July Well-Trained Bodies

[regentrude]

We paddled 76 miles over the course of the weekend! 13 on Friday afternoon, 16 Saturday, 20 Sunday, and today 27 (was supposed to be 17, but the public access was closed and we had to drive ten mires further upstream)
Beautiful quiet river where we saw almost nobody on the water; a few jet boats and two other kayaks.
The popular rivers in my area had bumper-to-bumper traffic. Total win. (We bought kayaks a month ago and are absolutely hooked. So addictive. Already paddled 217 miles in a month)

 

 

 

Edited July 5, 2021 by regentrude

[Alicia64]

25 minutes ago, regentrude said:

We paddled 76 miles over the course of the weekend! 13 on Friday afternoon, 16 Saturday, 20 Sunday, and today 27 (was supposed to be 17, but the public access was closed and we had to drive ten mires further upstream)
Beautiful quiet river where we saw almost nobody on the water; a few jet boats and two other kayaks.
The popular rivers in my area had bumper-to-bumper traffic. Total win. (We bought kayaks a month ago and are absolutely hooked. So addictive. Already paddled 217 miles in a month)

 

 

 

Wow! Can you share how you got into kayaking? I'd love to do it, but need training. Great photo!

[regentrude]

Just now, Alicia64 said:

Wow! Can you share how you got into kayaking? I'd love to do it, but need training. Great photo!

Before we moved here, we were rock climbers. Every weekend in the mountains. But then we moved here where there's no climbing, and we got seriously into hiking. Hiked every week, know pretty much every destination within a 2 hour drive. We run a hiking website and facebook page for the area. But after 20 years we're running out of new hikes and have to drive further and further, to neighboring states.
Also, summers here are miserable for hiking- hot, humid, ticks, poison ivy. We usually spent a large part of the summer traveling, but with covid last year, we didn't go home to Germany, and no conference travel for DH. The rivers here are beautiful; we went on a few floats with rented boats (after not going for years). Tried to buy our own boats, but that was impossible in 2020.
Now we finally did it. And get to explore something new here, learn new skills, it's great.

[Alicia64]

11 minutes ago, regentrude said:

Before we moved here, we were rock climbers. Every weekend in the mountains. But then we moved here where there's no climbing, and we got seriously into hiking. Hiked every week, know pretty much every destination within a 2 hour drive. We run a hiking website and facebook page for the area. But after 20 years we're running out of new hikes and have to drive further and further, to neighboring states.
Also, summers here are miserable for hiking- hot, humid, ticks, poison ivy. We usually spent a large part of the summer traveling, but with covid last year, we didn't go home to Germany, and no conference travel for DH. The rivers here are beautiful; we went on a few floats with rented boats (after not going for years). Tried to buy our own boats, but that was impossible in 2020.
Now we finally did it. And get to explore something new here, learn new skills, it's great.

Cool! So did you take classes or just set out on your own?

Which state are you in? I didn't know that you're from Germany!

[regentrude]

2 minutes ago, Alicia64 said:

Cool! So did you take classes or just set out on your own?

Which state are you in? I didn't know that you're from Germany!

We are just going on our own. It's all flatwater, class I-II max. Before we move on to whitewater, I'd like to take a class though.
I am in Missouri.

Edited July 6, 2021 by regentrude

[wintermom]

1 hour ago, regentrude said:

Before we moved here, we were rock climbers. Every weekend in the mountains. But then we moved here where there's no climbing, and we got seriously into hiking. Hiked every week, know pretty much every destination within a 2 hour drive. We run a hiking website and facebook page for the area. But after 20 years we're running out of new hikes and have to drive further and further, to neighboring states.
Also, summers here are miserable for hiking- hot, humid, ticks, poison ivy. We usually spent a large part of the summer traveling, but with covid last year, we didn't go home to Germany, and no conference travel for DH. The rivers here are beautiful; we went on a few floats with rented boats (after not going for years). Tried to buy our own boats, but that was impossible in 2020.
Now we finally did it. And get to explore something new here, learn new skills, it's great.

That's great you were able to get kayaks this year, and are enjoying it so much! I'd been wanting one for years, but dh finally said he'd paddle with me as long as it was a canoe. So I ordered a kevlar canoe back in Nov 202, picked it up in April and have been paddling at least 3 days/week since then. It's wonderful to be out on the water. I wouldn't mind having a kayak, too, but the canoe is really fun. I enjoy the teamwork aspect and it's a great upper body work-out. Balances perfectly with biking and walking/hiking. 

Have fun exploring rivers and lakes in your area!

[wintermom]

I got up early and went for a 30-min morning walk before work. Then during work our company started a Summer fitness challenge today. When I entered my walk on the app I somehow entered 3 hours instead of 30 min. I couldn't figure out how to edit the entry, so I walked 30 min at lunch and went for a 2 hour bike ride this evening. So now the 3 hours is correct. Maybe I should do this everyday - pick a crazy time duration, enter it in the challenge, and then do that amount of activity. 😅

The bike ride was really nice. I biked along some nice paved pathways to the river, then came home again on gravel trails. 

Edited July 6, 2021 by wintermom

[Soror]

Upper body(done) today and a walk.

 

Edited July 6, 2021 by Soror

[regentrude]

9 hours ago, wintermom said:

That's great you were able to get kayaks this year, and are enjoying it so much! I'd been wanting one for years, but dh finally said he'd paddle with me as long as it was a canoe. So I ordered a kevlar canoe back in Nov 202, picked it up in April and have been paddling at least 3 days/week since then. It's wonderful to be out on the water. I wouldn't mind having a kayak, too, but the canoe is really fun. I enjoy the teamwork aspect and it's a great upper body work-out. Balances perfectly with biking and walking/hiking. 

Great that your DH is on board. Figuratively and literally. Do you live by water? How do you haul the canoe? And how heavy is it?

Transportation was one of our main issues to figure out. We have compact car and a sedan.

 

[Jenny in Florida]

On 7/1/2021 at 8:52 AM, Jenny in Florida said:

Things I'm adding:

• Buy a new scale. (Mine was apparently lost or seriously misplaced in the move.)
• Weigh regularly, even if I don't like what the scale says, and try not to let it become the focus of my whole day.
• Get back to being intentionally reasonable about what I'm eating (without getting too focused or restrictive).
• Start nudging my weight back down towards 135.

I've been good about meeting my movement goals, although I got lazy for a couple of weeks and often just barely eeked them out. I like it better when I comfortably exceed those goals, so I'm trying to re-orient myself to remember that those goals are minimums.

And I bought my new scale and forced myself to step on it. It wasn't pretty, but wasn't as terrible as I thought based on how unwieldy and bulgy I've been feeling. I need to lose about 18 pounds to get back to the range in which I feel more comfortable. I'm trying to remember, too, that the reason for wanting to lose this weight is to improve my health and daily life (arthritic knees and neuropathic feet/legs do a lot better when they have less to lift and carry around, and I am able to decrease my dosage of some medications when I weigh less). This is not an area in which I have a great history, though. 

As for the rest of those new goals? Let's just say that I ate more french fries over the long holiday weekend than I have in months and that my weight actually went up by a pound from the date on which I first stepped on the new scale. So, lots of room for progress on those last three bullet points.

Edited July 6, 2021 by Jenny in Florida

[wintermom]

On 7/6/2021 at 7:22 AM, regentrude said:

Great that your DH is on board. Figuratively and literally. Do you live by water? How do you haul the canoe? And how heavy is it?

Transportation was one of our main issues to figure out. We have compact car and a sedan.

 

We are fortunate to live close to several rivers within 15 - 30 min drive, and tons of lakes if we want to drive a little further. For transporting the canoe, we have a little utility trailer that my dh added wooden supports. It's super easy to lift on and off, and being kevlar it it's pretty light. We just leave the canoe on the trailer in our driveway so it's quick to hook up the trailer and go for a paddle after work or on the weekend. I tried to learn to back up with the trailer, but I'm terrible at it so I try to find places to park where I don't have to back up. 😄

 

 

Edited July 9, 2021 by wintermom

[Ali in OR]

First day of summer school today, in which we find out what if any technology works. Would like a copy machine available, to be able to project my chromebook screen, and most importantly to be able to use Canvas to administer quizzes and tests.

Did my bodyweight circuit x2 and Wakeup Yoga. Have my food planned for the day and once again all goals are being met, even protein. I did add a Yasso chocolate fudge bar to hit that (Greek yogurt--6 gm protein). My regular mocha and baked oatmeal for breakfast, PBJ and a Greek yogurt parfait for lunch, and our weekly breakfast for dinner will be scrambled eggs for me. Omelettes or French toast for whoever wants them.

[Laura Corin]

Very rainy all day. We managed a dog walk this morning, then I did a 45 minute intermediate yoga. I'm always telling myself that I don't have time to do a sequence that long, but I'm on holiday this week so there's no excuse.

[Soror]

I've had soreness this week but not as bad as I thought (I am stretching and rolling like crazy). 

I didn't get an official walk yesterday but did walk around the yard while talking to the kids and some walking while watching a show and exceeded my step goals.

Today is lower body strength training. 40 ish minutes- I'll add a 20 min bonus if I'm feeling spunky

Need to mow yard too- might take kids to the lake after that

I finally got to bed on time last night, had trouble falling asleep since I have had screwed up bedtime for nearly a week straight due to various reasons (summer time just makes it harder). I slept better than I had been, yesterday I was just exhausted and starving. I'll try to make it without a nap today so maybe I'll be able to fall asleep earlier. 

