Weekly Workouts: the workout fail edition

So last week? Not perfect. Workout wise, I had two dud workouts: a 6am Monday workout with one of, if not THE WORST, spin instructors ever, and a post-work run where I had to drag myself over to the trail only to realize I had to pee REAL BAD and spent the second half of my run worrying about peeing myself so I cut it short…and ran one mile…out of the three I had planned. Ugh.

But alas, pick myself back up. Here’s the dealie-o

Monday: Rest day
Tuesday: Run 3
Wednesday: strength something or other
Thursday: TBD but either an AM pilates workout OR a run
Friday: Hot yoga
Saturday: 3 on the treadmill and spinning
Sunday: yoga and/or a run when hubs gets home

Adam has drill so, getting in a long run is going to be tough without doing it on the treadmill since little man will NOT tolerate the jogging stroller. Saturday morning, we can make our way to the gym for sure, BUT each time I go to a class OR hit up the treadmill half way through my workout they come find me because my child crapped his pants. So I can never expect too much. Thankfully, we have the treadmill in our basement so I can do SOMETHING during nap time…if he takes one.

So yeah, solo parenting for the weekend and getting in a solid workout….do NOT go hand in hand.

Last week by the Numbers:

Starting weight: 159.4 (UGHHHH, Of course, I was PMS’ing so cue all of the emotions and bloat and sugar cravings.) My goal was 150 by the time we head to Disney on 3/21, that might take a damned miracle at this point. *sigh*
Workouts: five
Monday Spin; Tuesday, run;
Miles ran: 7 (LOLOLOL)
Best workout: a perfect six mile run on Saturday in the MOST perfect weather ever.
Worst Workout: tie – the 3-mile run that turned into 1 mile when I near peed myself .3 miles in, or the 6 AM spin class with the instructor who played Elton John…and not fun Elton John either…).
Biggest fail: Trying to make it to a 6 pm Rev Cycle class in Baltimore from the Baltimore HUG group – getting across town in Baltimore apparently takes nearly an hour. I was 8 minutes late for the class before I parked so after losing 20 minutes in traffic, and knowing they weren’t going to let me in (10-minute policy) I called it and went home.

Note to self: never double book myself for workouts after work events. I did that two weeks ago with an event in Annapolis…trying to make it to a 7;30 yoga class and failed miserably (taking a front row seat will do that.). Note to self… just don’t.

This week’s goals
Run 10 miles
Stick to my “11 day reset” that I’m starting tomorrow.

 

What are your weekly workout/weight loss goals? 

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Weekly Workouts: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

So last week was an okay week workout wise. As much as I want to get back to doing these “weekly workout” style posts once per week, it’s still aspirational. Also, there hasn’t been as much working out as I would like – we’re still getting settled and the weather has just…not been on my side.

20 (2)

 

Last week’s workout run down…

The good: Three runs! Two treadmill, one outside! Huzzah! I also went to 1 yoga class.

The bad: Didn’t get my distance in on Saturday, but was still really excited just to be outside running with the family. Didn’t fit in ANY strength workouts. The yoga class I went to? Restorative which usually I love but for some reason left me feeling nauseous and unsettled – it was not as enjoyable or relaxing as I would have liked.

The ugly: There’s like 6 weeks to the Cherry Blossom 10 miler and I haven’t run more than 3 miles since June. Hmmm….I should probably step it up this weekend with a 5-er…or maybe 6?

This week’s plan

Monday: Run 3(ish) – since it’s nice-ish out today, I’m going to try to run with the Fleet Feet crowd over in Severna Park since it’s only a matter of weeks until I’ll be coaching them!
Tuesday: Strength workout. I have plans in the evening so I NEED to get up in the morning to work out.
Wednesday: Run – speed workout. It’s supposed to rain so this will probably be a treadmill run. Blergh.
Thursday: Strength. Hubs has class, so it needs to be a morning workout or an evening video.
Friday: We have a weekend in Baltimore for this family seminar thing we’re going to – so Friday will definitely be a rest day for me unless I can fit in a quickie workout in the morning on Friday.
Saturday/Sunday – I need to find time to fit in 5-6 miles somehow/at some point in time. Fingers crossed it’s not on a flipping treadmill.

February Miles: 15.65
2016 miles: 18/500
2016 workouts:  15/216

How are your workouts going? Do you set mini goals for yourself? 

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January Workouts & February Goals

Rather than sharing my workouts weekly, I’m going to share them monthly. I had a rough start to January but in general I think I did pretty well!

I restarted the Bikini Body Mommy challenge. I jumped in around Day 16 of 3.0 with some mamas in a facebook group I’m a part of. I had grandiose plans of doing P90 this month but I got away from it. I have workout program ADD. But my goal is to make it to the end of February with Bikini Body Mommy and then start the new 21 day Fix Extreme in early March  because I figure if I can make it to day 45/60 of BBM, I’ll have some real measurable results just in time to go shopping for my spring wardrobe. Right? Right.

Why Bikini Body Mommy?

It works for me. I generally find that 3-5 workouts per week is doable. This month is really strength building since in February I start training for the St. Michaels Half which is going to result in 3 runs per week – 1 long run, 1 speed workout, 1 easy run. I don’t have much time to do more than that and that coupled with strength (well Bikini Body Mommy) 3 or 4 days per week (the program is 6 workouts but I typically double up or catch up on nights when hubs has class).

Plus Breanne is adorable and super relatable – she shares similar struggles to mamas of all kinds – working and stay at home moms alike.

So far I’ve stuck with it for 2 weeks which is pretty flipping good for me. I lasted with PiYo for about 3 weeks because of said ADD (and the holiday craziness so there’s also that).

Why Weight Watchers?

Hubs’s office is doing it. So he decided he wanted to do it. So we decided to do it together. In the past, if I was eating well, or trying, we’d usually end up sabotaging one another which is just…total fail. So it’s been two weeks and I’m down both weeks. I don’t feel bad if I go over my points as long as I stay under my weekly points and earn activity points.

As my father-in-law told me (my mother and father in law have both used weight watchers in the past) “if you stick to the points and don’t go over, you will lose weight.” it might only be a half a pound, but it’s better than nothing right?

What’s my goal?

Back when i was nursing, I was pretty much at my pre-baby weight of 139 (I was actually 135 before I got pregnant but was up to 139 when I got pregnant). My doctor and I agreed that 135 would be a good goal for me to have but realistically I’d love to be closer to 125/130ish. Where am I now? At the start of 2015, after the holidays I was at 155. When I stopped nursing, the weight just came on…every so slowly and I’ll raise an eyebrow if I’m in the 140’s but the 150’s are just not okay with me and my 5’2″ self so I’ve been battling the bulge pretty much since I stopped nursing in October 2013. Despite my best efforts, my doctor confirmed that my metabolism has slowed to a crawl and/or went on strike so it’ll take a little bit of extra effort to get to my goals.

So how was January?

january workout recap

Workouts: 20
January ending weight: 152.3
Total loss from January 2: -3 lbs
(I weigh in on Fridays for now)

Workouts? Averaging 3-5 workouts per week is pretty goo. I’m pretty good about getting workouts in during the week (especially wednesday and thursday – that’s when hubs has class) Tuesdays i usually have Junior League stuff going on, and with an exception of one weekend when hubs had drill, I was good about working out at least one day on the weekend. The yellow days? Workout changed from what I originally planned. Red days are obviously missed workouts. I had intended on working out this past weekend but was a bit under the weather with a small head and just haven’t gotten around to updating the spreadsheet.

All in all? I’ll give January a B+

Goals for February

– Weight wise I want to stick with my 4-6 workouts per week and tracking 5-6 days per week and hopefully be well back into the 140’s which I haven’t seen since I stopped nursing E over a year ago.

– My first race of the year is on the 14th with a 5k and I just want to run the whole thing. That’s all. I also want to add in 1-2 spin classes or rides on my trainer each week.

– Complete the Green Smoothie cleanse which I’ve started today alongside a pal who is also following the Bikini Body Mommy Challenge

– Workout 22 days in the month of February. I hit 19 in January but I’m in a routine for the most part so I think 22 days is doable in February despite the shorter month.

 

What are your workout goals for February? How did you stay healthy in January?

