My New Toy

Ever look at a dog and think "you don't look like a (insert name here)"?  Well, that's kinda what happened with Astro.  We just couldn't get in the groove of calling him by the name he was given (even though I really actually liked it).  So, after debating on it for over a day Ken suggested the name Buddie.  For some reason the name fit.  So, that's the story of how Astro became Buddie.

Buddie is a chewer.  The first day we brought him home he managed to chew up an MP3 player cord and Ken's computer cord (oops!).  In order to keep my house from being destroyed we rope him off in the master bathroom area when we leave.

Tuesday I realized my gym workouts were going to have to stop until Buddie gets a little older and can be left home for longer periods of time.  Because Ken doesn't want to hear me complain about not getting my workout loves me, he bought me this.....

A 100 POUND BARBELL SET!  You will never guess how much this cost.  I was shocked by the price.  $40!  It's was a steal.  You can get it here but, it was $10 cheaper in the store.  

It's a nice starter set.  There are 2 25 lb weights, 2 15 lb weights and 2 10 pound weights.  I would recommend it if you want a simple set.  The bar isn't TOO sturdy {it's actually 2 pieces you bolt together} so I wouldn't recommend adding too much extra weight to it.

I'm super excited because I managed to beat my personal best deadlift weight.  I deadlifted 50 pounds.  I know it's not alot but normally at the gym I only do 40 pounds.  

Here are a few moves to get you started

Arms
Standing Row
Bent over Row
Curls
Bench Press
Shoulder Press

Legs
Squat
Hack Squat
Lunge
Deadlift
Bulgarian Split Squat
Straight Leg Deadlift

I will post a formal workout soon for y'all.

Gym Time!

 Image from:  Cheezburger.com


For the week leading up to the Mud Run I stayed out of the gym.  Thnis was in order to make sure my knees were okay for it.  {They have been giving me some issues lately}

In order to prepare myself for the run I had been doing nothing but cardio.  I am NOT a fan of cardio!  I was really looking forward to getting bvack to the gym and getting back to my weight training.  Unfortunately, I managed to bruise my tailbone.  It kept me out of school and the gym on Monday but, I decided to test it on Tuesday.  

I can't sit without pain so, the only exercises I can do are ones that allow me to stand.  Did you know that MOST weighted exercises are either seated or put pressure on your tailbone?  I didn't either until I hurt mine.  Luckily, squats don't hurt that bad.  Wednesday and today I did 25 minutes of mostly squats and squat variations.  I threw in a few standing ab exercises to give my knees a break.  

I have put together a list of good standing exercises that don't put too much pressure on your tailbone.

Squats
Lunges
Calf raises
Barbell Rows
Kettlebell swings
Kettlebell pushups
Single leg deadlift
Ab Twist with dumbbell, kettlebell or medicine ball
Deadlift


Astrid, the woman behind Better Believe Fit actually teaches kettlebell classes.  She has some awesome workouts up on her website.  *Bonus:  They're all tailbone friendly!*
Better Believe Fit Workouts


I'm hoping this pain goes away soon so I can go back to my normal workout.  Tomorrow I'm working my abs so I can give my glutes, hamstrings and quads a rest.

Roller Skating Fun With My Girls

We spent the whole weekend at the skating rink in Ormond Beach.  Mo's school did a fundraiser at the local roller rink on Saturday and Sunday we went back for a bithday party for a classmate of Sunny's.  I forgot how much I like to skate.  Almost makes me want to buy a pair of skates and dress up as a roller disco lady or a Roller Derby girl for Halloween.....almost.  {I don't dress up anymore though}

I honestly forgot how much fun skating was.  My dad used to take my sister and I skating every Saturday morning when I was younger.  I used to love it. I own a pair of roller blades that I have given up trying to use.  I rented a pair of quads (roller skates) at the rink and had a blast skating with the girls.

Roller skating isn't just fun.  It has a bunch of health benefits.  According to Planet On Wheels some of the health benefits of roller skating include:

• Low-impact exercise for joints
• High caloric burn
• Aerobically as good as jogging or cycling
• Involves all the major muscle groups
• Mentally uplifting
• Fun, hip and possibly glamorous

Skating works all your lower body muscles, your core and your arms.  Did you know that skating is actually a low impact workout?  I am semi-surprised by that.  The calories burned by skating are quite impressive.  