Plan to finally do lunch meal prep today that got neglected on Sunday when I added on the hike. Thai coconut curry tofu with rice and veggies.

Edited July 7, 2021 by Soror

[wintermom]

@Soror Sorry you're uncomfortable and not sleeping well. I know how you feel. I just got my 2nd Covid shot and I didn't sleep well because of the arm pain. I'm groggy this morning, but trying to keep working. Fortunately my big task for today just got postponed until next week!

I played an hour of doubles tennis yesterday evening. I'm so glad I played as it's raining today and tomorrow. I'll be keeping my activity level low to let my body recover from the vaccination.

[Soror]

1 hour ago, wintermom said:

@Soror Sorry you're uncomfortable and not sleeping well. I know how you feel. I just got my 2nd Covid shot and I didn't sleep well because of the arm pain. I'm groggy this morning, but trying to keep working. Fortunately my big task for today just got postponed until next week!

I played an hour of doubles tennis yesterday evening. I'm so glad I played as it's raining today and tomorrow. I'll be keeping my activity level low to let my body recover from the vaccination.

Yaaaa! You got your second shot. Fingers crossed you don't feel too bad. It seems like it really varies. Dd1 just had her 2nd Pfizer and didn't have any reaction except a slightly sore arm.

[IvyInFlorida]

Just skimmed through the thread--I have been missing you guys!

After numerous health setbacks, I'm finally back in the groove after having Jackson.  I've had a good couple months being consistent and making progress with my exercise routine and am maintaining at slightly below my pre-pregnancy weight.  In all, feeling much better about health/fitness/eating, thankfully!

No exercise going on here today (we have hurricane/tropical storm Elsa parked overhead as we speak), but this is what I have been doing: run/walk intervals in the park with the jogging stroller 6 mornings a week and weightlifting following the Stronglifts program 3x a week.  Really enjoying and seeing progress with both!  Getting about 14k steps a day. 

Eating plan hasn't changed much...emphasis on lean protein and veggies/fruit with enough complex carbs to keep my energy level up. 

I don't really have any specific goals now that I'm not doing martial arts anymore.  I don't think I am necessarily goal-oriented so much as routine-oriented, if that makes sense?  Maybe it's a function of being in my 40s, haha!

Anyways, you ladies are amazing and I love all the pictures and updates.

 

[Soror]

Got in my leg workout and the glute bonus. The first workout was another 30 variations of squats and lunges- using a yoga block to elevate heels and feet at time, I couldn't do some of those very well. Towards the end there was this kneel to squat jump- I didn't even try, those are hard enough when my legs aren't fatigued.I finished with the 20 min glute workouts with my  heaviest nylon band. My butt will really be kicked when my fabric bands come in. 

 

[Ali in OR]

30 min on treadmill this morning. Will finish off my week of meatless eating, but I think I eat better with a little meat in there. Too many eggs, too many carbs to fill up. Still meeting my eating goals mostly--though I went off plan for dinner yesterday and didn't bother to enter what I ate to see how I did. And haven't entered today yet either.

[Soror]

2 minutes ago, IvyInFlorida said:

Just skimmed through the thread--I have been missing you guys!

After numerous health setbacks, I'm finally back in the groove after having Jackson.  I've had a good couple months being consistent and making progress with my exercise routine and am maintaining at slightly below my pre-pregnancy weight.  In all, feeling much better about health/fitness/eating, thankfully!

No exercise going on here today (we have hurricane/tropical storm Elsa parked overhead as we speak), but this is what I have been doing: run/walk intervals in the park with the jogging stroller 6 mornings a week and weightlifting following the Stronglifts program 3x a week.  Really enjoying and seeing progress with both!  Getting about 14k steps a day. 

Eating plan hasn't changed much...emphasis on lean protein and veggies/fruit with enough complex carbs to keep my energy level up. 

I don't really have any specific goals now that I'm not doing martial arts anymore.  I don't think I am necessarily goal-oriented so much as routine-oriented, if that makes sense?  Maybe it's a function of being in my 40s, haha!

Anyways, you ladies are amazing and I love all the pictures and updates.

 

I'm so happy to 'see' you. I hope your health problems are behind you now and you stay safe today. 

I love your thought- routine oriented. I'm going to think on that. I was just reading a fitness post the other day and this lady had all these detailed strength goals. That has not worked for me so well as such things aren't linear. I've moved to having goals orientated towards what I'm doing and how much- progress rather than outcome goals. I'm working on increases in strength but I get there when I get there.

[IvyInFlorida]

@Soror Yep, I feel like there are too many things outside of my scope of control to have detailed goals.  If I sign up for a 10k and then get injured, I'll feel frustrated and disappointed.  Things like that.  But with a good, established routine, I know I'm doing the best I can with the circumstances I've been given for that day. 

