I host a free monthly fitness group through Facebook. We focus on a different area each month. February was arms. We followed a 30-day calendar that told us how many push ups to do each day. How long to hold our planks each day. How many tricep kick backs to do each day. So simple. The results? Phenomenal. Many participants have shared their successes through loss of inches and pounds. Some are showing off their guns by posting pics. They are all rock stars. I am sharing my successes visually with the moves I am able to do that I have never been able to do before.
These are the hardest push up variation that I've tried.
So, it may be time for a new medicine ball, but the move was still quite challenging.
These are my favorites. Workings arms, core, and glutes all at once!
I'm not sure I can technically call this one a Superman Push Up since I stayed on my knee, but I'm calling it that anyway. It's my blog. I can do that. Besides, I tried it the real way...I fell on my face.
March's focus will be the legs. Oh yes. Bring on the tank tops. Bring on the shorts. We're ready!
Wanna join us? Complete the Contact Form on the right and I will get you signed up!
Do you have a pre-run routine? I do. I sit in my car. My car with the 13.1 magnet on it to prove I'm a runner. My dirty car to prove that I'm a trail runner.
Yeah, I feel some pressure from the other runners out there stretching and jogging and standing in the port-a-potty line. But I am my own runner. I don't succumb to their pressure.
I don't pre-run jog because, even after 20 years of running, I still believe that I NEED every last ounce of energy I showed up with and a quick ten-minute jog is like adding an extra mile to the run.
I trained for a 5k people! I am prepared to run exactly 3.1 miles this morning. Not Four!
Besides, I don't like to be cold. And race day morning is ALWAYS cold. It's like a law of physics or something. Actually, it probably is since it has to do with the sun heating the earth and that heat escaping through the atmosphere overnight and blah, blah, blah. That's physics, right? I don't know. I don't remember passing that class.
Anyway, I don't like to be cold, so I'll wait in my car where it's warm, thank you very much.
PLUS, you have to get up at the ass crack of dawn for most of these runs, so I'm probably tired and need a little nap.
So, fellow runners, judge me if you must. I don't need to warm up. I have never pulled anything during a race and I am not likely to do so in the future. I just don't run that hard.
Ask a runner what the best day of the year is and most of us will tell you, it's the first day you can run comfortably in shorts.
Today was that day here in VA. Normally my first run in shorts will leave me feeling light and free.
Not so much today. I'm carrying an extra 12.2 pounds of winter weight. (I'm like a bear. I need to make sure I can survive the winter.)
So now the work begins to get back to my ideal running weight. I've got a 10k trail run on Saturday and at this rate I'll be lucky to finish last in my age group. I might end up so slow that they move me into an older age group just because.
I've got the exercise piece down. I'm continuing to build muscle with my fitness programs and flexibility with my yoga. Now it's time to refocus on nutrition.
Need to find your own running weight (or just looking to drop some pounds)? Join the Monthly Fitness Challenge under the Free Support Group Schedule tab. We'll focus on creating one new healthy eating habit each month.
And just so I'm clear, I'm quite happy with how I look. This is not about trying to be skinny. This is about being a better athlete. Stronger. Faster. Leaner.
These two things are totally related. Just read. I'll get you there.
I was going to run a Zombie Run last fall.
I love a challenge. Running through the woods with zombies chasing you trying to infect you? And, dude, there was a Twinkie station. An entire station dedicated to TWINKIES. Yeah, seriously good times. Plus, who couldn't use a little practice for the zombie apocalypse? I want to know what to expect when the undead eventually take over the world. Wait. Undead. That's vampires. You can't train for vampires. You ain't outrunnin no vampire no matter how hard you train. I guess zombies are just dead-dead. And you can totally outrun that.
I didn't though. I didn't run the zombie run. Mostly I didn't run because all of my friends are pansies. They were to scared to run from the zombies and this concerns me. I mean, I've surrounded myself with a bunch of pansies. Who will have my back if I need to start throwing some bows? Admittedly, I'm not swinging on too many people these days, but I like to have the option of running my mouth knowing I've got people to back me up. But clearly I don't have people. And, for real, I am NOT running from zombies alone.
Whatever. New plan. Since I will obviously be the last of "my people" left on earth when the zombie apocalypse does hit, I have decided that I need "new people." So I'm taking applications. We're in training, people. And we're starting with our legs. If we're going to outrun the zombies, we need strong legs. You know what that means. Thirty-day leg challenge! Yep. Who's with me?
We're starting March 1st. Click here to join or email me for more information: sunshinestrongbb@gmail.com.
Should you pay for a personal trainer or try a free coach?
Which is better?
The answer to that question will be different for each of us. Some folks need to be face to face with a personal trainer to keep them motivated. They need in-person assistance with proper form and technique. They need the social atmosphere of a gym. They want that in-person interaction. If that's you and you can afford it, then do it. Don't sacrifice safety to save money. Do whatever it takes to stay healthy and fit.
But some of us simply don't have the time or money to invest in a gym membership or personal trainer. Some of us don't like the gym atmosphere. We can develop our form and technique by watching others. We prefer the flexibility of working out at home and the convenience of online support. We prefer some privacy when we're busting out those awkward cardio moves that we're not quite coordinated enough to do yet.
Afree Beachbody Coach can offer you support and motivation without the cost or long-term commitment of a gym or personal trainer. We can suggest at-home fitness programs that meet your personal fitness goals and interests. And we give you access to regular accountability groups to challenge you to stick with those goals. (Check out the Free Support Group Schedule tab at the top of this page.)
