Category Archives: Recovery

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

Back, Calves, Core, Fitness, Plank, Recovery, Running, Shoulders, Squats, Treadmill

Heavy Running Week (1/18 – 1/24)

January 24, 2015 Kim 31 Comments

This week I more than doubled my total miles for the month – a mega long run will do that I guess!!

Sunday 1/18 – 45 arm lifts (elbows bent) to side while in elbow plank.

Return to plank –

I counted a right and left lift as one rep – this was HARD!!!

Monday 1/19 – 45 shoulder work – extend arms straight up in front – open them to the sides – lower – repeat. I only used 5 pound DB because my shoulders are weak!!!

Slowly lower the weights back down to complete the move.

This was a running day – 6 miles (47:10) + 2.1 easy miles. I wanted to see how much sweating would burn my face – it wasn’t too bad!!

Tuesday 1/20 – 45 plie – jump to squat – jump back to plie – stay low the entire time.

From plie, jump to get into a squat (point toes forward) –

Obviously I kept the squat fairly wide!!! From the squat – jump back to a plie position. Since you stay low the entire time, your legs will definitely start to feel the burn!!

I did a DVD that I hadn’t done in awhile – Jari Love’s Get Extremely Ripped 1000 Hardcore. This was about 70-75 minutes of hard work. I liked the mix of cardio and weights. Because Jari Love uses high reps for all moves, my heart rate stayed high the entire time!!!

Wednesday 1/21 – 45 miles of running!!!

This took 6 hours, 35 minutes, 18 seconds!! Normally I do this on my actual birthday but this year I figured as long as I did it while I was 45 it would count!

Thursday 1/22 – 45 single leg calf raises.

I thought this would be a nice stretch after Wednesday’s run. Ummm….it was hard to do 45!!! And, of course, I had to switch legs.

Friday 1/23 – 45 heel taps while in a prone position.

lift legs and squeeze (nice photo bomb – Jordan!!)

This is a great move for your lower back since you are working to keep your legs up the entire time!!!

Saturday 1/24 – 45 shin strengtheners.

lay on back - legs up - point toes — lay on back – legs up – point toes

I used to do this move a lot more to help prevent shin splints. You can also turn your toes out to the sides or in. Another option is to vary the speed that you use for this move.

I decided to do an easy workout to try and workout the residual soreness in my quads from the long run so I did – Fat Burning Pilates. I think that is was a good way to get a little movement today!!!

Happy Saturday!!

Kim

Butt, Core, Fitness, Hamstrings, Lunges, Quad, Recovery

Taking it Easy (8/31 – 9/6)

September 6, 2014 Kim 40 Comments

This week was all about taking it easy with the workouts after last weeks high mileage. And, my legs needed the break – they were tired!!!

Sunday 8/31 – 44 jump lunges (straight up and down in lunge position).

This was a fun way to get the heart rate up!! It was hard to catch a good picture of me jumping:)

And, then I had to switch legs and do some more jumps –

Hunter did a pretty good job snapping a picture while I was in the air!!

Monday 9/1 – 44 reverse lunge to single leg T-stand.

push off heel of right foot and come up to T

My right hip was dying by the time I finished all 44 of these!!! And, then I had to work my left hip!

Can you tell that my balance isn’t as good on my left side? I’m not very parallel in that last picture!!!

Tuesday 9/2 – 44 front step to runners lunge.

step front with right leg - all the way down (left leg should be straight - that's about as straight as mine gets!) — step front with right leg – all the way down (left leg should be straight – that’s about as straight as mine gets!)

Push off of right foot back to standing –

I did all 44 with my right leg and then shared with my left!!

I did Fat Burning Pilates (very low impact) and then walked with a 9% incline for 3.25 miles.

Wednesday 9/3 – 44 pulsing lunges with foot on stability ball.

left foot on ball - down — left foot on ball – down

The hardest part of this was staying balanced and not toppling over!!!

right foot on ball - down — right foot on ball – down

Today was Turbo Jam – Ab Jam (this was a fun ab workout that I always forget about!) and 4.4 miles walking at 9% incline.

Thursday 9/4 – 44 stationary side lunges with one foot on a wobble disc.

down (although this picture doesn't show me down very far!) — down (although this picture doesn’t show me down very far!)

I did all 44 to the right and then switched feet so I could do more!

I pulled out a DVD that I rarely do – Shape Pilates. I did all 4 of the 15 minute sections for a decent workout.

Friday 9/5 – 44 step-ups onto foot stool.

And, because I’ve been way more tired than normal this week, I actually slept till 6:00 instead of getting up to workout!

Saturday 9/6 – 44 single leg squats with opposite leg extension. (and because I’m super classy, I’m going to show you the pictures I took in my bathroom mirror after my shower)

These were hard – between staying balanced and trying to coordinate the move it was a nice little challenge!!! And, I don’t want my legs to feel left out of a move so I did another set of 44 on the left leg.

No running this week – I will probably do a couple super easy runs early next week and then hopefully be ready for Thursday!!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim

Core, Fitness, Recovery

Recovery Week (5/11 – 5/17)

May 17, 2014 Kim 50 Comments

This week has been all about recovering and resting. I have continued my daily 44s though!!!

Sunday 5/11 – 44 standing leg swings.

I actually did this move in my normal clothes since it is just a nice easy stretch!!! And, of course, if I do something with my right leg then my left leg has to follow along!

This was a great way to stretch out my achy hip flexors!

Monday 5/12 – 44 hip circles.

This move might look sort of goofy but it really was a nice hamstring/low back stretch and release!! And, I did 44 each direction.

Since I had to get up at 4:00 am on Monday to go clean and set-up our venue for a day (actually week) of meetings, I did this move early and then did a few more on Tuesday morning when Hunter could record me.

Tuesday 5/13 – 44 leg abduction with butt on foam roller.

Another great stretch for hips!!!

Wednesday 5/14 – 44 windmills – I went old school with this move!!!

I think that sometimes we forget how great these stretching moves really are – at least I do. I don’t always take the time to do them but this week they have been awesome!!!

I thought about doing a little easy run today but decided to give it another day or two – between my hips and my mouth (root canal on Tuesday) it was easy to continue the week of relaxing.

Thursday 5/15 – 44 froggy squat with extension. This move I took from the gorgeous Lindsay @ Cotter Crunch – she always has some fantastic moves, workouts, gluten free tips and inspiration.

up - the nice part! — up – the nice part!

Still resting but it was another day full of cleaning the venue – mopping and everything!!!

Friday 5/16 – 44 tuck and roll to work the abs.

About halfway through all 44 I was really feeling this – in my core and my hip flexors!!!

Saturday 5/17 – 44 side plank with leg raise.

Not gonna lie – after a week off this move was a challenge!!! And, you know I couldn’t stop after the first set of 44!

I’ve found that it helps if you look like a bright candy cane when you work out – strips are always good!!!

Actually, Hunter and I are fixing to get in his long run for the week. I hope it goes OK. This will be my first run (or any type of workout) in a week – record number of days off because I knew it was necessary. I think we are running for about an hour and 40 minutes so it should be fun!!!

Yesterday when I was reading blogs, my sweet friend Biz @ My Bizzy Kitchen had the nicest shout-out to me and sent lots of readers my way. Her words brought me to tears.

And, I have to thank Carly @ Fine Fit Day and so many of my bloggy friends for the overwhelming words of kindness that I woke up to this morning. The tweets, FB shares….all of it completely humbled me and left me without many words other than,

THANK YOU!! I feel honored to call each of you FRIEND!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim