Category Archives: Fitness

Back, Core, Fitness, Hamstrings, Plank, Plyo, Running

Mixing Things Up While On Vacation (7/13-7/19)

July 19, 2014 Kim 59 Comments

Even though I was on a little vacation this past week, I still wanted to get in a good week of workouts. It was fun to just mix things up and do a variety of things using what I had available!!!

Sunday 7/13 – 44 cat-cow with a crunch.

Not sure why I don’t do this move more often – it was nice especially after spending a chunk of the day cleaning the venue!!!

Monday 7/14 – 44 Jumping Jacks with tucks.

This was a great way to get my heart rate way up!!! And, since I had to get a lot done before leaving for my trip, I only did my lifting workout – Chalean Extreme Push Circuit 2.

Tuesday 7/15 – 44 incline sit-ups and 44 incline crunches. The fitness center at the hotel had one of my favorite pieces of equipment from years ago so I made good use of it!!!

all the way up - touch feet — all the way up – touch feet

Personally, I think the full sit-ups are easier than the crunches!!

up just to the point that you can feel your abs contracting — up just to the point that you can still feel your abs contracting

Stacy and I did a nice 7 mile run – LOTS of hills!!! I also did a bunch of push-ups on the incline bench and a long squat series with 2, 30 pound dumbbells.

Wednesday 7/16 – 44 hill repeats. During our run Tuesday, we had to run up this killer hill to get to a gorgeous park. I decided that it would make a great 44 to run up and down it!!

Umm…this was a tough workout!!! (Stacy decided to do her own indoor workout inside of running up and down the hill.)

Not super fast but that’s because there was no possible way to get up that hill fast!!! Even on the downhill part, my heart rate never fully recovered! Not sure I would repeat this exact workout!!!

Thursday 7/17 – 44 decline plank with alternate shoulder taps (right-left = 1 rep).

ready - feet on bench — ready – feet on bench

So, you can tell that I’m sweaty and we are in our hotel room – I actually did this after our run!!

We just did an easy run – both of us were sore from our previous workouts!!! 3 miles up the hill from yesterday and around a gorgeous park followed by 3 miles of walking — it was great to just walk for a change!!!

Friday 7/18 – 44 alternating hamstring curls.

I did these Friday night but Chris took the pictures for me this morning – I figure it still counts as keeping up with my daily moves even if I don’t get it done until 10:00 pm!!!!

Saturday 7/19 – 44 back extensions with ball pass.

bring arms behind and hand ball off to other hand

I only did 44 total but I did reverse the direction of the ball pass so that I did 22 each way. I know my low back is an area I don’t work often enough!!

And, I did my favorite lifting program – Chalean Extreme Push Circuit 3.

Overall it was a decent week of working out – a little lighter than normal in some ways but fun to do some different things!!!

Happy Saturday!!

Kim

Core, Fitness, Running, Thighs

Side-to-Side (7/6-7/12)

July 12, 2014 Kim 42 Comments

This week the daily moves were all doubles! Since they were side-lying moves, each one had to be done on the right side and the left!!!

Sunday 7/6 – 44 side lying scissors (legs move front to back while stacked).

I counted a rep as moving the leg from front to back and back to front. And, even though the video only shows one side, I did a 2nd set of 44 on my other side.

And, since I took Saturday off, I got a nice run in.
10 miles in 71:04 +1.3 easy miles.

Monday 7/7 – 44 side lying double leg crunches.

And after 44 on this side, I flipped over for 44 more.

This is one of those moves that starts out fairly easy but after a few reps gets harder and harder!!!

For my workout I did Chalean Extreme Push Circuit 2. Then I pulled out a DVD I haven’t done in a long time – Shape Sculpt Your Abs. This was 45 minutes of cardio (with lots of ab work) plus 3, 15 minute ab sections – I should do this more often!!!

Tuesday 7/8 – 44 side lying hip abduction (top leg).

lift - heel should point slightly up — lift – heel should point slightly up

You can see why these were nice – I could keep my eyes closed!!!

By the end, my hips were burning!!!

This was another run day.
11 miles in 83:30 + 0.7 miles super easy.

Wednesday 7/9 – 44 crossed leg crunches (on your side, of course!!).

This move is great for your obliques. Having your legs crossed and lifting them also gives you a bit of hip work!!

I think that I got this move from one of my TaeBo workouts.

This was a double workout day – lifting and running!!!
Chalean Extreme Push Circuit 3.
12 mile run in 86:35 + 2 easy miles.

Thursday 7/10 – 44 lower leg lifts.

You can see that it isn’t a big lift but after about 10 you will feel each lift!!!