It's good to see you too!  I will most likely have to have some more medical procedures done later in the summer, but I'm doing so, so much better. 

[wintermom]

1 hour ago, IvyInFlorida said:

Just skimmed through the thread--I have been missing you guys!

After numerous health setbacks, I'm finally back in the groove after having Jackson.  I've had a good couple months being consistent and making progress with my exercise routine and am maintaining at slightly below my pre-pregnancy weight.  In all, feeling much better about health/fitness/eating, thankfully!

No exercise going on here today (we have hurricane/tropical storm Elsa parked overhead as we speak), but this is what I have been doing: run/walk intervals in the park with the jogging stroller 6 mornings a week and weightlifting following the Stronglifts program 3x a week.  Really enjoying and seeing progress with both!  Getting about 14k steps a day. 

Eating plan hasn't changed much...emphasis on lean protein and veggies/fruit with enough complex carbs to keep my energy level up. 

I don't really have any specific goals now that I'm not doing martial arts anymore.  I don't think I am necessarily goal-oriented so much as routine-oriented, if that makes sense?  Maybe it's a function of being in my 40s, haha!

Anyways, you ladies are amazing and I love all the pictures and updates.

 

Welcome back, Ivy!! Glad you are feeling better and all is well with baby Jackson. 

I love your strategy to focus on healthy routines. Makes really good sense, as there are so many things beyond our control. Your routine sounds amazing. 

Hope you have time to keep popping in.

[wintermom]

1 hour ago, Soror said:

Yaaaa! You got your second shot. Fingers crossed you don't feel too bad. It seems like it really varies. Dd1 just had her 2nd Pfizer and didn't have any reaction except a slightly sore arm.

Thanks. I'm already feeling better. Arm pain is definitely fading.

--------------------------------------------------------------

I went for a 35 min power walk to clear my head. The weather is cooler, which makes it really nice for being active outdoors. If the rain keeps holding off, I'll try to get in some biking later on.

[Amethyst]

On 7/5/2021 at 7:33 PM, Alicia64 said:

 And I do a plank. (That I can only hold for 70 seconds, but I'm trying.)

Hey, 70 seconds is nothing to sneeze at! If you’re anything like me, the first time you did a plank, it was probably for a lot less. So, keep up the good work!

[Alicia64]

36 minutes ago, Amethyst said:

Hey, 70 seconds is nothing to sneeze at! If you’re anything like me, the first time you did a plank, it was probably for a lot less. So, keep up the good work!

Thanks Amethyst! I think I once heard that Cher could hold a plank for like thirty minutes or something crazy, and I felt pretty lame!

[IvyInFlorida]

I don't know about Cher, but when I was doing martial arts big time, the ultimate goal was to plank for a minute.  70 seconds is a great plank!

[Amethyst]

Well, I’ve had a great routine going for the past few weeks - morning walk of 45-60 minutes, followed by a workout using weights. Tomorrow that routine will be challenged for two reasons: I work in the morning, and there is a very good possibility of rain in the afternoon. No reason I can’t do the workout, but my goal of 11,000 steps might be difficult. 

[Laura Corin]

@wintermom glad the side effects aren't too severe. Welcome to the two-jab club! @IvyInFlorida welcome back! I'm glad that you are doing better. I manage better with routines than goals too.

We were away for the weekend and didn't get the big hike that I hoped for - long story involving dogs and cows.  I'm on holiday this week and have done a lot of sitting around. I'm getting antsy and over-involved in the Covid wave.

So today I'm planning much more activity.  I'll spend the morning weeding the garden, then have lunch with a friend.  After that, I'll set off along a trail and see how far I get. Husband's happy to pick me up at one of various contact points. Then back this evening to watch a publicity event for the publication of my niece's novel.

[IvyInFlorida]

"long story involving dogs and cows" --I'm trying not to wake up the house laughing!

Got decent sleep last night, and after a couple days of doing basically nothing (tropical storm, doctor appointments, middle son's birthday) I am more than ready to get active today.  Plan is to head to the park at about 7 to try and beat the day's thunderstorms/heat for walk-run intervals.  Just had some toast with PB Fit and will have a huge salad with chicken and a multigrain roll for lunch and a mango chicken curry for supper.  Hopefully the park hasn't turned into a huge swamp after a full day of torrential rain.  We never lost power, though!

Y'all have a good day!

[Soror]

I slept great last night, finally.

Short on time this am- full schedule of classes and then have to take ds to the dentist. Lucky for me today is a planned rest day.

I did 10 min of yoga already and will do another 15 directly after classes. When we get back from the dentist I'll squeeze in a 15 min ab workout and will take a walk when the kids do TKD today.

I did get some soup made for lunch yesterday, ya! I'll have my thai coconut curry soup for lunch and beef fajitas for dinner.

