Category Archives: Fitness

Getting stronger! And we have orders!

I seem to be getting stronger, woohoo! I’m lifting heavier weights anyway. So I didn’t run outside last Saturday morning like I’d planned. I just forgot. And by the time I remembered, we were getting ready to go the Naval Aviation Museum. I wasn’t about to give up precious family time for a run.

This Monday I did get to run outside. I did just over 2 miles. Every time I ran on pavement, my foot hurt, but it was fine on the grass. Then after my workout today, I noticed MY OTHER (left) foot is now hurting. This tells me two things: I need to stretch more and I need to retire my shoes.

Besides running outside, I also got a good arms and abs workout with a little legs thrown in there too. Well, that’s not entirely true. I don’t think it was a good abs workout. I haven’t been challenging mine, I think. Tonight I found some new ab exercises online that I’ve pinned to Pinterest. I’m going to give those a try tomorrow.

Yesterday was a bad workout day. Baby J woke up late and refused to nap. He was also on a hunger strike, meaning he refused to eat anything I made for him (nutritious). He just wanted cookies. With him being in a mood, I knew there was no way he’d survive 90 minutes at the gym. I did some leg workouts at home (lunges and squats), but didn’t do enough.

I made up for it today with a full-body workout. I was dripping with sweat, woohoo! I feel great now, a little sore, but great.

Tomorrow I’ll do some of those new ab exercises, and then I think I’ll concentrate on cardio for once.

That leads me to this…I’m thinking about not running the half marathon after all. It’s coming up in just over a month, and I haven’t run barely at all in 3 weeks, because of my foot. Even if I train last minute, I’m not going to do well, and I don’t think I’ll enjoy myself. Thankfully, I haven’t registered for it yet. I think it would be more prudent to look for a half marathon in the summer to run.

Did you notice I made some changes on the blog? I added a couple plug-ins, so you can follow me on my social media accounts. They’re connected to Mylifeaworkinprogress.com, but I still do a lot of fitness related things over there. I also added my Instagram feed, so you can see what I’m posting.

Who am I kidding? There’s no one reading this blog, hahah! That’s okay. It’s still motivating to have one, and one day I’ll look back at what I’ve accomplished and be happy I recorded my journey.

And yes, we finally have orders. Our next duty station will be up in the Baltimore/DC area! I’m very excited about it. There’s so much to do up there! We’ll be moving late spring/early summer.

I’ll leave you with this sweaty, nerdy photo of me after a recent workout. If you’re following me on Instagram, you may have seen it already.

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Sunny, I mean rainy, Florida!

Baby J and I are in Pensacola, visiting Hubby. He has just a couple of weeks of training left. Then he’ll most likely be headed to another Navy school for 3-6 months and after that we’ll finally move to our new duty station. It’s a little ridiculous that he doesn’t have orders yet. I suppose it happens, but I don’t know anyone who’s had to wait this last minute to get orders to their next duty station! Hubby has no idea where he’s going in 2 weeks.

Okay, so last week I posted about my injured foot. I pushed through the week, doing a little bit of cardio wherever I could. I talked about it in my Fitness Friday post on My Life: A Work in Progress. But basically, I concentrated more on lifting.

This week, since we’re in Pensacola, I have access to the Family Fitness Center on Corry Station. The one back home is not that great. It’s not a center. It’s a tiny room. I was excited about it, because that’s the best I had for a gym workout, but after going to the center here, I much prefer this new one!

The Family Fitness Center has two large rooms: one with machines and the other with free weights, mats, BOSU ball, etc. Running along the side of these rooms are two play areas for the kids, filled with toys! The only downside is the center does not have barbells. I really want to get into heavier lifting. It’ll happen eventually!

The center is open Mon-Thurs, so Baby J and I went every day. Hubby worked out in the next door gym (it’s for active duty) Mon-Wed, and we just met him afterwards. He had a meeting today, so couldn’t go. There isn’t a locker room, but there are two large bathrooms and an infant nursing room!

Monday and Wednesday were arm/abs days. Tuesday and Thursday, I concentrated on legs and butt. Each day I did 15-20 minutes of cardio on an elliptical, treadmill, or Stair Master. You may notice I didn’t do any back-specific exercises. I have no idea how to workout my back. I should probably search for some YouTube videos!

I’m planning on taking tomorrow (Friday) off. Saturday morning I hope to run outside while Hubby watches Baby J. I’d love to get 4 miles in, if my foot will let me. So far the most I’ve gone in one stretch was a mile and a half.

My foot seems better, but occasionally it does hurt a little. At least it’s not worse, so I’m doing something right. I’m itching to start training again for my half marathon, but I don’t think my foot is completely healed.

I was going to end this post with photos, but my Photobucket app is taking too long to load, so I think I’ll save pix for next time.

‘Night!

An injury?

Well, I’ve been ignoring some pain in my right foot for about a week. I thought it was getting better, and perhaps it was and the interval training has aggravated it again. It usually only bothers me when I’m sprinting; or if I walk more than a hundred yards in flats or shoes without support; or if I’m bending the toes to do push-ups, planks, or lunges.

I keep debating whether or not to see a doctor, but I’m not the type of person to run in at the smallest thing. Whatever the problem is -stress fracture, plantar fasciitis, tendonitis, etc.- unless it’s bad enough to need surgery (it’s not), the treatment at this point would be the same: take it easy. So that’s what I’m doing. If I’m careful for 2 or even 3 weeks now, I can still pick up my half marathon training in time. Will I do as well? No, but I should at least finish. That’s better than nothing.

This brings me to a couple of dilemmas. First, I’d just upped my calories. Now that I’m doing less cardio, I’m going to drop my calorie limit again, at least this week. But how much? I keep hearing never go less than 500 under your BMR. Okay, but what if you’re still lifting weights to gain muscle?

Second issue: no cardio. Next week I should have access to a swim center, so I can get some cardio workouts there. I’d like to try the elliptical machine at the base gym tomorrow, and see if my foot does okay with that. It’s when the pressure is on the ball or toes of my foot that I have problems. As long as I’m coming down on my heel on the elliptical, it should be okay. Either that or I’ll walk on the treadmill on an incline. I just need to get some cardio in. I’m scared I’m going to gain fat.

Anyway, this is all kind of depressing. This is my last week of the Winter Miles Challenge, and I’m not sure I’m going to meet my goal! I did get over 5 miles in on Sunday (caused me foot pain all Monday morning), so if I can get a couple of miles here and there on the treadmill or elliptical, I should be okay. I just have to really listen to my body.

Have your plans ever been thrown off by an injury?

One week until Florida!

That’s right…Baby J and I have tickets to go visit Hubby in Florida! We’re staying for just under 3 weeks. I’ve already been scouting online, looking at the base gyms in the area. It looks like one of them has a family workout room, but I need to call tomorrow for the requirements.

I won’t be taking the jogging stroller, as it’s just too bulky. I’m already going to have a lot to carry and handle, so I’ll have the lightweight stroller. This means J will have to watch Baby J at least three times a week, so I can run…UNLESS I can get good, long runs in on the treadmill. We’ll see.

Last week finished off okay. You can read about my week in my Fitness Friday post on My Life: A Work in Progress. I also finished Lorna Jane’s Move, Nourish, Believe Challenge; and you can read my recap HERE, if interested.

I did meet my Winter Miles Challenge for the week, woohoo! Just one week left for that, so overall it was a good fitness week. Could it have been better? Absolutely. But I think that’s always going to be the case. I can always push harder.

Diet has been so-so. I’ve been struggling with binging. A couple of days ago, I did decide to up my calorie intake again, so maybe that will help. I’m now eating roughly 2,000 calories a day. I think -I hope- that this is the right decision, since I’m lifting more. I still have body fat I want to lose. But of course I need to eat cleaner for that to happen too.

So about lifting…I’ve been reading more and more about the benefits of heavy lifting for women. They’ve got me sold on the idea! I have adjustable dumbbells at home and an ottoman that I can use as a bench for now. I also have some pull-up bars and an exercise ball. None of that is ideal, but it will work for now. If I’ve already mentioned all this before, sorry…I can’t remember what I posted the last couple of times. I think I just talked about running or biking.

I have realized that I need to be organized more when it comes to exercising. So I’m going start recording in a notebook what weight I did for what lifts, so I know immediately the next time. Then I can steadily increase that weight (or that’s the goal).

I also need to map out and plan which days I’m doing what. I’m still training for a half marathon in April, so ideally I need at least one 10-mile jog/run a week. Obviously I don’t want to do legs around that time. So I need to figure out when I plan to do what, and on what days I’ll rest. That schedule needs to be flexible though, as weather is always a factor. In addition, I try to get out for play dates, church activities, etc. often.

Here’s a photo of Baby J and I tonight. We had an impromptu run with my running buddy, Nicole. We took advantage of the last nice night of weather before the cold, and went down to the water. The boardwalk is a great stretch to run. It’s just under 3 miles each way!

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So that’s what’s going on right now. What about you? How was your week and weekend?