So, if you're not sure which approach is best for you, go ahead and sign up for a free Team Beachbody account and try me out as your free coach. You've got nothing to lose except pounds and excuses. And, if you find that it doesn't work for you, you're not stuck in a commitment you can't get out of. And if nothing else, you'll meet some cool new people along the way...like me.
If you're tired of the gym, but struggle to keep yourself motivated to workout from home, consider trying aBeachbody Challenge Pack.
Why Challenge Packs? Simply put, they offer the “complete solution.” Fitness + Nutrition + Support + Rewards = Success. When you purchase a Challenge Pack, you receive: Fitness – Any Beachbody fitness program Nutrition – Shakeology Support – Me as your coach and access to online accountability groups to keep you going Rewards – The Beachbody Challenge contest Success – Achieving your goals in one of my Challenge Groups
Every now and then, I have a successful social interaction and I walk around feeling confident and proud of myself until my next social interaction when I start talking about my cats.
(Side note: In some of my social interactions, talking about my cats is not only accepted, it is expected. I am, however, trying to expand my social circles and the realization that not everyone wants to hear about the funny thing Stinky Butt did yesterday has saddened and devastated me. But I am adjusting.)
One might think that, as a runner, I would at least be spared from socially awkward interactions when I'm out on the road running away the stress of the day. For most people, that is probably true. Not for me.
I'm pretty sure it's an illness. There is some major imbalance in my brain chemistry. I'm just....awkward.
Let me give you some examples.
I am one of the few female runners in my neighborhood. I enjoy running alone, but every now and then it's nice to have that social interaction to make the run more fun. Now, there are several male runners in my neighborhood. I've tried running with them. I can't. It hurts. Physically. They run something inhuman like a two-minute mile. I don't ever want to run that fast. Ever. So, I'd prefer to find some other normal chick in my neighborhood to run with every now and then.
I was out walking my new foster dog the other day. She's a short little Dachshund mix. A slow walker. Well, fast for her, slow for me. About a mile into our walk, a female runner begins to pass us. This is where the awkwardness begins. My brain gets all excited. Potential running partner! And she's not running too fast, so I could probably keep up with her. I should make conversation and see if she wants to run together sometime. What do I say? Hey, you running that nighttime trail run this weekend? Yeah. That's a good intro. Make a running connection. Most people around here aren't trail runners, but still. It's a running connection.
As I'm processing all of this, she has passed us and is a good ways up the road. I start to pick up my pace to catch up to her, but small dog stumbles and stops moving. Fine. I do the only logical thing. I pick her up and start to run towards my future new best friend running partner. I had to run pretty fast, though, because she had put some distance between us and looked like she was about to make a turn down a road where the not-dog-friendly dogs live.
Now, it may just be me, but it seemed perfectly normal that I go running up to some stranger with a Dachshund tucked under my arm asking between gasps if she was thinking about running through the woods in the middle of the night this weekend. Apparently it's not. That realization hit when I saw the look on her face.
Soooo, I'm not sure when I turned into a 15-year old boy stalking the prom queen, but I decided to just stop the interaction there, turn around, and carry my Dachshund home. Home is where the cats are and they almost never judge me. Right.
Not convinced yet? Let me give you another example.
One of my favorite things about competitive runs is the camaraderie. You get to yell out at perfect strangers, "Great job! Go get it!" and feel really cool about it. They smile back and yell, "Yeah, girl! You, too!" We pump our fists in the air like we're competing for the Olympic gold and pick up our pace a little bit. It's fun. It makes me feel like I'm still connected to the human race.
But, apparently, those kinds of interactions should really just stay on the race course.
As I was driving out of my neighborhood recently, shortly after my stalking incident, I passed a different woman running and pushing a jogging stroller up a nice little hill. I was impressed, as I had never had the desire to jog with my babies. They were fat babies. Big fat babies. Heavy. Too much extra weight.
Anyway, I was so impressed that I quickly rolled down my window, pumped my fist in the air and yelled, "Yeah! Way to get at it! Woo Hoo!"
I don't know. Maybe if I had just left off the woo hoo it would have been less...freakish. Perhaps it was the unnecessary fist-pumping. Whatever the issue, the woman picked up her pace and placed a protective hand closer to her child. At that point, I desperately hoped she could see the 13.1 magnet on the back of my car. See? It's ok because I'm a runner, too. This is what we do. Isn't it?
So, yeah, I think I'll just stick to running alone and save the woo-hooing for my cats.
According to the Mayo Clinic (2014), stretching helps you improve athletic performance and reduce the risk of injury.
It also feels really good.
A few tips:
Stretch warm muscles - I stretch after every fitness routine or run and also in the late afternoon or evening when I've been moving throughout the day and my muscles are already warmed up.
Stretch for tension, not pain - I love stretching. It feels good. It shouldn't hurt. It's not a competition. Don't stretch to the point of pain. Stretch to the point of tension. That's how you gradually increase flexibility.
Stretch specific to your activity - When I run, I stretch my calves, quads, and hamstrings. Our monthly challenge group is doing an arm challenge this month. So my focus is stretching my arms and rotator cuffs.
Stretch regularly - Keep doing it and you will see increased flexibility and less muscle pain.
Stretch fluidly - Consider trying gentle movement activities like yoga or Tai Cheng as part of your stretching. (I haven't mentioned yoga in a few posts, so you knew it was coming.)
