Along with working, graduation parties, another wine festival, NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship (Way to go Hoos!), hanging out with friends who I haven't seen in a while, and rekindling others, I am exhausted! I am crazy excited for this weekend though. Going to the Orioles game with an old friend, dinner with Dr. Ben Carson (that's right...dinner with THE Dr. Ben Carson...if you don't know who that is, look him up! Cuba Gooding Jr. played him in a movie!), and lastly, looking at some houses. Fun, right?! Last night I worked night 2 of 3...I am about to get ready for #3! Let me tell you that 7p-7a can take a lot out of you! I just take a good book with me and I'm set though and try to catch up with all of you!
Since I missed this weekend's "Spotlight Saturday/Sunday" I am doing today a "Twitter-Friend Thursday!" Ashley graciously agreed to be my next guest post! Check her out on twitter! She always has great tips and inspirational words plus- she's a BEACHBODY coach!
Fitness 101: Back to the Basics
I am delighted to meet the readers of Walking on My Own Two Feet. I’m Ashley and I blog over at Home Made Fit. I’ve only been around for a few months but I have created a space where I can write about my own fitness and nutrition journey and the things I learn along the way. I have a special interest in women’s health issues.
I don’t know about you, but Memorial Day marked the first “real” day of summer in Chicago, in that it was really the first day where it was sunny and warm in weeks! As much as I love summer, it means the start of swimsuits, shorts, and tank tops. I am taking on 60 days of Insanity to get prepared. Here are three basic steps to get you started!
1. Find something you enjoy doing
Like hiking…
I know this sounds cliché – but honestly – if you can’t enjoy it, it’s hard to find the motivation. I like to run, I like fitness classes, I like DVD programs that include fitness schedules and nutrition plans. I hate treadmills, elliptical, and stationary bikes. I found Turbo Fire in January of 2011, which worked for me. But for years I would “get committed” – go to the gym 3-4 times a week for a few weeks, then fall of the wagon and go weeks, even months, before I would try again.
Which brings me to my next tip…
2. Don’t get discouraged
Even once you find something you enjoy, you won’t want to do it every day. And when you take a day off, don’t let it get to you. You can even take 2-3 days off. It doesn’t mean that you aren’t cut out for this, or that it isn’t worth it. Fact – I took a whole WEEK off – and have recommitted to another 60 day schedule starting May 31st.
"To achieve the greatest success, you must embrace the prospect of failure."
3. Schedule your workouts
1st – schedule them – put it on the calendar. Don’t let it be negotiable. Of course if you just say, I will work out today – chances are, particularly if you are just beginning your fitness journey – the workout will keep being pushed off until finally it is bed time and you say “tomorrow is another day.” SCHEDULE THEM. For instance, today, I literally have 30 minutes blocked out in my calendar at 5:00 pm today for my workout. No matter what anyone else invites me to do – I will say that I have a prior commitment. 2nd – organize your workouts. It is important you get both muscular and cardio activity in your workouts. So schedule them with what I call a “forgiving schedule.” I like to mark my schedules with numbers rather than days of the week, so if I need a break, it’s okay, I skip a day, and then I start back on the next day. Let me give you an example, something similar to what you would see in Turbo Fire, but you can use any workouts: Day 1: 30 minutes cardio; Day 2: 20 minutes abs + 20 minutes cardio; Day 3: upper body strength; Day 4: 45 minutes cardio; Day 5: 20 minutes yoga + 20 minutes of deep stretching.
Now – if you started Day 1 on a Monday, it stands to reason that day 5 would be Friday. But let’s say that Thursday is super busy for me so I can skip it, and resume day 4 on Friday instead. This is what I call “the flexible schedule”
That’s all folks!
In a nutshell: THAT is all it takes to start your fitness journey and make the transformation.
Hope I get to see you over at Home Made Fit!
Thanks Ashley! You look amazing! I too am crazy about TurboFire (I admit I have all of the DVD's!) Beachbody in general has amazing programs out there that can get you slimmed and toned fast! Some other Beachbody programs you might have heard of are Insanity, HipHop Abs, P90x, Slim in 6, Brazil Butt Lift, and 10-minute Trainer! You can check them out here!
What are you up to this weekend? How was your Memorial Day weekend? Are you a part of the Beachbody team?!
It's almost Friday! We might be running on fumes but at least we are running!...on our own two feet...
Until the next step bloggers...
No comments:
Post a Comment