Where's the Beach?

Snow Day Workout Well, we got snow. And we got a 2-hour work delay this morning. That meant I was able to get in my leg workout first thing. I went with 3 sets of supersets plus some conditioning exercises. I did try to increase my weights from last week for many of the exercises: SS#1 Squats Plie squats SS#2 Step ups Deadlifts SS#3 Static lunges Calf raises Alternating squats with kick (16 total) Weighted plie hops -24 Firewalkers - 8 Weighted donkey kicks - 2x18 Roll-ins/hip lifts on ball Ghost Town at Work I got to work around 9:30. I let Jason drive us both in. And....there was no one there. It was a total ghost town. I did finally see one person in the hallway around 11:45. I swear there was a conspiracy this morning though. I forgot to change my password on Friday, that meant I was locked out of my computer this morning. Did I mention it was a ghost town? That meant I didn't get my new password for about an hour. Ahhhhh, good times. My boss told me to ...

Crockpot Fail Ok, so it wasn't the crockpot's fault that the crockpot chili failed. It was my fault for not starting it sooner. Really there was no reason to cook the chili in the crockpot other than to play with my new toy. But after 2 hours, I was beyond ready to eat and the chili was nowhere near being ready. I did the only rational thing I could think of...transfer to a soup pot and finish it up quickly. I did add barley to the chili for a change. I always see others adding it and never seem to remember myself. Anyway, this is a recipe I'll try again when I can program it to start about 4 hours ahead of time. Crockpot Tempeh Chili Ingredients: 1 package tempeh, crumbled and browned 1/4 cup pearled barley 1 15 oz can no-salt diced tomatoes 1 can red beans, rinsed and drained 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained 16 oz no-salt vegetable broth 1 not-beef bouillon cube 32 oz water 1/2 green bell pepper, diced 1/2 red bell pepper, diced 1/2 white onion, dice...

Soup Sunday Last night we were pretty lazy. We watched a movie (A Walk to Remember) and ended up heating up leftover Chipotle Kabocha and Pumpkin Soup for dinner. Neither of use wanted anything heavy at all, so this was perfect and involved no cooking. STS and Step Today I knew I was going to do chest at lunch, but what I ended up decided (last minute) is to restart Cathe's STS (Shock Training System) Series again. This time I will break out the muscle groups though. This will allow me to continue to do weights during lunch. I had been putting off restarting STS because I didn't want to do hour long weight sessions right now. Today was Meso 1, Disc 1. It was supposed to be chest, shoulders, biceps, but I did chest and biceps only. Meso 1 is all about endurance (and pushups). I didn't have time to look back at my workout cards from the first round of STS so I definitely miscalculated weights today - as in went way heavier than I probably should have, but only hit fai...

NuNaturals Stevia Giveaway Winners I used a random number generator to choose the winners. I did remove those who were not eligible due to location or had asked not to be entered. I have already emailed the winners but wanted to congratulate them again. Thank you all so much for your comments. #5 Sarena @ The Non-dairy Queen #17 Candice @ ChiaSeedMe #12 Meghan @ Cooking in College #10 Nichole @ Live for the Run Don't forget - you can save 15% off your order. To receive 15% off your total order, just visit their site (www.nunaturals.com), and at the checkout page enter this code:  BLG1130. When you order through their website, you also receive FREE SHIPPING to the Continental U.S. on all orders totaling $35.00 and over, after this special discount. This offer is ends November 30, 2010. Thanks to Ron at NuNaturals for allowing me to do this giveaway. Two on Tuesday Today was a cold, wet, dreary day. We were hoping to do the Tuesday group run again, but not in...

Working Hard - Being Rewarded  Well, I must say that I feel soooo much lighter today after getting one major project off my plate at work. Was it perfect? Nope. There are always little changes that need to be made, but they are minor. I do have several more very big, mandated projects lined up still. Next week is going to be pretty insane again. We're hosting a conference at our location, and I have been helping put that together. So there will be some late nights for events, then the conferences during the day. I had one person ask me if I liked my job. Trust me, if I didn't, I would not be working these hours. At my last job, if someone had asked me to work 5 minutes past my 8-hour shift, I would have just laughed...and left. But I had little respect for my boss, for the company, etc. I feel so incredibly lucky to be working for this company now. I have a great boss, great coworkers, and it's a great environment. Do I have days when I don't want to go...

Trying New Workout = Fail Today was super busy at work. I have some seriously tight deadlines - as in MUST go live effective 10/1/10. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. I ended up working through lunch and leaving around 3. I was really on the fence about working out. I had no idea what I wanted to do. My legs are still talking to me, so I knew it couldn't be anything over the top. I good friend had been doing P90X, and I have heard so much about the cardio, including the Kenpo workout. He let me borrow it to see if I would like it. I thought I might try that one today rather than a step or plyo type workout. Ok, seriously, the intensity level on that is just nil. I was really terribly unimpressed. Even with weighted gloves on, my heart rate hovered at 120-ish. I finally got pretty fed up and stopped after about 15 minutes. It felt like such a waste of time. So, moving on, I ended up doing 3 combos and blasts from Cathe's Low Impact Circuit then 1 combo from her Step Blast ...

Made it Home Well, we made it back safe and sound last night. It was a pretty good trip home actually. We talked pretty much the entire time, so that made time go by fairly quickly (or for me anyway). It was definitely nice to sleep in my own bed and shower in my own shower. It's amazing how much little things like that matter and you can miss them when away. Home Workout This morning my boss let us go in a little later, so I got up and got in my workouts around 7 am. In other words, I actually got to sleep in an extra 45 minutes AND get in my workouts before work. It was so nice to work out at home. I did back today as a tri set of 3x10 then a superset of 2x16: TS Pullovers Underhand rows Single-arm rows SS Lat band pulldowns Lower back extension on stability ball I followed up the workout with Cathe's Low Impact Circuit and abs. It was a nice change of pace doing the step workout as opposed to running or one of the kickboxing/boxing DVDs. It was only about 72...

