Category Archives: Butt

BOSU, Butt, Core, Fitness, Foam Roller, Plank, Recovery, Running, Squats, Triceps

Rest (3/29 – 4/4)

April 5, 2015 Kim 14 Comments

Rest is not something I’m good at or even enjoy that much. However, other than my daily 45s I have now taken 7 days off!! I can’t even remember the last time I did that willingly!

Sunday 3/29 – 45 seated twists.

Return to center –

This was a new (to me) version of an oblique twist – you can definitely feel it in your obliques but it takes out the lower core work that you get in a reclined Russian Twist.

I did a one person race. I ran a loop around our neighborhood that is about 2.15 miles over and over.

Look how cute Chris is - he set up an aid table and a lap counter!!! — Look how cute Chris is – he set up an aid table and a lap counter!!!

Hunter ran 2 loops with me and walked my final loop — Hunter ran 2 non-consecutive loops with me and walked my final loop

Jordan also ran 2 loops with me — Jordan also ran 2 (consecutive) loops with me

I decided that 25 miles was good for the day!! I was only taking a sip of water after each lap and I don’t think that 12 sips in over 4 hours was enough for me!!

Monday 3/30 – 45 foam roller ab tuck. This move is one that Lindsay (CotterCrunch) included in her 3 New Core Moves post a couple weeks ago.

Holding a plank while completing all 45 reps was definitely a challenge!!!

Tuesday 3/31 – 45 low squats while on wobble balls – holding medicine ball – bring elbows to knees.

Adding the balance challenge with the wobble balls was fun!

Wednesday 4/1 – 45 plank walk-ups from floor to BOSU.

At some point I started wondering if I should do 2 sets of 45 – one with the right hand leading and one with the left hand leading. I decided to just go with one set so I alternated lead hands every 5 reps.

Thursday 4/2 – 45 cross body mountain climbers with feet on ledge.

Return to start and bring left knee in –

Left foot in - twist — Left foot in – twist

Obviously this move went faster when I wasn’t trying to pose for a picture!! I liked doing the mountain climbers with my feet up – it changed the feel of the move a little. Right-left = 1 rep.

Friday 4/3 – 45 decline tricep dips (feet on chair – hands on floor).

This move was small but I definitely felt it in my triceps!!!

Saturday 4/4 – 45 diamond butt lifts.

start (feet together - knees point out) — start (feet together – knees point out)

squeeze butt and lift thighs off the ground

This was another small move but very effective!!!

Since I’m actually writing this on Sunday (Easter) and I didn’t work out today, I have successfully managed to take 7 days off without going crazy!!!

Happy Easter (or Passover) or Sunday!!!

Kim

Back, BOSU, Butt, Core, Fitness, Lunges, Recovery, Resistance Bands, Running, Squats, Treadmill

Taking it Easy (3/8 – 3/14)

March 14, 2015 Kim 26 Comments

This week I took several days off because my legs were tired and I’m trying to rest some before next Saturday!

Sunday 3/8 – 45 sit-ups with my feet propped on the door.

Monday 3/9 – 45 rear leg lifts with band.

After one side has been worked over, it’s time to switch and hit the other side.

I did Turbo Jam – Lower Body Jam & Ab Jam – both fun workouts!!

Tuesday 3/10 – 45 reverse lunge to warrior 3.

I love how many muscles are involved in these 2 moves. And the balance challenge always makes me happy!!!

I did a 9 mile run in 68:35 followed by 1.2 easy miles.

Wednesday 3/11 – 45 crunches with a medicine ball toss (8 pound).

This was the start of taking a few days off since my legs felt tired. I still ended up with almost 20,000 steps after a day of cleaning and setting up at the venue.

Thursday 3/12 – 45 bent over tricep pulses.

An easy move on another day off (other than 8 hours on my feet while ironing table cloths).

Friday 3/13 – 45 pike and row on BOSU. This move is another one that Nellie (Brooklyn Active Mama) shared in her Weekly Wednesday Workout.

Wrap the band around your foot a couple times – I also ended up choking up on the band to have enough resistance.

pike your leg up and row (pull shoulder blades together)

This was a fun move because it worked so many muscle groups and had an incredible balance challenge!!!

ready to work the other side even though my abs are burning

Saturday 3/14 – 45 squats on a 30% inclined treadmill.

I really liked this move – and it was perfect since I had just finished my run!!!

have to work the other side - sorry for the backside view — have to work the other side – sorry for the backside view

(It’s been awhile since I did pictures with my shirt off but just keeping it real – back fat and all today!!!)

I did this move after running 5 miles – 36:54 followed by a nice easy mile.

4 days out of 7 off is a lot for me but I think it was time to rest!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim

BOSU, Butt, Core, Fitness, Hamstrings, Push-Ups, Resistance Bands, Running

The Legs Feed the Wolf (3/1 – 3/7)

March 7, 2015 Kim 16 Comments

Miracle might be one of my all-time favorite movies!! When the head coach has the team skating lots of suicide type drills he tells the players, “The legs feed the wolf.” When it came time for the big games (Olympics), they were better conditioned than any other team on the ice!!!

So, I tell myself the same thing when I’m running high mileage and also when I back off a little to rest my legs for a couple weeks!!! This week I had much lower mileage but I did a number of workouts and exercises to strengthen my legs, especially my hips.

Sunday 3/1 – 45 standing crunches – lift one leg straight out and bring hands to foot while holding a medicine ball – crunch on the forward bend.

I like that this move works your core and also your hip flexors!

I ran 8 miles in 59:58 followed by 0.6 easy miles.

Monday 3/2 – 45 push-ups while kneeling on a stability ball (shins rest on the ball and your butt stays down on your heels).

These look a bit awkward but it was a really good move. You can tell that it was hard for me to keep my butt on my heels during the down part – need to work on that!

I did Cathe – Turbo Barre. Talk about a workout for your hips and legs – this one is great!!!

Tuesday 3/3 – 45 side leg abduction while in a semi-squat.

Partial squat with left leg - right leg ready to lift — Partial squat with left leg – right leg ready to lift

stay low and lift right leg - squeeze butt — stay low and lift right leg – squeeze butt

There is a bit of balance involved with this move too!!

lift the leg while staing low — lift the leg while staying low

Running day – 10 miles in 75:44 followed by 1 easy mile.

Wednesday 3/4 – 45 single leg step-up on BOSU then circle opposite leg back-front-back before stepping down.

step up with left leg and start with right leg pushing back

From the above position, sweep the right leg back so that it is behind you and then step off the BOSU.

I did all 45 reps stepping up with my left leg and then switched and did another set.

step on with left right leg, left leg squeezes back

sweep leg to front, then back behind you before stepping off.

The hardest part of this move was staying balanced while sweeping your leg around!!!

I did TaeBo Amped – Rockin’ Buns. There isn’t a lot of cardio involved in this workout but it is great for strengthening your hips, legs and even your core.

Thursday 3/5 – 45 BOSU superman lifts. Nellie (Brooklyn Active Mama) featured this move as one of her Wednesday Workouts.

Place a band under your BOSU with enough slack that you can lift it but still have a challenge. I decided to add an extra challenge and stay in a partial squat while completing my arm lifts.

After about 25 reps I had to give myself a little more band to work with because this was hard!!!

This was another running day – 8 miles in 60:20 followed by 1.05 miles easy.

Friday 3/6 – 45 quad/knee raises while pushing foot down with bar.

lift knee up and push down on the bar at the same time

By pushing the bar down it makes the resistance so much harder than just lifting your body weight.

This day was the closest to a rest day that I took this week. I did Caribbean Workout – Core Pilates for an hour.

Saturday 3/7 – 45 “first position” monkey squats. (I had to google what the position was called!!!)

stand in first position (heels touching - toes turned out) and touch toes — stand in first position (heels touching – toes turned out) and touch toes

go down into a squat while holding on to your toes

By holding your toes for the entire move this feels different than just doing normal squats!!! Turning my toes out made the move different from a standard monkey squat.

And, I did one more run for the week.
6 miles – 45:17 followed by 1.75 easy miles.

I think overall it was a good workout week even cutting back on my running.
32 miles of hard running
4.4 easy miles

Happy Saturday!!

Kim

Butt, Calves, Fitness, Running, Squats, Triceps

February: All About the Run (2/22 – 2/28)

February 28, 2015 Kim 26 Comments

February was a month of running!! I ran 18 out of 28 days (a lot for me) for a total of 207 hard miles and 19.9 easy miles – my highest month in a long time.

Sunday 2/22 – 45 squat with kettle bell pull.

