you can, you just have to modify them. That's true of most exercises. It would be like saying that since you can't curl 100 pound dumbbells, you can't do curls at all. You can if you pick up some lighter dumbbells.
Here are some ways to change Scorpion Twists to make them easier and to make them harder:
Remember, the rule is to do things that YOU find challenging. You might have to modify the moves, lift lighter or heavier weights, and in some cases, you might have to think upside down (I'll explain this comment in later videos).
I have learned from my yoga practice that my body was not made for super-duper twisting. It just doesn't go that way. I can twist far enough to do a Scorpion Twist but that's pretty much maxing me out. I've tried to increase my flexibility around my core for the last couple of years and nothing has changed. I keep stretching every day so that I don't lose what I have but I have accepted that this is just how my body is built. We are all built different and there is no reason to think that any exercise is going to be a one-size-fits-all. Modify in a way that you find challenging and go from there.
Here's my food journal from yesterday:
First thing - Shakeology
Breakfast - Eggs and turkey bacon
Brunch - Nothing. That's not like me but I was busy. I am so used to eating the bodybuilder way of every 3 hours that I was starving when lunch came around. I'm trying to relax my mind back from the "eat or lose muscle" mantra that has been ingrained in me over the years and I was pretty relaxed about missing a meal, but hungry.
Lunch - szechuan shrimp, lots of string beans, lots of carrots, a couple of small red potatoes, pineapple, cantaloupe, blackberries, and a strawberry.
Snack - Shakeology and some dried fruit. Somehow I ended up with an extra bag of Shakeology so I'm drinking two a day right now. When the extra is gone, I'll switch to the other protein powders I have. When those are gone, I'm going to switch to fruit and nuts. I'm trying to phase all of the protein shakes (except for the daily Shakeology) for a little while but I have so much that it will probably take months to get there.
Dinner - Left over teriyaki beef stir fry and wild rice. I wokked up some teriyaki beef yesterday with lots of vegetables (red pepper, green pepper, onion, asparagus, carrots, and pineapple) and had enough left over for Tia and I to have dinner this night as well. It was a busy night so it was great to have something that I could throw in the microwave during the few minutes between Trey's tee ball practice and my city council meeting.
Snack - Nothing. The wind had kicked up so much dirt and salt that my allergies were creating absolute havoc on my sinuses and even started to swell my eyes a bit. I took enough benadryl to put down a bull and although I was tired and in a daze, I didn't fall asleep until my normal time. Still, I wasn't hungry.
I don't always have a late night snack but it's often enough that I thought I would list it anyway. Like I said, I still do the 6 or 7 meals a day that I have grown accustomed to over the years. I don't think that will go away any time soon but I'm going to try to phase in more fruits, vegetables, and nuts into the snack areas when the protein shakes are gone.
Update: I chose the run over the nap. It was rainy and wet and even the dog was thinking, "what the hell are we doing?" She knows what my running gear looks like so when I start getting dressed to run, she heads for the front door and starts yipping and whining to go. She then runs at the full length of the 16 foot leash in front of me for the whole run. Today, half a mile into the run, soaking wet, she was behind me practically being dragged along. The warm bed would have felt better at the time but now, after a hot shower, I feel great and feel great for doing it.
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