After a long day’s worth of work, followed by a second job including more work, and then errands which often feel just like work, I’m supposed to workout to make this diet work? What’s wrong with this picture? Oh right, it’s too much work and not enough play! So, in order to ‘spice things up’ I subscribed to Women’s Health Magazine, not only to enjoy some cool articles about recipes and fun health tips, but as a ‘reminder’ on the coffee table when I get home and run to the kitchen salivating over anything I can find. Let’s be honest, we don’t always plan, and always cook light, and always remember to breath in between snacks while we ‘plan’ what will go in that super healthy salad I promised I’d make myself for dinner when I left home this morning at 7am. Whoops. However, today worked! Yes, it was hectic and crazy and routine-like, but the following saved the day!
With my subscription to Women’s Health (best deal EVER btw!) I got a 40 minutes workout DVD with yet another weightloss ‘gimic’ on the cover - Lose 15 lbs in 6 weeks - woohoo where do I sign?! I have to say, skeptical I am, but exhausted I am as well after what felt like THE BEST IN-HOME WORKOUT of my day. A former soccer player, I have had my share of workouts. I recently also signed up with a personal trainer, to learn more about my body (postures, bad habits, implications on my health) but to also learn about the effectiveness of a workout. Often times I would mindlessly hit the elliptical for an hour because I could get lost in Wheel of Fortune, Chopped, or Law & Order and be done in just 2 episodes! However, this was not ‘working’ for me. I didn’t see the results I wanted, I complained about how I go to the gym allll the time and never see any results, which only makes you ‘eat what you want’ because you think you’ve earned it when in fact, you could be working out LESS and being more EFFECTIVE with each workout. That being said a combination of muscle training and cardio (30 min ea) back to back, a couple times per week has been doing the trick! Lately though, I’ve fallen into that rut where you begin to feel good, you cut yourself some slack, life picks up and workouts fall lower in the priority list and you catch yourself before you fall off the horse! So today I woke up and did pilates to begin my day feeling fresh and revived, THank you Mari! but I wasn’t done yet. I came home after a long day of the above variations of ‘work’ feeling like I needed yet still, a good, hearty, sweaty workout. I picked up the dvd from Women’s Health and sure enough that combination of muscle work and cardio. Often times I don’t get a good sweat in with dvd’s or workouts at home and it’s a quick fix until I can actually go to the gym, but today was different! I felt great, it was challenging and new, and the routine itself didn’t leave me feeling ‘strong’ and not lean as my toning tapes tend to do!
Therefore, overlooking the long-winded outcome: get in the workouts at home! It is almost always better than nothing, you feel free and great to start or end your day, and heck you get to shower right away so John Frieda doesn’t use me for one of his frizzy hair commercials the next time he sees me at the grocery store post-workout. Get after it girls, bathing suit season is closer than we know!
Start w/ Barbara’s Prison Workout:
Push-ups, 3 sets of 10
Tricep Dips, 3 sets of 10
Sit-ups, 3 sets of 10
Bicup curls, 3 sets of 10
Hold Plank, 3 minutes straight
Hindu squats, 25-50 in repetition
It’ll change your life!
<3 jb
, and there’s nothing like loving the company you keep at that point.