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Weekly Workouts

I got off the blogging bandwagon just as soon as I got back on it. It’s okay friends, I finally have a plan to get back into this. I’m inspired. Again. And I’m back on the workout wagon also…it’s been a rough month and a half and the fact is my pants aren’t fitting me so well these days so it’s time to remedy that ish. ASAP.

Recently…

Hubs and I both joined weight watchers. He has a tiny bit to lose for Army standards and well, I don’t want to be the fat bridesmaid in his brothers wedding that we’re both a part of in May. So, he joined through work, I joined online and I’ve been tracking for about a week. I’m feeling good about this all, I’m solidly inspired and him and I are supporting each other so it should be really good.

I signed up for the St. Michaels Half marathon – I have a whole list of races to do this year, but this is my first half marathon post baby. I’ve chickened out on the other two due to lack of training/discipline. So, I registered, and I’m really shooting for a sub 2:15:00 half marathon that I was so close to hitting before E.

So in an effort to hold myself accountable – here’s my weekly workouts….

Monday – Spin  (done! 6:15AM this morning – great class!)
Tuesday – Pure Barre
Wednesday – Trainer Ride
Thursday – Trainer Ride
Friday – Pure Barre
Saturday – Pure Barre
Sunday – Run 3

heart rate monitor

I’m kind of excited – I received a heart rate monitor for Christmas and I finally figured out how to get it to work. So I was pretty pumped when i saw I burned 350 calories in a 55 minute Pure Barre class. I have 3 classes this week before my class package expires on Saturday (same day as the Polar Bear Plunge! I’m jumping into the Bay….in January….but I think Hubs is past having me committed.)

 

 How do you re-motivate yourself after falling off the bandwagon? Have you ever tried Weight Watchers? Any tried and true recipes?

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Weekly Workouts

So you know you have a habit and sharing that habit kind of holds you accountable? I had that.

But then, I  kind of got out of the habit of sharing my weekly workouts and thus…I haven’t been great with my workouts. Cue, lack of accountability. Thus the number on the scale has been creeping up and I get stressed and it keeps going up. I’m learning that stress really, really affects my weight and I’m not a fan of that. So in order to remedy that, I’m refocusing on my workouts and eating better.

Hubs and I are going to meet with a nutritionist because I want to make sure we’re eating the best we can (no more drive thru dinners to Taco Bell when Hubs has class for this girl) and I’m going to recommit to the 21 day Fix Eating plan to make sure I’m really eating whole foods.

So onward…

weekly workouts

Monday – PiYo Sweat
Tuesday – PiYo Lower (AM)
Wednesday – Run 3 (AM)
Run crashing with my co-worker
Thursday – Run 3 (AM)
Friday – PiYo Upper  (AM)
Saturday – Pure Barre (AM)
Sunday – Run 3
(Ugly Sweater Run @ Fleet Feet Severna Park)

It’s been a month or so of half hearted workout planning – which I really need to do in order to keep myself on track. I’m kind of in survival mode through the holidays but I’m hoping that talking with a nutritionist and signing up for a couple of early spring races will really get me back on track come January. Until then? Survival of the fittest and surviving the crazy month of December.

How do you stay fit through the holidays? 

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Nations Tri Training: Halfway!!

Dudes & dudettes…we are half way to triathlon numero dos.

I’m not sure I feel quite ready. But I still have like…five weeks or so…but holy goodness is time flying!!!

Which means four BRICK workouts left. Hopefully my next one won’t be as soup-y as this past Saturday. That was ick.

All in all, good week last week! Swimming is going…swimmingly. Running is still dragging me down BUT my 12 mile bike was awesome. Biking is quickly becoming my favorite sport, so I think next spring and summer will definitely be spent biking more – hopefully with a Century ride thrown in the mix at some point along the way!

This week…

Monday – rest (Hallelujah!)
Tuesday – run 30 mins (actual: 35 mins)
Wednesday – swim 6×100
Thursday – Run 40 minutes
Friday – swim 6×100
Saturday – BRICK | 45 minute bike | 25 minute run
Sunday – 15 mile bike ride

Weigh In…

Last week was not a good week. I was closer to my starting weight than I’ve been. Too much wine and lobster and cupcakes when we were up north.

This week, I’m back down. Woot!