Now must go and get on to teaching. Have a great day ladies!

Edited July 8, 2021 by Soror

[Carrie12345]

I never manage to commit to these threads, but here’s a random update.

I’ve been lazy, lazy, lazy, and it caught up to me HARD. I’m generally not a scale fan, but I hit almost 30lbs over my comfort zone, which is really about 40lbs over where I’d love to be. More importantly, my body was just unhappy and running on too much garbage.

I decided to use C25K on the elliptical as a way to have a set “program” to get going, and just finished week 2 this morning. Also some light strength training and lots of stretching. My flexibility had practically disappeared. And I’ve been making better food choices, so yay. I’m down just over 3lbs, despite 4 days of barbecues in this time period, lol. And I’m starting to feel a bit better.

I bought a really cheap fitness watch to try to track things, but the heart rate monitor and sleep tracker both suck. I’m trying to decide whether or not to splurge on an Apple Watch. Dh loves his, but I’m not yet convinced. I worry about getting my heart rate up too high, but it’s hard for me to manually check while moving!

I’ve been in good shape before, so I know I can do it again, but this is probably my furthest (non-birth-related) setback, so it’s extra mentally hard. I think I’m pretty determined though!

[Laura Corin]

@Carrie12345 those sound like good plans. I had good luck with Fitbit trackers until I  had compatibility problems with the phone I had to buy after we moved house. I now have a low-range Garmin which seems fine.

I find that rules of thumb for maximum heart rate are not very reliable.  When I last checked with a doctor,  he was happy for me to go with how I feel rather than with a particular number. Your doctor might be able to give advice. 

-------

Good walk yesterday, along the trail over the hill to the town on the coast. Around 7.5 fast miles. Husband picked me up at the other end. I had spent the morning weeding, so a pretty active day.

Today I plan some yoga or a dog walk this morning then, after seeing my mother, a de-stress run. 

Eta photo of a wall on my walk

Edited July 9, 2021 by Laura Corin

[IvyInFlorida]

@Laura Corin Is running a newish activity for you?  I can't remember you doing that much before, but mom-brain is real around here.

 

ANOTHER night of decent sleep--gosh, I might get used to getting more than 5 hours at this rate, ha.  Jackson is a delight, but sleeping is not his thing! 

We're going to sneak in a trip to the park before the rains start today, but I most likely will walk those 45 mins instead of including any running because of foot pain I don't want to aggravate.  This afternoon I have weight lifting scheduled, which I am excited about.  These last 6 weeks are the first time I've done a "standard" lifting program with predetermined rest times, periodization, and progressions, and I'm seeing really great results.  Before, I utilized a lot of circuit training, HIIT, and kettlebell swings to include a heavier cardio element.  Which is fine, but kind of muddied the waters in terms of optimizing strength gain.

Plus, I have a barbell now and my husband built me a squat/bench rack, so I don't have to make exercise substitutions in my programming.  Feels good!

Food for today: PB Fit toast, huge salad with chicken, pork tenderloin w/ baked sweet potato and multigrain bread roll.

[Soror]

Today is full body strength training for me. I think I'll also be doing a short cardio routine, maybe some core work.

I have realized this week that I'm finally feeling back to normal- I haven't had this much energy since last summer before the thyroid medication issues and crash. I was honestly thinking in the spring I'd not get back to where I was. I weigh about the same as I did last summer but I'm smaller now. Three times this week I've tried something on and it has been a bit big on me. I had noticed a few weeks ago my shorts were getting looser, now it's my tops.

The not so good- I've got to buy new tennis shoes. I keep rubbing blisters on my feet when I walk. My newest tennis shoes are over 2 years old and have gotten a lot of wear. I've tried to order some online but keep having to send them back. I'm going to hit the shoe stores today until I find something.

[Soror]

20 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

I never manage to commit to these threads, but here’s a random update.

I’ve been lazy, lazy, lazy, and it caught up to me HARD. I’m generally not a scale fan, but I hit almost 30lbs over my comfort zone, which is really about 40lbs over where I’d love to be. More importantly, my body was just unhappy and running on too much garbage.

I decided to use C25K on the elliptical as a way to have a set “program” to get going, and just finished week 2 this morning. Also some light strength training and lots of stretching. My flexibility had practically disappeared. And I’ve been making better food choices, so yay. I’m down just over 3lbs, despite 4 days of barbecues in this time period, lol. And I’m starting to feel a bit better.

I bought a really cheap fitness watch to try to track things, but the heart rate monitor and sleep tracker both suck. I’m trying to decide whether or not to splurge on an Apple Watch. Dh loves his, but I’m not yet convinced. I worry about getting my heart rate up too high, but it’s hard for me to manually check while moving!

I’ve been in good shape before, so I know I can do it again, but this is probably my furthest (non-birth-related) setback, so it’s extra mentally hard. I think I’m pretty determined though!

Welcome back Carrie! It is nice how quickly we can feel better when we are active and eat well. I had a fitbit until it died and didn't want to pay that much again for something that didn't last that long. I got a knock off on amazon with a million reviews. The interface isn't as nice but it does the job. I don't watch sleep or HR much anymore. I just go by how I feel.

3 hours ago, Laura Corin said:

@Carrie12345 those sound like good plans. I had good luck with Fitbit trackers until I  had compatibility problems with the phone I had to buy after we moved house. I now have a low-range Garmin which seems fine.

I find that rules of thumb for maximum heart rate are not very reliable.  When I last checked with a doctor,  he was happy for me to go with how I feel rather than with a particular number. Your doctor might be able to give advice. 

-------

Good walk yesterday, along the trail over the hill to the town on the coast. Around 7.5 fast miles. Husband picked me up at the other end. I had spent the morning weeding, so a pretty active day.

Today I plan some yoga or a dog walk this morning then, after seeing my mother, a de-stress run. 

Eta photo of a wall on my walk

Yes, I hit 192 last weekend on HR which is supposed to be above my max and didn't die, felt like I worked hard. I honestly rarely check it these days.

That is a nice active day- good job you!

2 hours ago, IvyInFlorida said:

@Laura Corin Is running a newish activity for you?  I can't remember you doing that much before, but mom-brain is real around here.

 

ANOTHER night of decent sleep--gosh, I might get used to getting more than 5 hours at this rate, ha.  Jackson is a delight, but sleeping is not his thing! 

We're going to sneak in a trip to the park before the rains start today, but I most likely will walk those 45 mins instead of including any running because of foot pain I don't want to aggravate.  This afternoon I have weight lifting scheduled, which I am excited about.  These last 6 weeks are the first time I've done a "standard" lifting program with predetermined rest times, periodization, and progressions, and I'm seeing really great results.  Before, I utilized a lot of circuit training, HIIT, and kettlebell swings to include a heavier cardio element.  Which is fine, but kind of muddied the waters in terms of optimizing strength gain.

Plus, I have a barbell now and my husband built me a squat/bench rack, so I don't have to make exercise substitutions in my programming.  Feels good!

Food for today: PB Fit toast, huge salad with chicken, pork tenderloin w/ baked sweet potato and multigrain bread roll.

Ya for sleep, babies make it hard!

It is so exciting to start a new program. That's awesome that you got a squat rack at home now! I had a squat rack and bench ages ago but always felt more comfortable in the gym doing power lifting stuff. I'm doing dumbbells now (also recently started a new program that I'm in love with!)

[wintermom]

@Laura Corin Great photo! I love stone walls. Sounds like you are fitting in a lot of great activity close to home on your time off! 

@IvyInFlorida Those baby years of little sleep are a blur for me. I don't know how I did it for so long. Glad you are able to get some personal time for fitness. That was a life saver for me, and still is!

@Soror Yay! So glad to hear you say you are feeling back to normal!!! Enjoy your shoe shopping!

 

It rained most of the day yesterday, but I did manage to squeeze in a 30 min and 60 min walk. I'm playing tennis this evening with dh and friends. I'll also be walking with a friend after work. I'll probably do a little walk this morning, too. 

 

[Soror]

Workout done! I'm soaking wet with sweat and feeling accomplished.

40ish minutes full body strength- death by hip thrusts, rows, and push-ups (and a few other things)

10 min lower ab

10 EMOM (every minute on the minute) burpees, jump lunges, and marches

3 min plank challenge at the end of the HIIT video- I made it to the end but had to go from forearm to straight arms a couple of times and nearly cried- I don't usually do plank for time and didn't realize this was at the end of the HIIT video but thought I'd see how far I could go. 

1 more workout to go and week 1 of Epic Heat is done (Burpee HIIT-- ugh!)

[Soror]

2 hours ago, wintermom said:

 

It rained most of the day yesterday, but I did manage to squeeze in a 30 min and 60 min walk. I'm playing tennis this evening with dh and friends. I'll also be walking with a friend after work. I'll probably do a little walk this morning, too. 

 

We got a storm yesterday too but it moved out quickly-- have fun at tennis. I know I don't envy Ivy and the sleepless nights with baby. My last one nearly killed me!

[Jenny in Florida]

On 7/7/2021 at 9:48 PM, Amethyst said:

Well, I’ve had a great routine going for the past few weeks - morning walk of 45-60 minutes, followed by a workout using weights. Tomorrow that routine will be challenged for two reasons: I work in the morning, and there is a very good possibility of rain in the afternoon. No reason I can’t do the workout, but my goal of 11,000 steps might be difficult. 

That's similar to my regular morning routine, except that, while I use light hand weights as part of my arm exercises, I don't think it qualifies as "working out using weights." It is tough to make it happen before work, I agree. Especially these days while I'm taking a course and need to be at my desk an hour earlier than usual every day in order to make up the time I spend in class.

In terms of step count, there are definitely days like yesterday when I eeek out those last 1,000 (or sometimes more) steps by walking in circles around my house before bed.

I'm going to tell you what I tell myself (and often can't manage to take to heart, but maybe you'll be better at it!): Every bit of exercise you do every day is good for you, and your body doesn't actually care if you get exactly 11,000 steps every day. Some days, it may be a little less, but it's made up for by the other days when you get a few extra. You're doing great.

[IvyInFlorida]

3 hours ago, Soror said:

We got a storm yesterday too but it moved out quickly-- have fun at tennis. I know I don't envy Ivy and the sleepless nights with baby. My last one nearly killed me!

Repeated night waking is definitely a whole different beast at 41 than it was when I had my first at 30!

[Amethyst]

2 hours ago, Jenny in Florida said:

That's similar to my regular morning routine, except that, while I use light hand weights as part of my arm exercises, I don't think it qualifies as "working out using weights." It is tough to make it happen before work, I agree. Especially these days while I'm taking a course and need to be at my desk an hour earlier than usual every day in order to make up the time I spend in class.

In terms of step count, there are definitely days like yesterday when I eeek out those last 1,000 (or sometimes more) steps by walking in circles around my house before bed.

I did manage to get my 11,000 steps in yesterday as well as my workout. Yay! 
 

I also walk circles around my house to reach my goal some days!

[Laura Corin]

1 hour ago, IvyInFlorida said:

Repeated night waking is definitely a whole different beast at 41 than it was when I had my first at 30!

I started later than you and finished earlier.  My first at 33 slept through the night from six weeks old - my second at 37 not so much. It was hard.

You asked about running. I ran for a couple of years a few years ago, but my arthritic knee objected. Since then I've worked on muscle strength to support my joints, so I started running again during lockdown. I run on my forefoot to reduce the jarring, and I'm strict about sticking to soft surfaces. So far so good.

I didn't get my run in today. Things were a bit complicated at Mum's care home and there wasn't time to drop the dog home before going to run. It was too warm to leave her in the car. I went home and finished my niece's novel in the hammock in the garden,  then did 30 minutes of yoga on the lawn. 

I'm away for the weekend  - probably lots of steps.

[lynn]

This has been an odd week.  Took a good hike while I was visiting family and doing a beach body hammer total body workouts for the week then back to my regular body beast schedule.  

[barnwife]

Only doing okay on exercise this week. Though I need a break from BBM at the moment, one of the things I like is that it's all planned out in 90 day challenges, so I don't have to think/choose what to do each day. Also, it alternates strength days with cardio days, which makes sure I get to both. Otherwise I tend to go all in on cardio for a while and then strength, but I feel better when I alternate days.

Maybe I'll be able to squeeze in some strength work or stretching/yoga this evening.

 

[barnwife]

9 hours ago, IvyInFlorida said:

Repeated night waking is definitely a whole different beast at 41 than it was when I had my first at 30!

Yes! (Although, I am a year younger than you, apparently, but still...) Throw insomnia in on top of it and some days I barely function. 

DS10months is a teething monster. Teeth 3 and 4 are so close to popping through. And he is not handling teething as well as our others. With the older 4, I could probably count the number of times I gave pain meds on one hand (for all four in total). This kid? I am so, so, so glad to live in an age with OTC pain meds for infants. 

This too shall pass...this too shall pass. 

[IvyInFlorida]

@Laura Corin  I'm sorry you didn't get your run in yesterday!  But your experience rehabbing your knee is very inspirational to me--you played the long game and took the time to work on fixing a problem.  I need to think/act in those terms more with fitness.

@barnwife I don't even remember having teething trouble with my other two, but this one--whew.

 

I was so looking forward to lifting weights yesterday...tweaked my lower back on my very first set.  I could tell back trouble was coming (picking the baby up out of the bottom of a pack n' play is not the best for that) but I had been ignoring it instead of handling it.  Bah.  Now I'm reduced to just walking to keep it loosened up.  What a disappointment.  I walked a ton yesterday, though.  45 mins in the morning, half hour in the afternoon, another 45 mins while my son was at basketball practice.  One day I will learn to treat those little pain niggles before they get bad enough to derail my routine!

Today's food: PB Fit toast, big salad with a homemade turkey burger, steak bites with roasted veg and potato in some form.

[Soror]

 

11 hours ago, barnwife said:

Only doing okay on exercise this week. Though I need a break from BBM at the moment, one of the things I like is that it's all planned out in 90 day challenges, so I don't have to think/choose what to do each day. Also, it alternates strength days with cardio days, which makes sure I get to both. Otherwise I tend to go all in on cardio for a while and then strength, but I feel better when I alternate days.