Don't want to be unbalanced! — Don’t want to be unbalanced!

I decided that after a couple of back to back longish runs, this should be an easier day. So, a really old workout came out – Denise Austin Fat Burning Yoga. I enjoyed the strength and stretching after all the lifting and running!!!

Friday 7/11 – 44 double leg lifts and pulls with band.

start - the easy part — start – the easy part

The main thing is to keep tension on your legs even in the start phase!!!

And – another double workout day – I’m sort of liking lifting followed by a run!!!

Chalean Extreme Push Circuit 1
A hard 8 mile run in 52:39 followed by 2.5 easy miles.

Saturday 7/12 – 44 Side plank hip drops.

I enjoyed the side-to-side moves this week!!!

I think my running for the week was just over 40 miles which makes me happy!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim

Fitness, Hamstrings, Lunges, Plank, Running

Bodyweight Moves Are Awesome!!! (6/29-7/5)

July 5, 2014 Kim 45 Comments

You know I love all of my fun fitness “toys” but I also love doing bodyweight moves!! There are so many options and moves that work every single muscle group!!!

Sunday 6/29 – 44 alternating star jumps (right – left = 1 rep).

This move was super fun!!! I will definitely add these in to other workouts!!

Monday 6/30 – 44 Y squats (squat while keeping arms in a “Y”).

Keeping my arms up made this squat a challenge!!!

I’m still loving my current weight lifting program – Chalean Extreme – Push Circuit 3.

And, I ran – shorter than some of my runs last week!!
6 miles in 41:50 + 2 easy miles.

Tuesday 7/1 – 44 push-ups with cross body mountain climbers.

This was a fun way to jazz up push-ups!!!

This was another running day!!
12 miles – 92:02 + 2.25 easy miles.

Wednesday 7/2 – 44 alternating cross-over lunges (right-left = 1 rep).

I really enjoyed this move – it was great for toning and also good cardio!!!

This was a lifting day – Chalean Extreme – Push Circuit 1 and the Ab Burner workout – fun!!!

Thursday 7/3 – 44 “waiter” single leg dead lifts. (Keep one arm behind your back while doing dead lifts on opposite leg.)

This was a fairly light day of workouts because I chose not to get up super early!!!

Tae-Bo Ab Boot Camp – since I haven’t done this in awhile I feel sure that I will be sore in the next day or two – score!!!

Friday 7/4 – 44 plank forward walks. Starting in plank walk right hand front, left hand front, right hand back, left hand back then switch lead hands for 1 rep.

This was hard – a lot of time spent in plank!!

Then, the boys and I did the 6 mile race around the lake!!!

For some reason, I struggled through the entire 6 miles!!!
My time was 44:50 which should not have felt as hard as it did – 3rd female finisher.
Hunter finished in 52:40 – he did awesome and loved the race!!!
Jordan’s time was 53:57 – he had a rough time near the end but still did a super job!!!

Saturday 7/5 – 44 prisoner lateral lunges (alternating).

A right and a left counted as 1 rep. This was another fun move – I enjoyed the body weight moves a lot this week!

This was sort of a lighter week of workouts but I think I needed it based on how I felt during the race yesterday and most of the rest of the day after running!!!

Happy Saturday!!

Kim

Butt, Fitness, Running

Stability (6/22-6/28)

June 28, 2014 Kim 42 Comments

This week I used my stability ball and focused on the butt – I ended up doing a lot of new moves and some of them were HARD!!!

Sunday 6/22 – 44 stability ball kick back toner.

Start by placing your hands on the ball – and kick right leg back.

Pull your right knee in to the ball –

Repeat for 44 reps and you will feel this in both legs – your left leg will be shaking!!! And, of course, you don’t want to be off balance so this has to be done on the other leg!!

I will definitely be doing this move more often!!!

Monday 6/23 – 44 hip lifts on stability ball.

This move looks fairly simple but after about 20 you will feel your butt and hamstrings a lot!!

This was a lifting day – Chalean Extreme Burn Circuit 3. Ready to move on to the next phase!!

And, I did a 10 mile run in 76:56 followed by 1.8 miles easy.

Tuesday 6/24 – 44 plank with shins on stability ball and alternate leg lifts.

This was hard to do and hold plank – my butt hurt, my arms were shaking and my core was burning – all signs of a good move.

I did another 10 mile run (76:15) followed by 1.6 easy miles.

Wednesday 6/25 – 44 side leg pulls on stability ball.

Start by leaning on the stability ball with your left side and extend your right leg to the side –

Pull your right knee in to the ball and hold for a 2-count –

After your right hip is dying (or when you complete all reps – 44) then switch sides to go again!!!