Beautiful weather for once!

So I took the weekend off after my run/jog/walk last Friday. I should’ve run on Monday, but the temp only got up into the 30s. Well, the rest of the week was forecasted to hit the 50s and 60s, so I decided to wait, rather than drag Baby J and I out into it.

Tuesday I did 5.88 miles outside with Baby J and the jogging stroller. It was a beautiful day- sunny and in the 50s! I’ve been reading a bit about interval training, so I did walk/jog/run intervals. Afterwards, I felt awesome!

Today I took Baby J for a 3.34 mile bike ride around the neighborhood. It wasn’t a very strenuous workout, but we did get some activity. In a few minutes I’m going to do some push-ups, ab exercises, lunges, squats, and planks.

I’m debating whether I should get my long run in tomorrow or wait until Friday. The thing is, tomorrow it’s going to be upper 40s in the morning. On Friday, it’s supposed to be low to mid 60s in the morning. Sounds great doesn’t it! BUT there’s a chance of storm on Friday. I guess I’ll head to the park in the AM, and just see how it goes.

I think I’ll be able to up My Winter Miles Challenge this week from beginner (10 miles) to intermediate (20 miles)!

On the diet front, I’ve been eating too much. :( I need to get this under control! I have a plane ticket for Baby J and I to go and stay with my husband in Florida for a couple of weeks. I have a week and couple days until we leave. J hasn’t seen me since Christmas. He knows I’ve trimmed up, because he’s see me on Skype and in photos, but I want to look REALLY good in person, you know?

View during my run yesterday!

Me and Baby J after our bike ride today! He wants to know why my helmet is unsnapped (I just undid it because we were done!).

How is your week going? Have you been meeting your goals?

Brrrrr more coldness! and the Move, Nourish, Believe Challenge

It’s been a while since I updated over here. You can read my Fitness Friday post over on Mylifeaworkinprogress.com. I updated my stats; I’ve lost pounds and inches, woohoo! I do need to put more effort into building muscle. I want to keep losing inches on my waist, butt, and thighs, but I want to put some inches on my arms. The problem is I’m finding it difficult to keep up with exercising, housework, and blogging. It’s a constant struggle to balance it all.

I have to say, it’s really neat that I started eating more and lost weight. =D Now, yesterday and today my diet didn’t go so well. Yesterday was my cheat day. I went over to a friend’s place, and ate a ton of food. That was fine, but I had trouble today reigning it in. I’ve eaten a bunch of candy and Oreos. It’s okay, as long as I get back on track tomorrow.

This week went pretty well as far as exercising. Considering the weather and Baby J recovering from croup, it was good. I was able to meet my Winter Miles Challenge early in the week. I’m also participating in the Move, Nourish, Believe Challenge by Lorna Jane and Sweat Pink. You can read my Week 1 recap HERE.

Working out with a buddy #MNBChallenge

How was your week? Did you meet your goals?

Letting go when things don’t happen as planned. (#winterstormleon and a pep talk!)

January has been a really hard month for me when it comes to fitness. First, I was almost starting over again with working out, since I’d slacked off during the holidays. Then I had a stomach bug. Next came winter storm number one. Now we’re in the midst of storm number two. But you know…I think it’s going to be okay. The cold weather is out of my control. Sickness and snow is out of my control. All I can do is MY BEST in the circumstances. And that I believe I’ve been doing.

So it’s Wednesday, and I’ve only run 6 miles this week. But my car is literally snowed in (I don’t own a shovel, either). I don’t have a treadmill at home. I can’t run through a foot of snow outside with the jogging stroller, and the base gym is closed. It’s out of my control! What I can do is a home workout DVD to get some cardio in, and I can lift weights.

It’s easy, I think, for myself (and probably a lot of people) to get focused on what you can’t or didn’t do- the FAILURES. But there’s no point, especially if it’s out of your control. Even if it was in your control, if it’s done and over with…move on!

Focus on what you can do, even if it’s not what you planned. Be flexible. Stay active- play in the snow with your toddler or bounce around to a free online YouTube dance workout video. Do some crunches while your dinner is cooking. If I keep this mindset, my active lifestyle will be a SUCCESS.

I’m not going to stress over meeting my Winter Miles Challenge this week. The whole point of the challenge is for people to stay active when the weather is cold and nasty. You don’t have to be on the track or treadmill for that to be true. Make do with what you have.

And I’ll leave you today with some photos I took this morning, here in Virginia Beach:

#Winterstormleon #VABeach

He’s so light and skinny, he doesn’t even sink in!

Finally getting some use out of these Uggs.