Maybe I'll be able to squeeze in some strength work or stretching/yoga this evening.

 

Nice to see you. I like having a set plan too, that way I don't have to think about it. Maybe you can find someone else on YT that fits your style while you are taking a break?

14 hours ago, Laura Corin said:

I started later than you and finished earlier.  My first at 33 slept through the night from six weeks old - my second at 37 not so much. It was hard.

You asked about running. I ran for a couple of years a few years ago, but my arthritic knee objected. Since then I've worked on muscle strength to support my joints, so I started running again during lockdown. I run on my forefoot to reduce the jarring, and I'm strict about sticking to soft surfaces. So far so good.

I didn't get my run in today. Things were a bit complicated at Mum's care home and there wasn't time to drop the dog home before going to run. It was too warm to leave her in the car. I went home and finished my niece's novel in the hammock in the garden,  then did 30 minutes of yoga on the lawn. 

I'm away for the weekend  - probably lots of steps.

Have a good weekend Laura!

14 hours ago, Amethyst said:

I did manage to get my 11,000 steps in yesterday as well as my workout. Yay! 
 

I also walk circles around my house to reach my goal some days!

LOL, I do the same sometimes. ITA with Jenny I look at averages. Some times there is a bad day. Heck, I've had bad weeks, it happens. Consistency is not perfection.

[Soror]

58 minutes ago, IvyInFlorida said:

I was so looking forward to lifting weights yesterday...tweaked my lower back on my very first set.  I could tell back trouble was coming (picking the baby up out of the bottom of a pack n' play is not the best for that) but I had been ignoring it instead of handling it.  Bah.  Now I'm reduced to just walking to keep it loosened up.  What a disappointment.  I walked a ton yesterday, though.  45 mins in the morning, half hour in the afternoon, another 45 mins while my son was at basketball practice.  One day I will learn to treat those little pain niggles before they get bad enough to derail my routine!

Today's food: PB Fit toast, big salad with a homemade turkey burger, steak bites with roasted veg and potato in some form.

Oh no!!! That really, really stinks. I hope it is short lived.

30 min Burpee HIIT today and maybe a walk---

[Laura Corin]

2 hours ago, IvyInFlorida said:

@Laura Corin  I'm sorry you didn't get your run in yesterday!  But your experience rehabbing your knee is very inspirational to me--you played the long game and took the time to work on fixing a problem.  I need to think/act in those terms more with fitness.

@barnwife I don't even remember having teething trouble with my other two, but this one--whew.

 

I was so looking forward to lifting weights yesterday...tweaked my lower back on my very first set.  I could tell back trouble was coming (picking the baby up out of the bottom of a pack n' play is not the best for that) but I had been ignoring it instead of handling it.  Bah.  Now I'm reduced to just walking to keep it loosened up.  What a disappointment.  I walked a ton yesterday, though.  45 mins in the morning, half hour in the afternoon, another 45 mins while my son was at basketball practice.  One day I will learn to treat those little pain niggles before they get bad enough to derail my routine!

Today's food: PB Fit toast, big salad with a homemade turkey burger, steak bites with roasted veg and potato in some form.

Sorry to hear about the tweak. Walking is good though. The only health care I pay for out of pocket is timely physiotherapy for occasional back issues, but it's not too expensive here. As most people are used to getting health care free at the point of need, the physio needs to moderate his charges.

My knee rehab wasn't exactly intentional.  I gave up running and at about the same time realised that I needed to put more effort into strength yoga to preserve my muscle for old age. The ability to return to running has been a happy byproduct of that. 

Missed our train connection.  Bit of cardio in the station. Now in very socially distanced train.

[Soror]

HIIT DONE! It was hard and I was slow at times but didn't ever stop. 

Did short kickboxing and walk during a class break. Will try for more of a walk later.

My knock off watch only has a few workout options so today I picked spinning for my HIIT workout- but then it didn't count any steps during my workout and I did a lot of steps with 30 min of burpees and various other things. Annoying. I don't even usually select a workout but had been trying it out here and there, guess I won't do that again. I noticed this watch does not catch incidental movement as much. Not a bad thing I guess, when I get a step it is for sure earned. 

Got some Brooks yesterday. They felt the best of those I tried on and are supposed to be good shoes. They worked well today. 

My food today--- 

plain gf steel cut oats w/ fresh blackberries and a few pecans (before workout)

2 eggs+ 2 egg whites, spinach, and gf nut/seed toast(small slice)

lunch- might go out on a date with dh- will have chicken salad if that is the case otherwise- thai coconut curry w/ sweet potato, celery, spinach, and chicken

snack-probably low fat cottage cheese and pineapple + 2 pieces dark chocolate sea salt caramels

dinner- salmon- asparagus- sweet potato