Tuesday, January 28, 2014

A stellar week!

Our step competition has really got me focused and on the ball.  I love it.  I won this week’s challenge by logging 84,212 steps! That’s an average of 5.25 miles a day.  I had one day that I walked 8.12 miles.  Yes, I’m patting myself on the back a bit here but I’m really proud of myself.  It’s going in my victory journal.  Last week I walked a total of 36.78 miles.  If I average 35 miles a week that would be 1820 miles in a year and would definitely get me to Los Angeles (1700 miles away).  Hopefully each week I can get my mileage number to rise higher and higher.  Pair that with pool class and my tabata kick boxing and hooray for losing 5 pounds this week.  Wrestling will be done for the boys in March which means I will have my nights back to do my workouts instead of finding workouts to do while I wait for them to get done with practice.  Yippee!


I have a goal weight in mind by February 6th and I’m working hard to get to it.  I have the magic number plastered in important places where I will see it constantly.  I’m not going to be obsessed or upset if I don’t hit it and spiral into a fit of depression but it would be a super cool milestone so I’m trying with all my might.  This weekend wasn’t easy. I was surrounded by temptation at every turn.  Pizza, breadsticks, wings, birthday cake galore…but I came through pretty well and just keep plugging away.  High protein, low carbs, wise choices, portion control.  All keys to success and part of my 2014 resolutions.  I hope your resolutions are still in play and you are working to make this a wonderful year.  And if you fell off the wagon, it’s ok.  Just climb back on.  Don’t wait until Monday or next month or the summer.  Do it now.  You will be glad you did.  Every day is a new chance.  


Thursday, January 23, 2014

Fitbit Fun

Fitbit. I love it.  Let’s be honest, I’m a bit obsessed with my gadget.  I have been since the I got it a year and a half ago. It tracks my steps, flights of stairs climbed, sleep, calories burned and activity level. It has a barcode scanner to input food and the app is free, unlike bodybugg.  My ultra tracker is a bit battered and bruised and I’m hoping to upgrade to the Force model soon so I can wear it on my wrist instead of in my bra. 


The other day I got an email from Fitbit with a quick summary of my 2013 Fitbit activity.  It was kind of fun to see.  I walked 1270 miles which is longer than the Tigris River or the equivalent of walking from my house to Hartford, Connecticut. I’d say that’s some decent mileage.   As you can see below it also broke down my most active weekday (Mondays), my most active month (January) and my most active day of the year (August 26th).  The month of November and Fridays were my least active.  Nothing earth shattering but kind of fun to see.  Maybe in 2014 I can walk my way back to Los Angeles (1700 miles).  So far I’m on track for a great year.  Last week alone I walked 35.77 miles.  That’s definitely upping my average.  I credit my increased steps/mileage to my step challenge I have going on with Melody and Kara.  Love those ladies and the way they inspire me.  I worked hard to win last week’s challenge and will continue to do so in upcoming weeks.   

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

At home kickboxing

Sunday my husband and his buddies finished our mancave in the basement and spent the entire afternoon and evening watching the football playoffs on the new flat screen.  I stayed upstairs and got some more unpacking done, watched football without the bickering of what calls the coaches should've made and played on Pinterest.  I was searching for Tabata workouts and found a fun one for boxing.  Who got super excited? This girl! The original was only the first two sets (crosses/jabs and upper cuts) but when I did it last night, I added 2 more sets of kicks.  The total workouts was 20 minutes and I did it while watching Biggest Loser in my living room.  It doesn't get much easier than that, does it?  Also, I found a great app called Tabata+ Lite which does your countdown timer for you and even keeps track of the rounds.  This is great for me because I can barely count to 8 when I'm not doing anything, let alone kicking and watching a timer and keeping track of how many rounds I've done.  That's just not happening without a little help from technology. So here's my at home kickboxing tabata workout if you want to try it.  I love it.  It's simple, quick and effective.  What more can I ask for?

Quick Tabata boxing workout

5-10 minute cardio warmup (I had just done 60 minutes of pool class so I skipped this but you could do any kind of walking in place, jump rope, squats, lunges, stairs, etc.)

1st set- Repeat for 8 cycles
20 secs of jabs & crosses (high speed and power)
10 secs of rest or squats

Rest 1 minute

2nd set- Repeat for 8 cycles
20 seconds of upper cuts (high speed and power)
10 secs of rest or lunges

Rest 1 minute

3rd set- Repeat for 8 cycles
20 seconds of side kicks (alternate legs per round)
10 secs of running in place

Rest 1 minute

4th set- Repeat for 8 cycles
20 seconds of front kicks (alternate legs per round)
10 secs of running in place


Cool down and stretch

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Tabata

Have you heard of Tabata training? It’s not a new idea in the world of fitness but it’s new to me.  We’ve been doing it in pool class and I love it.  The Tabata workout only lasts four minutes per segment, but it is grueling! The structure of the program is: Workout hard for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds.  

Doesn’t sound bad, right? Except you do it for 8 rounds.  And then you start again with 8 rounds of a different exercise.  For example in pool class we do 20 seconds of push-throughs, jumping jacks or running (in the deep end of the pool).  Our 10 second “rest” is a flutter kick and then right back at it.  We do multiple sets of 8 with different exercises and rest movements each time.  It’s awesome.  When you’re sweating in the pool, you know that you are working it in a great way. I’ve heard they are starting to use the same theory in some of the spin and body pump classes too but I haven’t tried those lately.  For now I’m just enjoying having burning abs and legs every time I leave pool class. 


I’m closing the gap on Kara and Melody on steps.  I was nine shy of 16,000 on Monday night which was 7.5 miles according to my fitbit. Yesterday I had 12,300.  I’ve gotta keep busting my booty so that I can take the #1 spot this week.  Lyndee loves a little friendly competition!   