I did a 10K virtual race – The Race for Paws that Kristina (Kristina’s Blog About Running & Life) organized to help support PAWS Chicago which is a no kill animal shelter.

6.2 miles – 43:06 followed by an easy mile. (I really wanted to push the pace harder but know that I can’t while I’m running so many miles right now.)

Monday 2/23 – 45 lateral raises with a “milk pour” (flip hands palms up then back down).

From here, you flip your hands back over (palms down) and then lower to complete one rep.

I did something I hate doing and ran a distance that wasn’t “round” – 8.8 miles (70:09) followed by 1.2 easy miles. I did the 0.8 to keep my overall mileage even after the 10K on Sunday.

Tuesday 2/24 – 45 arrowheads (for butt).

See, you sort of make an arrowhead shape in the air with your leg movements! And, of course, I had to switch and work my left side!!

Probably not the best exercise for the day since it made my butt a little sore right before my long run but….

31 miles in 4:06.58 – I pushed myself on this run because I wanted to maintain a good pace for the entire distance!! I only did 0.2 miles to cool down.

Wednesday 2/25 – 45 calf stretch on wobble balls.

I thought about doing an easy run but my hips were a bit achy so I decided it was better to rest.

Thursday 2/26 – 45 laps around the ballroom at the venue.

I had to clean for a Friday event and I wasn’t super motivated about cleaning so I stalled and walked 45 laps first!!!

Friday 2/27 – 45 chair squats.

Chair squats are always hard for me – something about keeping my legs so close together while I squat!

I didn’t plan to take a 3rd day off but sometimes that’s just the way things work out.

Saturday 2/28 – 45 tricep dips with hands on wobble balls.

down - don't rest butt on floor — down – don’t rest butt on floor

We actually took these pictures one morning before I took Hunter to school but I didn’t do the move until this morning.

And, I finished the week with a run.
5 miles – 39:39 + 1 easy mile.

I’m happy that I had another week over 50 miles.
51 hard miles
3.4 easy miles

This week presented some challenges but thankfully I got in my runs and kept my daily moves going!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim

Butt, Cardio, Core, Fitness, Pull-Ups, Push-Ups, Resistance Bands, Running, Squats, Treadmill, Triceps

Digging Deep for Motivation (1/25 – 1/31)

January 31, 2015 Kim 1 Comment

This week was one of those that I had to dig deep for motivation. Most days I ended up having a good workout once I finally convinced myself to get started!!!

Sunday 1/25 – 45 single leg front and back hops.

Clearly I wobbled around a lot and didn’t always do straight front/back hops but…I did 45 on my right leg and then switched to my left for another set of 45. This move will make your legs burn and get your heart rate up!!!

Monday 1/26 – 45 triceps push-ups on the weight machine bench.

Doing these on the bench made it comparable to having my knees on the ground – the only way I can ever do 45 of this type of push-up!!!

This was a short run day – 5 miles in 40:29 followed by and easy mile.

Tuesday 1/27 – 45 crunches with feet under weight machine bar.

I tend to forget about going back to the original way I learned when doing crunches but this move really does make you work!!

I decided to hop on the treadmill but didn’t know if I wanted to run. I walked 2 miles with a 10% incline. The 3rd mile I lowered the incline and did some weighted arm holds (out to side, straight up…). I finally decided to run for 3 miles (22:00 min) and followed those up with another 1.1 miles of walking. (like I said – digging deep for motivation)

Wednesday 1/28 – 45 standing leg lifts with small ball tucked into leg.

ready (barstool just to help with balance)

Of course, I had to switch sides and do 45 more.

Using the ball really made this a bigger challenge – it forces you to squeeze your glutes/hamstrings when you lift your leg.

I did Turbo Jam – Turbo Sculpt which is a nice mix of toning with some cardio.

Then I decided to run – 8 miles (59:59) followed by 1.25 easy miles.

Thursday 1/29 – 45 second hang from pull-up bar and then 45 jumping pull-up holds. (Hunter did the pictures for me later since by the time someone was here to help with pictures I was far to sore to attempt another rep!!!)

I’m not gonna lie – 2 days later my entire upper torso area HURTS!!!!

I did a workout that I don’t think I’ve ever done before – TaeBo T3 (Total Transformation Training). I just did 2 parts of this – Ignition & Acceleration – for about 45 minutes of work. I will definitely do more of these workouts!!!

Friday 1/30 – 45 straight leg bridges with feet on a stability ball.