Posts tagged ‘exercise’

May 17th, 2013

New Move & Giveaway Winner

by Tiff

Woahmygoshit’sfinallyFriday!!!  As you can imagine, I’m pretty excited.  Kevin and I have a double-date on tap for tonight, so that should be fun.  He has class tomorrow, but I have a full day planned for myself.  It includes:

  • Long walk or spin class (monitoring the HR of course)
  • Trip to the mall or Babies R Us or Destination Maternity (so many options – so little time!)
  • Pedicure
  • Laying out for a wee bit while reading my latest library book (squeeee!)
  • Baking a blackberry cobbler (my favorite!)

Don’t you just feel awful for me given this arduous to-do list???

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Enough of that, for those of you checking in to see who won the Bestowed box giveaway, the wait is over.  The winner is Heather from “Where’s the Beach?”!  Congrats!  I’ll email you shortly (unless you email me first) so that Bestowed can get you your goodies.

If you didn’t win, you can still use the discount code I mentioned in the giveaway post.  Yes folks, we’re all winners here.

Let’s see, I’ve covered fun, food, and so now it must be time for fitness.  If you’re like me, fitness often falls into the “fun” category too, but let’s not nit-pick.  I mentioned a move when I posted my new workout routine, but I didn’t post a description.  This video clip should help.

Got it?  As the belly grows, I don’t think pushups will be an option.  I’ve gotta get them in while I can!  This move works the chest, back, and core.  It’s a good one!

  • Tell me something food, fun, or fitness related you’ve got going on today or this weekend!!!

 

June 30th, 2012

Baby, It’s Hot Outside

by Tiff

It’s hot outside.  Have you noticed?  Here in the Southeastern US, temps are above 100 degrees.  I was smart enough to workout indoors yesterday (BTW, spin class rocked), but I went for a jog outside today.  The temperature is expected to reach 104 or 105 this afternoon, so I got my run in while it was still only 80.

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I recommend a post-run stretch… and then just laying around a while.

Sadly, I still got a cramp.  Not fun!  The stitch in my side definitely came from dehydration, and I was able to run through it.  (I only ran two miles and walked one mile, so it’s not like I staggered on for ages in hobbled, cramped form.)  Nevertheless, I should have been better prepared.

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I also recommend yummy post-run refueling.

Sweat was pouring out of me in bucket form in spin class.  Then I ran errands all day in and out of the heat.  I was toasty.  Last night, two girlfriends and I went out for sushi and wine.  We were enjoying a couple patios, and we were hot.  The patios were fun and packed, so we didn’t want to leave simply on account of the heat.

Sweating all day + soy sauce + wine = shoulda’ drank  more water!  Here are more tips for exercising in heat.

The ABC News article makes one good point.  Aside from sunburn, dehydration, and other issues, “humid air doesn’t allow for sweat to evaporate from your skin and cool you off, so your internal core temperature rises even higher, putting you at risk for heat stroke.”  The Mayo Clinic also has a good point by saying, “ Both the exercise itself and the air temperature increase your core body temperature. To help cool itself, your body sends more blood to circulate through your skin. This leaves less blood for your muscles, which in turn increases your heart rate.”  Yikes!

Stay safe y’all!

March 27th, 2012

Gearing Up For National Walking Day

by Tiff

You know how every day seems to have a food attached to it these days? I think I remember hearing about national peanut butter day (a favorite of mine), ice cream day, margarita day, doughnut day, and a few others. Well, I finally found a day we can celebrate without any guilt whatsoever.

The American Heart Association’s National Start Walking Day on April 4th

I’ve been doing more walking lately since I can’t run right now.  **On a side note, I completed 20 easy minutes on the stair climber yesterday morning. I only had mild pain at the gym and some discomfort after, so I guess that’s progress!

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I find walking to be just enough cardio for me, especially if I’m booking it up some hills, and it really saves my joints. Don’t get me wrong. I want to start running again soon, but walking just feels good.

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When I walk with the hubby, we both get endorphin-producing, mood-boosting exercise. We walk quickly, but we can still carry on a conversation the entire time. This means we get some computer/tv/iphone-free time to actually connect. Amazing, right?

Here are a few walking links that mention other benefits of favorite exercise:

 

I know Nation is not until next week, but this gives you time to plan a route, call a buddy, or check the weather forecast. All you need are three ten-minute sessions, and you’ve already gotten more fit.

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**If you want to make walking more difficult, add hills, push the pace, or walk with a weighted vest. Don’t carry dumbbells; that can strain your back and wrists.

 

  • What’s your favorite form of exercise?
January 14th, 2012

It’s all in the feet.

by Tiff

Warning! This post contains pictures of feet! Although they are clean feet, they’re still feet. If you’re not down with that, come back tomorrow for something else.

**I have a buddy who is very foot-averse. Is that weird to anyone else? Normal? Anyway…

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I do these foot-strengthening moves about once every two weeks. In all honesty, I should be doing them twice per week. Whoopsie-daisies! These are just tidbits I picked up from here or there, so don’t take this as a “cure” or real “solution” to anything. They just seem to be helping me a lot.

First and foremost, I warm up my feet with yoga since I do these foot strengthening moves in the morning.

1. Toe Scrunches

Put your foot on a towel on a smooth surface. Keep you heel off the edge.

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Scrunch up the towel with your toes. I do 3 sets of 10-12 scrunches per side.

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2. Big Toe Lifts

I’m so awful at these! Just keep you foot flat on the ground.

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Lift you big toe. Put it back down. Seriously, it’s harder than it looks.

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3. Ball Roller Stretch

Roll a tennis ball under your foot. Apply significant pressure.

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Use the ball like you would a foam roller, stopping at any hard bits of scar tissue.

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Yeah… ouch. Don’t hurt yourself, but this shouldn’t be comfortable. It feels good later. Trust me.

4. Ice

This isn’t “strengthening,” but it’s good if you have cranky feet. I like freezing a water bottle and putting my foot on it. I’m sure ice, peas, or whatever else works fine too.  I’m not so good at doing this, but I still recommend it.

 

  • Ever had foot problems?  If so, how’d you fix it?
  • Whatcha’ got on tap for the weekend?
December 17th, 2011

Triceps Tricks

by Tiff

Remember how I said I refrained from pizza & cookies at Thursday’s office gathering?  Yeah… my willpower is relatively respectable, but it lacks staying power.  Yesterday I wanted something bad.  I wanted something sinful.

I gave into my deepest, darkest desires.  To be more specific, I gave into my deep-fried-est, dark-sauce-est desires, and I ordered take-out sesame chicken.  It was just as glorious as I imagined…

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… except it was *more* glorious than I imagined because it came with brown rice.  It didn’t last long.

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Sometimes you’ve just gotta’ go for it.  Other times, you’ve also just gotta’ run.  I’m about to meet my running buddy for a 3-mile run around the neighborhood, but before I go, I want to show you the tricips tricks that I promised yesterday.

1 – Kickback with a Twist

2 – Overhead Triceps Press with a Squeeze

3 – Overhead Triceps with Portability

I usually only do 1-3 triceps exercises during 1 workout.  I do 1 when I’m working a full-body routine.  I do 2 when I’m focusing on chest & triceps only.  (Many chest moves also engage triceps.)  I do 2-3 when I’m focusing specifically on arms, like bis and tris day.

I hope these little tricks help you change up your typical hum-drum moves.  I like that they give a little added umph.  (PS – If you didn’t catch my Friday Fitness post yesterday, I recommend it!)

 

Okay… I’m off to run.  What are you doing to stay fit this weekend?  Or are Saturdays/Sundays your rest days?