exercise tips – Page 2 – sassyfitnesschick

Building Your Own Workout Plan

building-your-workout-plan

Let’s talk a little about building your own fitness plan. It should be easy, right? Just decide you wanna lose some weight or gain some muscle or train for a race and do it.

Ah if it were only so cut and dried!

The best way to success is to have a plan, something that you develop, that will work for you, your life, your schedule and your goals.

Let me outline a few things that may help you

Goal setting. I know this sounds cliché but if you don’t know what you want or how to go after it, how will you achieve it? Whether you want to start walking, running, training for an event, lose some weight, or get into a schedule for the gym… whatever it is… your choice… It’s old school now days but I just love having a basic calendar to outline what I need to do. When I’m marathon training I sit down and mark out the mileage for each day, as well as days I strength train and have active rest days. There’s something satisfying about blocking off each day when I get it done…and it gives me a visual tool moving me closer to my goal.
Be real. No one knows your life better than you do. Don’t plan to train for a big event if you work full time, have a family and other obligations that won’t let you do what’s necessary to prepare. Or don’t set a to lofty goal to lose a big amount of weight in a short time. Better to be realistic and maybe overshoot what you have planned than be frustrated you can’t get it done.
Know where you are. If your intentions are to lose weight, you’ll want to gather some measurements so you have a baseline from where you start from. I know it can be rather…sobering… but if you want more than the fickle scale to give you feedback you’ll also want some starting measurements. Be honest and be real with yourself. Also, you might consider taking a “fit test”. This again, will give you a baseline for your strength and cardio abilities. A. Record time it takes to walk a mile. B. How many push ups can you do in a minute? ( knees on floor if needed) C. How far can you reach to your toes, seated on floor and leaning forward? D. Pulse rate before and after test. You won’t need to reassess but every 4-6 weeks.
Commit to exercise, most days of week. No matter what your goals are, exercise should be a part of them. Start small, but start. Get a partner if you need accountability. Again, you use your planner to track your activities.
Finding balance. Rest days are just as crucial to your success as time in the gym, or out on the road. I’ll freely admit to chafing at rest days. I feel..lazy… or like I should be doing something. Until I got that rest days aren’t about being lazy but should be active…as in… feeding my body good food, and doing things like stretching, or yoga to keep my muscles in working order. Having a rest day also gives you some time to be more mentally focused for when you’re out again.
Speaking of stretching. This is something I’ve really learned the value of and have tried to be much better at doing it before and after a work out. I use a variety of things from the standard foam roller, to a pvc pipe to roll out on. A lacrosse ball is also awesome for feet or really getting into a tight knotted muscle.
Mix things up. I learned early on that having several activities would keep me from getting bored with always doing the same thing. Later, as I learned more, it just made sense to incorporate a variety of things because it worked my body differently to make me strong all over and not just good for one sport. Not only that, doing things like strength training if you love running or cycling will hopefully keep your body from injuries. Find things you love doing and then make a rotation in your week with them. For instance my week might look like: run, cycle, strength train, run,cycle, rest day. Sometimes I put my rest day midweek. Other times I might have an extra strength training day if the weather is really awful and I cant get outside. Sometimes I have two rest days if my training has been more physically demanding. Making your own plan is flexible!
Listen to your body! I’m not talking about that part that is encouraging you to skip your workout… tell that part to shut up and get after it. I mean if you feel “off” or not well, are running a temperature or something is really hurting you take a rest day. That is far more beneficial than doing it to just “get it done”. Chances are, a day off, you’ll come back stronger the next day.
Make a commitment to consistency. I won’t lie. It is crazy hard in the beginning to commit to anything new, especially exercise! I would encourage you to make a daily commitment to it, not make any excuses for not getting it done, and challenge yourself to systematically take one day, one week at a time doing it. Habits take a few weeks for form. Give yourself time to develop exercise as a habit… once it is… you will not be able to imagine NOT doing it!
Finally, have fun! Yes, I said have fun….exercising… have fun. Find things you love and commit to becoming the best student you can of it. Enjoy how you feel and the things you will learn and accomplish. Enjoy new strength and energy and being fit.

Now… get busy… grab a planner… your ideas…. and get started on your own personal fitness plan!

The Wonders Of Walking

This mornings athletic adventures had me out on foot…. and no… not running. I’m still refraining from that.