For a 60 minute workout --
A 120 pound person burns 336 calories
A 150 pound person burns 462 calories
A 175 pound person burns 567 calories
A 200 pound person burns  672 calories

So what are you waiting for?  CLICK HERE to find a roller rink near you and get skating!

What's your favorite healthy past-time from your childhood?

Getting into the Swim of Things

Today was my swim day.  I honestly forgot how much I adore swimming.  It's so freeing.  Nothing hurts while I'm swimming.  (Click HERE and HERE to see the benefits of swimming on joints)

It's a total body workout without the feel of a total body workout (until you get out of the pool and your legs feel like jelly.)  Swimming 1 mile is the equivalent of running 4 miles!  Don't ask me how fast because I don't know.  I managed to do over a mile in under an hour.  That beats my normal time by about 30 minutes!  

According to SparkPeople.com my 50 minutes of swimming burned about 404 calories.  I paired that with my healthy dinner of catfish, green beans and a sweet potato.  It was a perfect day.  (Besides the fact that it decided to turn cold today.)

Some days I wish that my future job let me work in the pool all day but, I'm happy at the gym, and I have no plans on changing my career plans.  

I'll be giving you guys a new recipe soon.  Also a cookbook and diet book review coming in a few days.  It's been a busy few days and I have loads of info for y'all.  

Do you like to swim?  Do you prefer to be in the gym, or in the pool?  

Prompt :  How would you start saving the world if you woke up tomorrow with superhuman powers?
Answer:  I'd have to give the world healthy food and rid it of the bad food.  (Sorry I'm on a health kick)

First Day of School and the Gym

Oh my God! I have so many things to pack into one post!!  To start off, today was the first day of my on-campus class.  This meant that I had to be out of the house by 7 this morning.  (Luckily I'm a morning person!)  Before leaving I needed to wake up the girls AND Ken, plus make Kaylee and Mantha's lunches. Where's the time for ME to eat breakfast??

In the car, of course!  I decided to start with a smoothie this morning.

1 cup soymilk (I like light vanilla)
1 banana
1 cup fresh/frozen strawberries

Blend and drink.  This only takes about 5 minutes and I did it while I was making the girls' lunches.

On Tuesday's I'm in class for 4.5 hours. From 8-12:30. 3 hour labs = NO FUN!   Then I goto the gym.  I packed myself a granola bar.  I tried to use cereal instead of granola and it completely failed.  I went back to a tried and true granola bar. 

Granola Bar Recipe

• 2 1/2 cup oats (I used quick cooking even though every recipe told me not to)
• 2 mashed bananas (about 1 1/4 cup)
• 1/3 cup sugar free maple syrup
• 1/4 cup cherry craisins (next time I'm going to use 1/2 - 3/4 cup)

Directions

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees
2. Mix everything together in a bowl
3. Bake on a small sheet pan greased with pan spray for 25 minutes
4. Cool then cut into squares/rectangles

I cut it into 8 bars.  According to SparkRecipes each bar has 150 calories and 2.1 grams of fat.

So what did I do in the gym?  Nothing too fancy.  Nothing that would kill me.  Even though I am kicking myself for being too self conscience to use the free weights.  I need to stop worrying that I'll look like an idiot

Gym Workout 
10 minutes rowing machine (It's harder than I remember.  My goal is to eventually be able to do it for a full 30 minutes)
15 minutes elliptical

The next set of exercises were done using the 15 lb weights and I did 3 sets of 10

Ab rotation
Rowing weight machine
Bench Press
Lat Pull
Chest Press
Ab machine


I think on Thursday I'm going to spend my hour doing laps.  Now that WILL kill me!  I'm actually surprised at how well equipt the campus gym is.  Cardio equipment, a few weight sets and a 25 meter, 8 lane, indoor heated pool.  I couldn't ask for more.  

Writing Prompt --As a superhero, would you rather have extreme strength or extreme speed?
Answer -- I'm a superhero, why can't I have both?  I think that there are definate perks to both.  But if I only had to choose one I'd pick speed.  I'd never be late to anything and I could travel the world and not have to worry about paying for transportation.  Plus I'd save on gas and car insurance. :)

Fight the fat!

So, Christmas is a week from today!  I bet the holiday parties have been in full swing for people for a few weeks already though.

I have a few tips for sneaking in some exercise on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  I figure most other websites and blogs give you advice on how to eat healthy (portion control, use a smaller plate, don't over indulge, pick the healthier options on the table, etc) but not many give you advice on getting some exercise in. 