 Do you find it tough to let go when things don’t go as planned?

Too few calories and not enough sodium?

Wow, it’s almost a week since I last posted! Rather than recap everything I did last week, I’ll just direct you to my Fitness Friday (1/24/13) post on my other blog, mylifeaworkinprogress.com. It was an okay week. Not super fantastic, but okay. The weather has definitely made things difficult.

This morning I had a 5.4 mile run with my running buddy, and then I walked around leisurely for 45 minutes or so around the playground while Baby J got some exercise. By the way, walking is how I lost the biggest chunk of my pregnancy weight. You don’t have to be a superstar to lose weight. Just watch what you eat and be active! In just a few minutes, I’m going to do a light workout with adjustable Bowflex weights as well as some calisthenics-type exercises.

Organization is not my thing, but it really needs to be. I think I’ve settled on making MON, WED, FRI my big cardio days with light strength training. Then TUES, THURS, and SAT I’ll focus on building muscle and just light cardio. Sunday will be a complete rest day.

It’s doable, but my diet is a bit of a concern right now. Since I’ve been losing weight for a while now (really, almost 2 years), I’ve had MyFitnessPal set at 1,500 calories forEVER. Other than my weekly cheat day (when I have one), I rarely go over my calorie limit. It’s worked thus far. I’ve lost all but a few stubborn pounds around my middle. Well, as I’m working out more, I’ve found my appetite is even less. I’m full at 1,000-1,200 calories a day. With trying to build muscle, that’s not going to cut it. I need to figure out a way to eat more, but it has to be the right types of food.

But then I also wonder…shouldn’t I keep restricting my intake, since I have fat to lose? Or will the fat eventually melt off, even at a high calorie limit…as long as I’m working out/building more muscle? I just don’t know enough about this stuff. I mean, I know how to eat right, but building muscle is new to me. I don’t want to make all this effort and not see results, because I’m going about it the wrong way.

When I worked out with my running buddy at the YMCA the other day (I came as her guest, but that was my only freebie, booooo), I felt really sick in the beginning when we were doing sets of ab exercises along with push-ups. It took about 45 minutes before my stomach settled. I was really pale and felt lightheaded and nauseated. After some Googling, I have self-diagnosed myself.

My mother has hypotension, and I’ve always had great blood pressure, no matter whether I’m in shape or overweight. In fact, I had “beautiful” (<my OB’s exact description) blood pressure during my pregnancy, even though I gained 70lbs or so. I think I’m genetically predisposed to hypotension. Add on to that the fact that I rarely eat processed foods. It’s amazing how little salt you consume when you make things from scratch. Well, I usually put a Propel Zero packet in my water when I run. This time at the gym, I didn’t. So I think my BP dropped real low, especially because my head was on level with my heart and feet. Now I know I need to always have access to electrolytes when I’m exercising. I may need to increase my overall sodium intake too.

So that’s about it. I’ll leave you with a picture of my littlest running buddy from this morning:

Running with my toddler- ThisMamaRuns.com

Do you think I should up my calorie intake or wait until I’ve lost the stubborn last few pounds?

Blah

So I have not been motivated this week. I blame the lack of sleep! My son was having some issues (maybe night terrors?) where he woke up several nights in a row, several times a night, just screaming and crying each time. It lasted 45 minutes or an hour usually. The last 3 nights have been good. Also, he’s back in his crib again, so we’re finally both sleeping better! I love sleeping next to my snuggly toddler, but I do get more rest when he’s not kicking my ribs all night!

I’ve only run once this week, and it was only about 2 miles. I did do some hill running, so that’s something. I guess. I really should go out now. Maybe I’ll get myself out the door in a bit. It’s too late to go to my usual running spot, since the park closes in an hour, but I can run around the neighborhood.

It’s been cold too. That’s my other excuse for not running. If it were just me, I’d throw on my ColdGear, but I have to run with my son while Hubby’s away, and it’s SUCH A HASSLE. When it’s cold, I layer him up and put a snowsuit on him (it’s possibly overkill) with gloves and a hat.

I realize, of course, that all of this is just excuses. If I really want to run or exercise, I’ll MAKE it work, no matter the hassle. *sigh*

I’m just so tired this week. :/

Oh! Some fun news- I reviewed the Armpocket on my other blog. I LOVE mine! Best armband ever! It’s really comfortable and has storage pockets for my essentials. I also like that it comes in multiple styles and colors, AND you can choose the strap size to fit your arm. Did I mention there’s memory foam? So comfy =D Check out my review here.

How have you been holding up this week? Better than I am?