Walking though does give me that same sense of being out on the road… the preparation and the feel. The excitement of being out and…going…

Mind you, I don’t just stroll like I’m with my grandma…

My walking speed usually throws me into what is a “slow” running pace so needless to say I’m breathing hard, my heart is working and sweat is free flowing which I love.

Chatting with my big kids over the weekend about various athletic adventures my oldest son throws out at me….

“Don’t you ever like just… walk?!?”

20160719_204811 — This particular evening walk was actually for my son… he was playing that crazy Pokémon game and needed a 10K distance. The things I do…..

Haha that made me laugh, I mean I do, it just seems so tame to me now days compared to you know, running forever, or flying down the road on my bike like a demon.

Not just that.. it’s the miles.. mentally it’s hard to not want to go long….

However, if you’ve read my beginning story, I started off as a walker. I did my “token” 2 miles a day and that was enough. I never envisoned doing more or running or anything like that.

I walked 2 miles and it seemed adequate. And it was… for awhile.

(Side note…. never stay doing the same thing forever. Your body is an amazing and adaptive machine and you stop losing ongoing benefits or changes in your body. Always look to add or change things up in your workouts)

Anyway, obviously my walking mileage did increase and it did eventually turn into running.

You know the biggest reason why? As I mentioned in the beginning, I walk fast. It just became easier to trot along than trying to maintain a constant fast walk pace. When I tried it for awhile and realized the wheels didn’t fall off and running wasn’t so hard, it was just a natural progression to keep increasing my running time to the time I was actually walking.

Great was the day I celebrated I could run a mile without stopping. Of course, after some time, it seemed crazy I could run miles. That my friends, is just disciplined training to get to that point….

The rest is history.

I turned into a lover of running. At the top of the list is the fact it makes me feel so strong and empowered. It shaped me up physically and became a way to clear my head, unwind, let go of the things bothering me and I often do my most creative thinking out on the road.

I get running isn’t for everyone. Heck, even my doctor gives me a hard time about it ( but freely admits he isn’t a runner and doesn’t get the whole “runners high
thing so there’s that….)

Some people want to run and have physical limitations as to why they can’t. Others just don’t want to. Some think they can’t, but the reality is, our bodies are made for that kind of movement and they really can.

It’s just hard and in the beginning people don’t like it ’cause that’s when they realize they are really cardiovascularly out of shape and they hate it. In time though, as those internal muscles are consistently worked out, they get in shape too and you can put out more effort and feel amazing and not like you’re dying 😛

However, if there is one thing that doctors get behind is that anyone, and I mean anyone, can get out and start walking.

Coach potato to athlete, walking has benefits.

If you’ve been sedentary walking is something you can very much taylor to your needs and abilities. You can then add on a little more distance at a time as your body adapts and handles the new stress you’re putting on it. ( this isn’t a bad thing) with consistent effort walking is a great tool to help with weight loss. Just be reasonable in the beginning and set realistic goals for yourself. Having aching muscles from to much over use will only sideline you… and you don’t want that.

As an athlete, it’s a great recovery workout allowing your muscles to work, stretch and move but not overly tax them . I’ve found it helpful after my marathons to just be out stretching my legs to keep any soreness from setting in.

Of course your pace should be brisk, making you breath hard with your heart beating strong too. If you sweat, that’s a total bonus 😉

Walking not only conditions your body but it’s also good mental therapy as well. Not surprising that some articles I’ve read talk about how walking ( or exercise in general) can help reduce depression and negative feelings.

Of course it can… I think exercise is the least under-used drug out there. But that’s just my opinion….

If you are looking for something to get you out the door walking is free and all you really need are a decent pair of supportive shoes and a willingness to explore.

Then the only one who will limit you is well, really, you.

img_20160730_115358 — I was out of town here. I was actually walking this huge mountain in the area I was staying. The added bonus? All the signs telling you to watch for snakes 😉

So You Hate Exercise

hate exercise

I’ve heard it all now at this point. The exercise jokes. The good natured teasing. The “hey can you do this?” as friends share crazy exercise stunts with me. My son calls me when he needs muscles for a project. If I mention needing something from the store I’m told “well, run and go get it” Recently with the Pokémon Go games going on my sons are asking me if I want to walk 5/10K’s to “help them out” …..

Ah yes… and you know what? I love it.