This move is another one that I will be doing more often – it was a great way to really work my hips!!!

I finally started the next phase in Chalean Extreme – Push Circuit 1. This phase involves heavier lifting with fewer reps. I have been sore the past couple of days so that is good!!!

And, I pulled out one of my 10 Minute Solution DVDs – Kickbox Bootcamp. This one is fun because the 5 sections are all a little different and it is a great whole body workout!!!

Thursday 6/26 – 44 single leg dead lift with one leg on stability ball.

This move was much harder than it looks!!! Keeping myself balanced was a huge challenge!! And, you know that I can’t just work one side!!

This was another 10 mile run day (I’m not sure why I did 10 miles every day I ran this week – just the amount that fit into my day!!) in 77:12 followed by 2.25 easy miles.

Friday 6/27 – 44 reverse leg lifts on the stability ball

Not gonna lie – this was one of my favorite moves of the week!!!

And, it was a lifting day!! Chalean Extreme – Push Circuit 2. I think I did heavier weights for shoulder presses than I ever have (not saying a lot but…..)!!!

Saturday 6/28 – 44 stability ball leg squeezes with a butt lift.

squeeze and lift your butt - hold for 2-count before lowering — squeeze and lift your butt – hold for 2-count before lowering

This move was great for the butt and inner thighs!!!

And, since we had to go clean for the 3rd day in a row at the venue, I decided to run through town and let Chris start the cleaning!

It was exactly 10 miles at an 8:30 pace (humid and muggy)!!! And, I didn’t have to clean – running beats cleaning any day!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim

Core, Fitness, Plank, Running

Focus on the Core (6/15-6/21)

June 21, 2014 Kim 36 Comments

This week I decided to make the daily 44 all about core work!!! I try to do some core work every week but this week I hit it even harder.

Sunday 6/15 – 44 oblique crunches with a leg lift.

I liked this move!!! I counted a left-right as 1 rep so it turned into a total of 88 crunches!!

Monday 6/16 – 44 alternating leg kicks while in a V-sit position.

This move required a lot of balance which is even more of a core bonus!! (I counted a right-left kick as 1 rep)

Still trying to lift weights consistently so it was Chalean Extreme Burn Circuit 3 (lots of shoulder work).

I also got in a nice hard run!!!
9 miles in 57:49 (6:26 pace) followed by 1.75 easy miles. I haven’t been running hard much lately but I still try to occasionally push my pace just to make sure I still can.

Tuesday 6/17 – 44 plank hold with a double knee tap.

I must be holding my breath in the bottom picture because my face is really red – oops!!!

I decided to follow Monday’s hard run with an easier run.
10 miles in 80:07 + 1 super easy mile.

Wednesday 6/18 – 44 “rope climbs” with legs extended.

This was a great move for keeping constant tension on the abs!

Lifting day – Chalean Extreme Burn Circuit 1 (last time through this circuit – next week I will start the Push Circuit!!).

I wanted a little more after lifting so I did The Firm – Skills, Drills & Thrills. This is a nice workout with a mix of cardio and toning using the wobble disc –

Thursday 6/19 – 44 plank with elbows on the wobble disc – step out with right leg, back in then pull the right knee in – repeat on left side for 1 rep.

I should have timed how long I had to hold plank while doing this – oh, well!!

And, I’m still trying to bump my running miles up so it was another day of running.
13 miles in 1:42.13 + 1.4 easier miles.

Friday 6/20 – 44 knee crunches while holding boat pose on wobble disc.

Can you tell how hard it was to balance? My arms were flailing the entire time just trying to keep me from falling over!!!

The only workout for the day was Chalean Extreme – Burn Circuit 2 (all about biceps and triceps) – I can finally do all of the tricep push-ups on my toes!!!

I knew that I had a long day of cleaning, moving furniture and ironing ahead (8 hours is what it ended up taking) so I didn’t do any cardio after the lifting!!! That ended up being a good choice!!!

Saturday 6/21 – 44 grab & crunch with medicine ball!! This was a fun new move. Start by laying on your back with your knees at 90 and a medicine ball (I used an 8 pound ball) resting on your legs –

Crunch up and grab the medicine ball –

Take the ball with you and extend arms over head –

Crunch up and place ball back on legs to complete 1 rep –

Not only did this work my abs/core – I felt this in my hip flexors a lot!!!!

I had planned to run again but woke up with a stabbing pain in my eye (gotta love sinuses!!!) so I decided to skip the run for now.

I just realized that my total mileage for the year (hard and easy miles) is just over 900. That is more than I had for all of 2013 – maybe learning to run easier is paying off!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim