Tag Archives: hips

My Weak Spot (7/20-7/26)

July 26, 2014 Kim 37 Comments

My hips are probably my weakest area (part of why I have had stress fractures in each one) so I try to work them as often as possible – especially when I’m running a lot!! This week I really focused on them.

Sunday 7/20 – 44 skater squats with band.

This was fun – staying in the squat position the entire time made for a nice quad burn besides working my hips!!!

I got in a good 10 mile run – 76:27 followed by 3.15 easy miles!!!

Monday 7/21 – 44 machine gun kicks.

I should have done a video so you could see that this is actually a quick move. Part of the challenge is keeping balanced!!! And, after the first set – gotta work the other side!!

And – finally a lifting day again!!! Chalean Extreme – Push Circuit 1. I wanted to get some cardio but not run so I did Les Mills Combat Power Kata 45 – super fun way to get in a great workout!!!

Tuesday 7/22 – 44 kneeling leg lifts.

After the first leg is burning then switch and repeat!

Another 10 miles this time a bit faster – 74:44 followed by an easy mile!!!

Wednesday 7/23 – 44 side lying leg lift — point and flex feet.

lift with top leg behind toe pointed down

By turning the foot, I felt this in all parts of my hip!!!

Lifting day – Chalean Extreme — Push Circuit 2. After lifting I pulled out a program I haven’t done in awhile – TaeBo Amped – Rockin’ Abs. This is just over 40 minutes of cardio/core – awesome!!!

Thursday 7/24 – 44 standing hip circles (knee bent).

This was a nice move – not something I do often but I felt it after just a few reps!!

(for the record the pictures weren’t taken until Thursday afternoon after a full day of garage sale prep:)

Another run day – 7 miles at a pretty quick pace – 47:40 followed by 4.2 easy miles.

Friday 7/25 – 44 standing leg circles.

I actually did these during a lull in the garage sale and had Jordan do the video later. And, the video only shows one leg but I did both!!

Even though I didn’t do any other workout I still had plenty of activity working the sale all day!!!

Saturday 7/26 – 44 walking plie squats.

I did 44 leading with my right leg and then another set of 44 with my left leg leading.

Slow start to the garage sale this morning – hopefully it will pick up and we can get rid of the rest of the junk/stuff!!

Happy Saturday!

Kim

Butt, Fitness, Thighs

Early, On Time, Late – Which Are You?

August 4, 2013 Kim 35 Comments

Today I used a stability ball again for my 43 –

I decided to really work my hips because any time I add in more running, my hips need some extra strength work!!

I started off on one knee while leaning on the ball. I raised my other leg straight out to the side –

Then, I pulled my leg in so that my knee hit the ball and extended it again for 1 rep.

After finishing 43 my hip was feeling a good burn for sure and I still had to switch sides. The other side was much harder because the first hip was on fire!!!

My 50 mile race is just over 2 months away and in addition to running to prepare, I need to make sure that my joints (especially my hips) are as strong as possible!!!

For the rest of my workout, I did Turbo Jam – Fat Blaster. This is an interval based workout and is great for really getting a great workout in a short amount of time (30 minutes). The funny thing is that because the Turbo Jam DVDs came out in 2007, they just refer to the workout as intervals instead of HIIT which it is. I can’t remember when everyone started talking about HIIT workouts but they have been around for much longer than the actual name has!!!

“To be early is to be on time,
To be on time is to be late,
To be late is to be left.”

I saw the quote above in the band handbook yesterday when Jordan and I were going through it – I love it!!!

I have always been one of those people who likes to be a few minutes early to events. When I met Chris, he liked to be WAY early to places. Between us, we are rarely ever late because we are super anal like that!!!

Chris is one of those people who hardly ever gets stressed or upset but I saw it happen on our recent Florida trip. The day we were going to Daryl’s retirement ceremony we had to drive across the bay to McDill Air Force Base. We knew that it was about an hour drive so we planned to leave 1.5 hours before it started. Well, we left a few minutes late – no big deal since we had a cushion. Then, 10 minutes into the drive Chris realized he didn’t have his military ID with him – even in his uniform we wouldn’t have been able to get on base without the ID. We went back to get it and just like that we were down to 1 hour.

It was a long stressful hour because Chris was freaking out (for him, not really the same as a freak-out by me!!) the whole time and mad at himself for being in the situation to begin with. We ended up getting into the building where the ceremony was taking place about 5 minutes late – BUT…..they hadn’t started!!! There were some problems at the gate with several people that were trying to get on base for the retirement so they were waiting!!! Everything worked out and Chris’ stress disappeared!!!

So, the big lesson for me out of that experience – always build a bigger time cushion ~~so that Chris doesn’t get stressed!!!~~ to prevent stress and allow for all unforeseen events and mistakes that might occur!!

Does being late cause you stress? Do you like to get places early or right on time?

And, just for fun, you can see how completely different my boys are!!

Jordan in white Hunter in brights — Jordan in white
Hunter in brights

Happy Sunday!!!

Kim

Fitness, Thighs

Old School Blogging Fun

June 9, 2013 Kim 36 Comments

Today’s 43 utilized my figure-8 band:

I put it around my ankles and did a side-lying leg lift with the added challenge of keeping my bottom leg off the ground – a double leg pull against the band.

The first 25 weren’t too bad – it was kind of nice to do a move where I could “relax” – then by the last 20ish my outer thigh and hips were burning!!! And, I still had to do 43 on the other side!!

I felt the 2nd side much sooner – because my hips were already on fire!!!

Another day of Insanity Asylum – Speed and Agility. This was hard in every way today!!! My legs were tired from the beginning! I think the double (and a couple days of triple) workouts last week are catching up. But I’m a little anal and want to finish this Insanity program the way it is set up!!! (just 2 more weeks!)

This is a totally different kind of post for me!! It’s a fun little A-Z quiz. I was tagged by the lovely Nellie at Brooklyn Active Mama to complete this Old School Blogging Quiz being hosted by Elaine and Jennifer.

A. Attached or Single?

Married -we just celebrated our 17th anniversary!!!

B. Best Friend?

Yep – the guy in the picture above! Cheesy, but true!!!

C. Cake or pie?

Ummm – frosting (buttercream!) – usually I skip the actual cake part!

D. Day of choice?

Fun Friday!!!

E. Essential Item?

giant insulated mug (full of water!)

with me all the time - always full of ice water — with me all the time – always full of ice water

F. Favorite color?

burnt orange & pink

G. Gummy bears or worms?

red gummy bears but I would rather have Hot Tamales

H. Hometown?

Hard one – I moved around a lot growing up – I’ve never felt like I had a true hometown. I consider Texas my home state – so let’s just go with that!!

I. Favorite Indulgence?

Wine!!!!

J. January or July?

No contest – July!!

K. Kids?

2 phenomenal boys!!

L. Life isn’t complete without?

my 3 boys – Chris, Jordan, Hunter

M. Marriage date?

May 25, 1996

N. Number of brothers/sisters?

2 brothers – Tim (my twin) & Sam (6 years younger than me)
1 sister – Mandi (7 years younger than me)

O. Oranges or Apples

Oranges

P. Phobias?

Puke (maybe not a true phobia but close enough!!)

Q. Quotes?

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” Oscar Wilde

R. Reasons to smile?

I could go on and on with things that make me smile – sun, a good run, a sweaty workout, friends, reading, a glass of wine, cowboy boots, pedicures…..

S. Season of choice?

Summer!!! Fall is a close 2nd.

T. Tag 5 People.

OK – tagging people is why I typically stay away from these kind of quizzes. I don’t mind doing the quiz but it is hard for me to pick just 5 (I would love to learn more about all my blogging friends) – and I never want anyone to feel obligated to participate!!!

Barbara @ The Bold Blend
Rachelle @ Livin the Sweat Life
Kathy @ Transforming our Thoughts and Actions as a Team
Marcia @ Marcia’s Healthy Slice
Mandi @ Live…Laugh…Love…Lewis

U. Unknown fact about me?

I was born in the Philippine Islands.

V. Vegetable?

does avocado count?
squash & zucchini

W. Worst habit?

I might have a ~~bit of a~~ problem with road rage (but only because people do stupid things on the road!!).

X. Xray or Ultrasound?

Several of both plus 2 MRIs (scary!!!) and a CT with dye – the best were the ultrasounds when I was pregnant!!

Y. Your favorite food?

This is a hard one – avocado, cheese and all types of Mexican food!!

Z. Zodiac sign?

Virgo

Want to play? Copy and paste the questions here, write a post and link up with Elaine at the Miss Elaine-ous Life or Jennifer at Jennifer P. Williams.

Happy Sunday!!!

Kim

Butt, Fitness, Quad, Thighs

Steppin’ Out

February 17, 2013 Kim 6 Comments

I try to change up my daily 43s and use different equipment (or maybe no equipment) and work different muscles in a variety of ways. Sometimes, when I pick the move of the day I think it may or may not really be a good one. Today was one of those days that I thought – “This will just be a wimpy little thing and might not really count as a 43.”

Well, I was wrong!!! It turned out to be a great 43. I used my Turbo Fire band:

This time I stepped on it with both feet and then crossed it in front of my legs before holding the handles at my waist. Then, I did step-outs. On my right side, I did 43 to the side, then 43 on a diagonal to the front and another 43 on a diagonal to the back. (129 on each side!)

[youtuber youtube=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3hWsg9b4A0′]

Of course, I had to repeat the whole series on the left side! All I can say is – OUCH!!! This was a great way to really burn out my hips and outer thighs!! Plus, I kept my stationary leg slightly bent so I really loaded my quads!! Overall, a great 43!!!

Today is my rest day – some weeks I hate taking any rest days but this week I’m ready for one! I know it will make my work-outs next week that much better (and more enjoyable!).

I think that working out is definitely a habit for me and I’m afraid that if I let myself get too comfortable taking days off, then the days off will increase and will turn into a habit!!! Maybe a bizarre way of thinking but…..a lot of my rationale for things is a little wonky!!

Menu planning – do you do it??? I love looking at recipes, online and in cookbooks, but sometimes I feel like this:I try to come up with a semi-plan for the week (actually a couple of weeks at a time since I usually only do a huge grocery run every 2-3 weeks). I usually pick out 1 or 2 cookbooks and go through and make a list of the things I want to make during the next couple of weeks. I make my grocery list as I go. Then each morning I decide what to make for dinner knowing that we already have all of the necessary ingredients. This method works for me and because of it I always try new recipes.

Which is good since I have a few cookbooks!!! (I might have an addiction!!!)

I have a few stand-by recipes but for the most part I make new stuff all the time. The only downside is when Chris asks me to make something that I made months ago – I usually have no idea where I found the recipe or what dish he is even talking about!!

So, what is your menu planning/cooking like?? Do you have a rotation of dishes you rely on or do you like to experiment with new recipes?

Happy Sunday!!!

Kim

Butt, Core, Fitness, Thighs

Keep it Real!!

February 5, 2013 Kim 6 Comments

I started the 43 today thinking I wanted to do some standing ab/core work. The move I picked did work my obliques some (and my core because of the balance involved) but it mostly targeted my hips and outer thighs (which can always use more work!). After the first 10-12 I realized why they were hurting (hydrant kicks yesterday, duh!!!) – OOPS!!! I usually try not to target the same muscle group 2 days in a row with the 1000s of choices I have – oh well!!!

Anyway, back to the 43!! I did a standing leg extension (to the side). I started like this:

(the goofy hand pose is mandatory!!). Then I lifted my right leg straight to the side – held a second – and lowered. I tried not to touch the floor between every rep (had to tap it occasionally in order not to fall on my face!).

After doing 43 with my right leg and really feeling it in both hips, I ~~had to~~ got to switch sides and do another 43 with my left leg.

(At least I have an awesome T-shirt from the super talented Cait!!!)

Today was a fun work-out day because it involved my favorite (so far anyway!) Les Mills Combat DVD – Combat 60 Ultimate Fighter! I like that the work-out is an hour, it keeps my heart rate up, works legs and arms as well as cardio and the time flies by.

One thing I really like about the the Les Mills Combat program is the motivation and tips they provide. And today at the end of today’s work-out they said – KEEP IT REAL!!!

I love that saying!!! It is one of the sayings I try to live by. With me, what you see is what you get!!! Whether I’m working out, buying groceries, subbing, blogging (my own or commenting on others) or just hanging out with my family = I’m just the same ol’ person! I’m just me!

And on that note – another fun ecard (cause while the card is humorous and a bit extreme, I’m just keeping it real!!!).