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Oldies but goodies

Last night a dear friend and I were talking and she told me for the zillionth time how much she hates the treadmill.  But it’s Iowa and it’s colder than a you know what out there right now.  She is determined to get her 10,000 steps every day so she uses the treadmill over her lunch and some nights, she just walks around the house, up and down the stairs, chasing or cleaning up after her young children for an hour until she hits her steps.  I think she’s awesome.  I was trying to think of how I could help her. I too have gone through periods where I would rather sledgehammer the treadmill than walk on it.  Then I remembered the two awesome classes at Biggest Loser Fitness Ridge that had me so focused on the time, intervals and beating myself that I was more than happy to be on the treadmill or elliptical.  I’ve posted these before.  You guessed it: Treading and Mountain class!!!  If you are adding some steps or workouts to your 2014 resolutions but are already bored beating the belt to nowhere, then try these! I guarantee the time will fly by and you will get a great workout in.  

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Speedo, no no.

I was so psyched to go to pool class last night…and then I got home.  We bought a new house and moved last week.  I was sick this weekend so I didn’t get all the unpacking done that I wanted.  Last night I get home from work to change and head to the Y. I know my swimsuit is in a bag, instead of a tote.  I placed it purposely in that bag with my pajamas and some jeans so I would know where they were.  I can’t find the bag anywhere.  I look all over our room.  Tear through the walk-in closet. Even check the garage.  Nothing.  I go through each box and bag in my room and the closet again.  Ugh! It’s 15 minutes until class starts.  This would’ve been an easy excuse to skip the workout but I didn’t want an excuse.  I wanted to get my muscles aching. I find a bag that has odds and ends swimsuit pieces in it.  I had to piece something together.  I grab some bottoms and a top.  The bottoms are a bit snug and the top is falling off of me but they are the only ones that even remotely match and I don’t want to look like a total hobo.  I throw my sports bra on under the top just to be safe, which proved to be one of the best decisions I’ve made in 2014 so far because when swimsuit material gets wet, it gets loose.  Lesson learned.


Class is being held in three lanes of the competitive pool.  The other lanes are full of high school boys warming up for their swim meet an hour later.  Now, I’m from a small town and we didn’t have a swim team when I was growing up but holy hell was this a disturbing situation.  I don’t enjoy seeing anyone in a speedo. Not even my love, LL Cool J.  Frankly, I think they should be outlawed.  But here I am in pool class surrounded by high school boys in speedos.  And some of them were wearing white ones.  What the hell?!?!?  Who thinks that is a good idea?  On the upside, I wasn’t worried anymore about looking like a hobo in my mismatched, falling out the top and bottoms so tight they began sliding down a few times, outfit.  At least I wasn’t wearing a speedo.  Other than that, class was awesome.  My muscles were twitching and the abs were on fire.  I’m so glad that I made the effort to go.  Before bed I began emptying a few totes in our closet.  Low and behold, on top of the shoe shelf, hidden by my hubby’s hanging clothes, was a bag…the special bag with my swimsuit in it.  I went to bed feeling victorious and happy knowing that I will be able to locate my normal swimsuit with ease for Friday night and Saturday morning classes.  Hooray, me! 

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Polar plunge

It's 13 degrees outside but I'm still debating going to pool class tonight. Tuesday is my only free night during the week I can make class but dang it's cold outside. Some call it crazy. Some say comitted. Maybe I'm just a little mix of both. 

Monday, January 6, 2014

2014 Resolutions

I was thinking last night, as I went to bed, that I needed to write a post about New Year’s resolutions.  This morning I got a comment on a previous post asking if I had any for 2014.  I do! Unlike previous years, I’m not making a list of huge, mind-boggling and somewhat daunting resolutions. Although I’m thinking another sprint triathlon may be in my future.  But this year I’m doing a list of small resolutions that I can work on all year long.  Really basic stuff that is easy to forget but key to success. I’ve been doing well the last few months and have climbed back on track.  It’s a nice feeling.  I want that feeling to continue and I think these things will help me do just that. 

1. Log my food.  Every morsel.  There’s no reason not to.  Apps like myfitnesspal, fitbit and loseit make it so easy.
2. Make Lyndee time.  Find the things I enjoy doing like my pool classes and 5K’s with my friends and make time for them, no matter how hectic my schedule may be.    
3. Surround myself with positive and motivating people.  Haters, negative auras and doubters can hit the road. 
4. Try new things that scare me slightly.  This February I will be joining a small group personal training class at work twice a week.  I’m not a big fan of working out with people I don’t know well enough to trust so this will be a big step for me. 
5. Continue to push myself, mentally and physically. Getting new certifications at work? Some masters degree classes? Trying a new class at the Y? Doing a 10K? 
6. Run more.
7. Embrace cleaner eating.  I’ve done a pretty good job of this the last two months but I would like to continue this trend and maybe push it a little further. 
8. Continue being a protein maniac.  I’m not carb free but I went from a carb junkie to VERY limited amounts of bread, pasta, rice and sweets and my body definitely feels the difference.  If there’s a seafood or chicken sale at a local grocery store, I will be first in line.  I love tuna, salmon, tilapia, cod, scallops, shrimp, chicken breast…you name it.  There’s so many different ways to make these that your tongue should never get bored. 
9. I’m just over half way to working back off what I had gained back.  Now, I will eliminate that, and continue moving forward.  2014 will be the year of my one-derland and it will feel awesome.

10. Rock a sexy new outfit at my 20 year class reunion this summer.  
11. Write more.  Not just on this blog or testing trendy but finish my book, write more letters to my Grandma, be more consistent with my journal, write more thank you notes.  Writing makes a happy Lyndee. And a happy Lyndee should really be the ultimate resolution every year.