Exercise has made me strong and fit and able to do things in the rest of my life when I’m not exercising. When I’m jokingly told to run to the store for something, I honestly know I could do it. When I’m asked to help lift heavy things, I know my body has been trained and I can respond and do the task at hand.

I haven’t always embraced the workouts or been excited for the new adventure for the day.

Oh no.

I grumbled. I whined to myself. I found excuses. I pondered ways to wiggle out of doing it. I hated how hard it was. I didn’t like how my heart felt like it was going to explode out of my chest or my legs felt like rubber.

No, I wasn’t a huge fan of working out.

And from what I’ve gathered, a lot of you aren’t either. You cite many of the same reasons.

I’ve talked to so many people, trying to encourage them, that if they just start, just take the steps to do something every day they will be on their way.

It isn’t easy. I won’t lie. You have to intentionally get your body dressed, up and out for whatever fun activity you have planned.

exercise motivation

You have to determine that your workout is just as important as the breakfast your going to eat, or the job you will go to, or the grocery shopping you will do or anything else.

That, is a very intentional move my friends.

I talked to a young friend recently whom I hadn’t chatted with in awhile. He told me he had gotten into a routine, going to the gym, and that weeks on vacation had derailed him. But, as he was eager to tell me, “I could hardly wait to get back to it. I know you always told me I could get to that point ( of wanting to do it) but I had to get started to understand that”

He was a former ” I hate exercise” person.

I know others who were in that club and who have come to the other side 😉

I think, there are some common threads that the former “I hate exercise” club members have in common ( I included myself in this club too)

There is a desire, a wish, to improve and be better.
The individual learns to ( daily) power through any excuses and go get the job done.
They are realistic and start with small goals and gradually increase their activity.
They select something they enjoy doing, want to do, and look forward to doing.
They understand they are in a competition with no one but themselves.
Set backs can happen and you just get right back at it again.
Strength isn’t built in a day and you learn to appreciate your body for the amazing machine it is as it adapts to the demands you put on it.
You recognize that giving your body purposeful movement isn’t to be viewed as a negative, but rather, a way to show love to it.
You begin to love the changes and all the energy you get from your exercise.

Perhaps even now, you are still in that club, but you have the desire to change. Awesome!

Consider these things as you make that move:

Be patient with yourself. Rome wasn’t built in a day.

Commit to the process. Make no excuses. None. ( unless you are honestly ill or injured )

Pick an activity you WANT to do. Heck, pick a couple. I think variety is what keeps you from getting bored. Not only that, multiple activities work all of your body.

Buy the right gear or equipment for your new activity. Even now nothing makes me more excited to get to my activity than knowing I have something new to wear 😉

Focus on the day you are in and just do that day.

Celebrate yourself when you are done. It’s ok to tell yourself “good job!” I mean, honestly, when I come flying back in from a run or miles on my bike, I have no one standing there cheerleading my efforts. It’s ok to be proud of yourself for getting out and getting it done.

Share your accomplishments on social media. Not only do you have accountability, whether you realize it or not, you will be an encouragement to someone else.

Finally, learn to view exercise as a way to love your body and to celebrate all the amazing things it can do.

What motivated you to start exercising? Has it been easy to stay with it?

exercise benefits

Time Management And Exercise

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Life. There are lots of things we all have in common, and some we never will share with one another. There is one thing though that we all have each and every day.

Time. The gift of time.

24 hours in a day, 1440 minutes in that day, 7 days a week.

Sometimes, our time is already plotted out for us…work, sleep, travel, kids, cooking, eating etc.

However, I’d be willing to say that for all of us, we do have a measure of time in our days for random things we choose to do. You know, things that helps us relax or unwind…our leisure time.

Yet, do you know what the biggest thing is I hear from people when talking with them about their health and fitness goals?

I don’t have time for exercise.

I mean.. I’m not gonna argue with them on that…but… let’s think through things that are time guzzlers…

Hanging out on Facebook or any other computer activity

Video games

TV or movie watching

Going out for drinks or to the club

Hobbies or other personal activities

Shopping

Now hear me… there’s absolutely nothing wrong with any of these activities. I’m just saying… you really do have time in your day… for what matters to you.

We will always make time for things we want to do, enjoy, or have fun with.

I speak from a place of experience and a place of having once not prioritized exercise in my life.

There was always something else to do or more important than exercise.

I learned I had to be as disciplined about scheduling it as I do my dental and doctor appointments and coffee meetings with friends. Truthfully, when making appointments now, I mentally balance the timing to see if I can get my workout in, clean up, and arrive on time.