1.  Get outside and play with the kids.
          Let me start by explaining that my mom has 4 brothers and 3 sisters, on average they each have 2 kids.  So, when the whole family gets together there's a bunch of kids. When I was younger as soon as we got together we were outside.  We never stayed inside for more than 20 minutes.  The rest of the time we were outside playing (or at least wandering around my aunt's 7 acres)
          So instead of sitting inside get outside with the kids and play!  Play a game of tag or kickball or ANYTHING.  Playing with kids can burn between 129 and 252 calories per 30 minutes.  30 MINUTES!  That's no time at all and you can burn off at least one side dish.

2.  Take a pre/post dinner walk
           After dinner instead of sitting around gabbing why not take the whole gang out for a walk?  A short workout is better than no workout at all, right?  Round up the whole gang for a 30 minute walk.  The family can work off some of the goodies.  Walking a 30 minute mile for 30 minutes burn between 65-124 calories.  

3.   Offer to help
             There were always a million dishes after holiday get togethers at my aunt's house.  The head count was usually over 60 people!  I can remember my aunts and my mom standing around doing dishes together while they laughed, joked and talked.  Get in the kitchen and help with the dishes!  It burns between 60 and 102 calories in 30 minutes.  Instead of leaving after all the food is gone, clear off the table, and help, rinse, dry or scrub dishes.  Your family and your body will thank you!

4.  Treat it like every other day.
            Okay, this one isn't about sneaking but, it's good advice.   People like to make themselves believe that holiday calories don't count and that Christmas and Thanksgiving are good excuses to ditch their workout or indulge (or both!).  On Thanksgiving I went out for a 30 minute bike ride.  It wasn't a long workout but, it was better than nothing.  Do you normally go for a 7 AM run?  Then go!  Bike ride before breakfast?  Go on it!  Is your gym open?  Use it!  Fit in a workout when you can these days. 

5.  Visit with the family, don't wait for them  to visit you
            During gatherings the family is spread throughout the house.  Aunt Susie's in the kitchen, Uncle Joe is on the front porch, and the cousins are chilling in the backyard.  You want to catch up with all of them right?  Don't just sit on the couch and watch the game, waiting for them to come by.  Go seek them out.  Standing burns 4-6 more calories per hour than sitting.  Standing will help you burn 32-54 calories per half hour.  Think about it.  If you stand for 4 hours that's 256-432 calories!  And don't forget the extra calories from walking around!!


These are just a few of the ways you can work exercise into your holiday.  But don't forget, if you are hosting the festivities there are even more ways to burn calories.  Cleaning the house, doing the yard work, cooking dinner, these all burn calories.  

**The calories are based on a 118 and 200 lb person.  I found all the calories burned at SparkPeople and Health Status


Some other links on burning holiday calories
Spark People Blog
Sorey Fitness

Me + 5 Kids = An Amazing Time

Today turned out to be a good great day.  

It started out shaky but turned out really well.  I woke up with a horribly upset stomach.  I pushed past it and took Baye to the pool but, that was rained out 20 minutes after we got there.  

After we got home things started to start getting better.  The sun came out about 10 minutes after we got home.  Don't you hate when that happens??  

I opened up a letter from Daytona State College and it was letting me know that my financial aid had been accepted!  So now, I'm going to be able to go back to school.  This is something that I've been wanting to do for a while.  I figured out about a year ago that I want to become a Registered Dietitian (even though I like the term nutritionist better.)

I've been making meal plans for my friends since the beginning of the year and I want to (legally) be able to help more people just like my friends.  Now I just need to find the money to take the certification course to become a personal trainer.  I want to be a double threat and it just isn't in the budget right now.  I also like the idea of being able to work from home.

ANYWAY, back to why today was so great...

Underwater shot of Kay and Mo

The girls had a half day because tomorrow is the last day of school.  When they got home I took them and 2 of their closest friends to the pool for about 3 hours.  I actually had a blast with them.  Normally I get horribly bored when I take them to the pool.  They go off and play and I'm stuck all by myself.  Today was totally different though.  After I got about 30 minutes of laps in they actually interacted with me.  We played monkey in the middle, we joked, we laughed, we chased each other we just goofed off and had a blast.  

I couldn't figure out how to log my workout since online systems don't have "goofing off in the pool" as an option, so I just logged it as "water aerobics."  It told me I burned 320 calories in 1 hour and 45 minutes.  Plus I burned another 250  doing my laps!

I LOVE SUMMER!!!

How do you burn calories during the summer?