Starting…152.8
Last week…152.2
This week….151.2
Difference…-1.6 total

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Weekly Workouts: 21 Day Fix Week 1 edition

So we’re almost into week 2 of the 21 day fix which I mentioned I was starting last week.

I kind of get a big fat fail for the second half of the week/weekend for eating/drinking and kind of working out. Okay, maybe not a fail but like…a B-.

Monday – went to pure barre (yay!)


Tuesday – ran the St. Patricks Day fun run with the family! Had so much fun. It was really the perfect night for the 3 of us to go out running.
Wednesday – cardio fix.
Thursday – we cleaned our old place..no workout. (FAIL)
Friday – happy hour with coworkers. (FAIL)
Saturday – 3.5 mile run (yay!)
Sunday – pilates fix (YAY!)

So really, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was. I’m kind of half starting over and recommitting today. It takes 21 days to make a habit and 3 days to completely break it. I didn’t completely break it but I wasn’t happy with how I did. It’s 21 days, and only 21 days…it seems like a lot but it’s not. Let’s be honest. It’s really, really, not.

Soo… This week I’m back on track.

Monday – upper body fix  donezo!
Tuesday – lower body fix
Wednesday – 4 mile run or fix yoga
Thursday – dirty 30 workout
Friday – fix pilates
Saturday – total body cardio
Sunday – 8 mile run* (this NEEDS to get done but we’ll see – we have family coming into town for Ethan’s birthday this weekend (!!!!!!!!!) so we’ll see what my day is like on Sunday)

Eating is better. Ish. I think? We went grocery shopping, I made my lunch for tomorrow, therefore I’m on the right track.

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Weekly Workouts: Back At It

Back on the bandwagon!

Mostly because my 21 Day Fix group starts today, (though not me. Thanks FedEx.) but because we’re moved, I went grocery shopping and planned my meals I’m half starting today (just without the containers). We’re 75% settled (proof? The stupid amount of boxes waiting for recycling day) and everything is falling into place. I’m super pumped to get back into a routine.

Saturday morning I kicked off my weekend with the Zooma Annapolis Kick off at Charm City Run. It was a tough five miles and the longest I’d been on my feet since I started working but it felt good. 

zoomaannapoliskickoff{photo credit}

The other ambassadors are absolutely fantastic, and I’m so glad I got to meet and run with them. I felt a little slow at times but for running only about 3 miles in the past three weeks, it was a really good run. Not the safest running down Riva but not horrible, a nice out and back run.  I’m excited for the half, and I really want to push myself for a sub 2:15:00 half which I think is entirely doable, my PR is 2:16ish so I’m confident if I really focus on my training and train smart I can get there.

Don’t forget, if you’re interested in Zooma Annapolis – you can get 10% off either race by using code ANNAMB3

Sunday I walked around downtown with Ethan, kicking around and enjoying the St. Patricks Day Parade, my gal pal Liz was walking in it so it was cool to see her 🙂 though it was a bit chillier than I anticipated as I walked over from Eastport, still just a bit of wind, otherwise it was beautiful.

After Adam got home from class, I went grocery shopping to set myself up for the week regarding meals and workouts.

21 day fix

Workouts for this week


Monday: Pure Barre
Tuesday: Fleet Feet St. Patricks Day Run
Wednesday: Pure Barre
Thursday: run 3
Friday: Fix Yoga
Saturday: Run 7
Sunday: Pure Barre

21 day fix kick off starting weight: 151.2

I’m ready to get this party started. I’ve heard some amazing success stories from this program so I’m excited to get big results and am committed to doing so. How have you all been freaders? I’ve missed y’all!

Any goals you’re working towards? 

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Theres Nothing Wrong with Walking

For a while, as a runner, I kind of shunned walkers. Walking wasn’t a workout. Maybe it was for others but definitely not for me. I was a runner.

I associated mall walking with old people and frumpiness. But here’s the thing that I’ve learned over the past few weeks….it’s actually a lot of fun.

It started on a nicer day when a friend of mine and I put in a good four miles on the B&A Trail – it was warmish, and we were both struggling with a lot of feels so we got out to have a chat. Neither of us really have family around, and sometimes you just need to vent and have someone to listen. We’ve been great at that for one another lately – and I hope that continues even after I go to work.