Seem crazy? No more so than trying to balance another appointment or activities in the workings of my day.

What I had to learn in my (personal allotted 24 hours) was where could I best place my workout time in that day so I could get it done?

For me, during early mornings, people are less likely to be making demands on me and my time. During marathon training, getting up in the early dark morning hours ensured I got my very long runs in. I also learned that even though my intentions of doing it “later” or “after supper” were good, the probability of it happening was small.

There were to many demands later in my day. People were awake and needing things. I didn’t feel as energetic ( yeah I know, weird. I can be on the road at 6 a.m. and have a decent energy level, but not so much so at 6 pm. haha)

After taking a look at how my days rolled, what my obligations were, it was easy to start placing my workouts into my allotted time.

Morning was it for me. I rolled out of bed and into my exercise clothes. For years it was getting kids off to school, then getting after it. Many mornings, I was up earlier to get it done while people were still sleeping. Now everyone is bigger and gets off to work and school without my help, I can adjust my time back a little more.

funny-exercise-quote

Not only do I get it done, I feel so energetic and SO accomplished getting a good workout in. It sets the tone for my day. When I don’t get to do it, honestly, now it makes me feel “off” and out of sorts.

I guess that’s a good place for me to be now haha

Has it taken discipline to do this? You bet it has. Has it taken time and consistency to train myself into this new “habit”? That goes without saying. But that discipline has also carried over into other areas of my life so I view that as a win/win thing.

So, my challenge to you dear reader, is this.

If you find yourself in this place I’d encourage you to sit down and really look at your week, your activities, appointments etc.

Then consider your daily strengths. Are you a morning person or do you hit your stride more midday or does the evening bring you to life?

Based on your strengths and your daily activities, where do you need to put your “you time”?

Some days might require a little more creative planning. That’s ok. That’s life.

There are occasional days in my life that feel like a runaway train and it just doesn’t happen. I will tell you though, those days are very rare. Again, it all comes back to the fact this has become a disciplined habit for me now.

You have the same 24 hours every day. You really do have time for purposeful exercise to support your busy daily life. It’s up to you to creatively plan and make it happen.

You can do it… and will feel so accomplished when you do =)

Tell me, have you done time management to get your workouts in?

The Delicious Habit Of Exercise

Hello World !

Wow.. I can say that and mean it literally =) Ok so I figured I’ve been posting this week on habits and how important they are to our success in living a healthy lifestyle, I figured I’d end the week talking about another important habit we need to build in our lives.

Exercise.

OK stop… I hear your collective sighs and groans and gnashing of teeth.

You hate to exercise. It’s hard. You sweat. Your heart beats fast and your muscles protest. Your thighs rub together in an uncomfortable way. You have sweat trickling down in areas you don’t think it belongs. You think you’re dying.

Good. You’re doing it right.

I’d have to say when I talk with people, alongside wrestling with food choices, exercise is a hard thing for people to develop a habit for.

Why? ‘Cause it’s hard and almost everyone will find something else to do besides that.

I think personally, the most important thing you can do to guarantee you stay with it is find THE thing that you love to do… then become an expert on it. If you are passionate about what you do, you will stay with it.

I usually hear… ” I can’t run” or ” I hate running” because people know it’s what I do and what I’m passionate about. I remind them it’s fine to run… if they want to… if they don’t.. then please… don’t.

I also think it’s great to have a couple things you enjoy that keeps you from getting bored and allows you to change things up.

Being injured these past few months has kept me from running much, therefore, I’ve spent lots of time on my bike. I have loved it and it’s given me an outlet for not being able to run. I have days I’m inside and do strength training. I love having choices and enjoy them all.

Each one of these activities have developed because 1) I enjoy them 2) I’ve repeatedly practiced them.

Exercise isn’t just a weight loss tool and shouldn’t be viewed as just such. Yes, when we eat right with exercise, the natural outcome is weight loss.

But our bodies need movement for overall health and wellness. Exercise offers mental clarity and can reduce blood pressure and improve other health issues. Not only that it can produce overall feelings of well being.

Why wouldn’t you wanna make that a life habit ??

Like anything, it requires persistence, and a certain amount of stubbornness to make it happen on a daily basis.

In my opinion, habits are built on a determination to change something in our life… good or bad.