So for me, walking has been entirely social but then, we put in two hours, cover about 5-7 miles depending on length of walk and suddenly whoa legs!

workout while walking

Make it social. For me, while I don’t mind running with friends once in a while, running is more a solo thing. Walking though, is entirely social for me. It’s for catching up, and fitting in a workout when you think you don’t have time for one.

Bring weights. Seriously, you can have a workout with 2-5 lb weights walking 4 mph (15:00/mile) that is similar in intensity to someone running 5. mph (12:00/mi) (source). Granted intensity, weight, metabolism and all that jazz plays in but still, weights add a nice resistance if you’re looking to add a little umph. Me? I push a stroller with 17 lb little boy in it.

Go for time not distance. Usually when we stroll about in the mall, we meet early before the crowds, and go for 1-2 hours and can usually cover a surprising amount of distance – our record is 7 miles and yesterday was our shortest walk in a while capping out at 4.25 miles.

Use it as a backup. Bummed that the sidewalks aren’t plowed? Don’t have cold weather running gear? Go inside. Bring your GPS and walk through the mall for an hour or more and you’d be surprised how quickly the distance adds up.

Change it up. Hate running on the treadmill? So do I! But you can walk at a brisk pace and add some hill work in there and that’ll get your quads and glutes begging for forgiveness in no time. Check out pinterest for some good walking treadmill

Don’t think you’re being a slacker when you just want to walk with some friends and have a long chat. I for one am going to miss my walking workouts once I’m back to the 9-5 grind, but thats what the weekends are for.  Running is running, and I’m all about running and training and racing but sometimes your joints need a break and if you’re just getting on to the fitness scene, then walking a great way to ease into things.

Don’t know the walking workout ’till you’ve tried it.

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Weekend Recap: Impromptu #tripnorth Edition

I did pretty good for workouts last week – mostly.

Until I popped up to Vermont unexpectedly (and surprisingly inexpensively!) Saturday morning and returned this afternoon. That’s what you do for family though. I ate like crap and now I’m feeling it. I need to get back into eating clean because ugh, I just feel sluggish based on the crap that I inhaled all weekend into my gullet.

I suppose a Choco Monkey crepe from Skinny Pancake doesn’t help matters. At all.

choco monkey skinny pancake vermont

Last weeks workouts…

I went spinning on Monday, walked 7 miles on Tuesday AM then went to a fab-abs 75 minutes Pure Barre class (Holy Butt Kicking!). Seriously, if you are local to Annapolis and want your abs to be hurting for three days, go to a Fab Abs class with Gabrielle.

pure barre annapolis

Wednesday was a well deserved rest day, and Thursday I went to another Pure Barre class. Then Friday, I managed to get a 5.5 mile walk in before heading north for the weekend.

mall walking with baby

Not too shabby.

Total miles in January: 39.3 – just short of my 40 mile goal. I’ll get into my February goals this week, but let’s just say since it’s a short month, I’m just hoping to ease into training, a full time job and a possible move without dying or completely falling off the bandwagon. It’s going to be a busy month so my expectations are relatively low.

I’m heading up to CT this weekend for a baptism (and because Adam is going to be gone for 3 days for drill) so next week I’ll be starting my Cherry Blossom ten miler training. Then, in early March, I’ll be transitioning into half marathon training for Zooma.

I know, I know I’m all gungho Zooma 10k and I still am. One of the baller perks of being an ambassador is a free race entry so I kind of feel obligated to go big or go home. Stay tuned for my training plans (10 miler next week and half marathon in early March).

Workouts this week…

Monday – travel. No workout.
Tuesday – walk (5-7 miles)
Wednesday – gym (spinning?)
Thursday – Pure Barre and/or walk (5-7 miles)
Friday – travel to CT
Weekend Saturday/Sunday – we’ll be in CT so while I’m not expecting to get any workouts in I’d love to fit in either a run or a yoga class. We’ll see though.

Don’t forget if you’re interested in Zooma, use code ANNAMB3 to get 10% off your registration. Also, save the date for March 8th for the Zooma Kickoff event at Charm City Run in Annapolis. It’ll be a fun day with a 3-5 mile fun run! 

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