The common “reason” I hear for people not exercising is … time. Listen, if you have time to do anything in your day, you have time for exercise too.

I know that mornings are my best time to get it done for a variety of reasons. First, nothing feels better and more energizing than having a workout done and tackling my day. I also know mornings will be my most successful time to make it happen for sure. If I say ” Oh, I’ll do it after dinner” I know there’s a huge probability it might not happen. There’s to much going on. People are awake and want things from me. I don’t feel as perky. The list can go on….

I do have a HUGE amount of control on when I get up in the morning to making that happen.

When my husband was unexpectedly hospitalized several years ago, I’d get up at 5:30, head out to do some strength training, finish up by the time the kids were waking up for school, get cleaned up, put them on the bus, and head to hospital.

I needed that time for myself. It helped keep me sane in difficult days.

Exercise at that point was a need and a habit for me. It’s more so now.

I’ve gotten up at 5:30 midweek to knock out a 10 mile run before the critters had to get out for school. Yes, I had to make adjustments and schedule it, but hey, I do that with anything else in my life too.

I read an interesting comment in a running article I was reading. Although it was talking about running I immediately identified it as applicable to exercise in general.

“It takes about three weeks of running at least three days per week to get to the point where missing a workout triggers a sense of withdrawal, which increases desire to be more consistent. ” (emphasis mine)

I get that. I get twitchy if I miss a day, and it’s worse with two. But sometimes, life happens. I don’t mind feeling that sense of withdrawal because it keeps me hungry for doing it. But what those three days in article means is, they are making it a habit they can’t do without, conditioning themselves to making it feel normal.

So how do you begin to build this in your life ?

Identify what your best time of day is to get it done. Morning? Evening? Early afternoon before kids descend on you again ? Figure it out.

Now….put it on your planner. I literally make appts around my workout schedule. Make it fit in your day.

Mark a starting day ( soon!) that you know you will get it going.

Perhaps you go buy some new shoes for your activity with the plans to start the following week ? Some new clothes ( I always look forward to the next run when I get new gear 😉

Start small and keep it maintainable. As you keep those commitments look at how you can challenge yourself and increase what you’re doing.

Allow yourself no excuses (other than valid ones like injury or a day that goes wildly out of your control)

Reward yourself in non-food ways.

With a little planning, a positive attitude, and a determination to make exercise a part of your life, it will become your new favorite habit =)

Tabata And Strength Training

Let’s talk a little about strength training. If you follow me then you know I incorporate it into my weekly workout routine. I do enjoy it mainly because it is a different kind of animal from running or cycling. It’s intense and specific … it’s hard work in a different way than cardio activities.

I have had the question come to me “what do you do, exactly?”

Yes, I do use weights most of the time (which is in about an hour workout) but I mix it up with runs of boxing ( ok, maybe I still need to get a little cardio in 😉 boxing is not only great cardio but it’s great for your core and upper body too. I remember when I first started a couple years ago… I could barely get through one song without being winded and ready to stop. Now I do 3 song segments… it’s work but I can slam it out. And hey, if you don’t have a bag, you can still do jabs and punches .

From that I move right into sets with my weights and then alternate to just body work ( trust me, using just your body IS strength training) I kinda move this way through the hour… boxing…weights…body work…

I know it’s been a good workout when I’m laid out on the floor breathing hard, sweaty, and can’t do one more rep.

Anyone can do something similar… there’s something called tabata.

Tabata is basically high interval training in a short amount of time. Although most of my strength training days are an hour there are days I’m super crunched and do a hard hitting 30 minute workout.

But what if you could knock something out faster? And feel like you’ve had a serious workout ? Tabata is intense 4 minute rounds that promise to leave you feeling whipped.

It looks something like this:

Workout hard for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds
Complete eight rounds

You push yourself as hard as you can for 20 seconds and rest for 10 seconds until you complete eight sets.

Here’s where the creativity comes in… you can use any exercises you want =)

An example of a 20-minute Tabata workout looks like this:

Push-ups
Squats
Rows
Sit-ups

Start with push ups, do as many as you can in 20 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds. Repeat for a total of 8 sets. Once you finish all 8 sets rest for one minute and then move on to squats and follow same steps till you’re finished.

You can mix this up with any exercise you like following same pattern of work and rest.

Tabata is a great quick workout if you’re short on time or need to switch things up with what you’re doing… and it’s guaranteed to work you hard in a short time =)