Splits vs Full-Body for Lifting? Today ended up being another weight-free day for me. I didn't get up early to workout, and Jason and I ran an errand (Whole Foods) at lunch. I want my chest and back workout to be a good, solid workout with the option of a spotter, so I am putting that off until Saturday. I ended up doing the cardio only premix from Cathe Friedrich's Low Impact Circuit plus the abs workout. Now, on the topic of weights, Alycia @ Fit n Fresh commented yesterday with a question about splitting up muscle groups vs full-body workouts for weight lifting. She noticed that I typically split out my muscle groups and asked if that was how I had always worked out. I thought this was a really great question, especially for people interested in starting a weight lifting routine. I know it can be so intimidating that you just avoid it. I mean, how on earth do you know how many sets, how many reps, how many days, what exercises, what's the right weight, etc. There ar...

Summer Salad Dinner last night ended up being a Grilled Tempeh & Veggie Salad . I grilled sweet potatoes, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, and tempeh (which was marinated in a balsamic vinaigrette). We piled everything on top of a mix of red leaf lettuce and baby spinach. This has become one of my favorite summer meals I do believe. Missing My Mojo So this morning I slept in rather than get up for my workouts. I was planning on either biceps or shoulders at lunch and knew I could get in cardio after work. I decided to change up my splits this week. I've been doing biceps and triceps together for too many weeks now. Change is good. So I went with biceps and abs at lunch: Dumbbell bicep curls 3x8 Hammer curls 3x7 (just couldn't manage 8 reps with the weight I used) Concentration curls 3x8 Dumbbell biceps curls - 21's I did abs from Cathe Friedrich's Cardio & Weights DVD. After work I did a cardio only premix from Low Impact Circuit . I must admit that to...

2nd Step Day and Weights This morning I got up and did the cardio only premix from Cathe Friedrich's Low Impact Circuit . It's about 40 minutes long and very doable first thing in the morning. I really had thought about running, but it was just too sticky out. It was already 80 degrees at 5:15 am, and the humidity made the air just feel thick. Not conducive to an enjoyable run for certain (yes whining again). I wasn't sure if I was going to do legs or biceps and triceps today. My legs are still just a bit sore from Sunday's workout though and then two days of step, so I opted for biceps and triceps. Plus, I knew I could get that done during lunch and have a free evening. I did drop sets again doing 4 sets of 10 reps quickly decreasing the weight by approximately 10%. The key is no rest between changing of the weights. Dumbbell biceps curls Overhead triceps extensions Cross-body biceps curls Double-arm kickbacks Incline dumbbell curls Lying dumbbell triceps e...

End of Vacation First off, I want to say thank you all for your continued support regarding this trip. I didn't have time (for obvious reasons) to reply to each comment. I did indeed read them all - some multiple times even. You guys are the best! I wish you all could have been there with me. Unfortunately, all good vacations must come to an end right? But I was determined to cram in more vegetarian/vegan food! On the way to the train station, we ended up stopping by Grocery 13 (we had stopped in previously and wished we had more time to sample the food) rather than the Reading Terminal. I think this was a better option to be honest. Wandering around the Reading Terminal with luggage would have been tricky. This kept us on track and let us sample more food. We got a tofu, carrot, pistachio wrap, a falafel-feta wrap, and sampled 2 items from the salad bar: a yam and apple salad and a tofu and bell pepper linguine with peanut sauce. Everything was SO good. I was very impressed. T...

Weights & Step As much as I wanted to run today, I knew there was no getting up early enough to do so. Monday's are hard enough without getting up at 5 am to run. Yawn ... So, today I did my weights at lunch then cardio after work. Weights were pull muscles (biceps and back). I did 3 sets of 8 reps of the following: Biceps : Alternating curls Cross-body curls Zottoman curls Back: Single-arm horizontal row Underhand DB rows Double arm rows It was a pretty good workout. I felt pretty strong today for some reason. Love it when that happens. My legs were pretty sore from yesterday's workout, so I opted for a lower intensity cardio: Cathe's Low Impact Circuit - Cardio Only Premix plus abs. It was a great workout and helped to loosen up my legs. KIND Review I have been very remiss with my review of the KIND bars that I won from Jill @ My So Called Health LIfe . I won the Nut Delight. I don't know why, but I expected it to be a tad softer...

Cardio on my Rest Day Today should have been a rest day for me. Quite honestly, I really needed it to be too. However, I will be on the road most of tomorrow and know that I won't be able to get a workout in. So, going against what I normally preach about taking mandatory rest days, I did cardio this morning. I chose to do an easier, shorter cardio and abs. I did just 30 minutes of the cardio only premix from Low Impact Circuit and the abs that are also on that DVD. My legs felt like bricks to be quite honest, and it was hard to get going. But, I made it through and will very much enjoy my rest day tomorrow (with the exception of sitting in a car for 8 hours mind you). Almost Ready We're mostly packed and ready for the vacation. I need to finish cleaning the house so it's clean when we get home. The last thing I want to do after a vacation is clean. I'll have to do plenty of laundry as it is. I also need to write out instructions for my sister for the dogs and fo...

Step and Weights Jason got up at 5 am to go swim. While it was tempting to just stay in bed, I got my lazy self up and did 3 step combos from Low Impact Circuit's cardio premix plus abs. It was a nice wake-up workout. Not too high in intensity, not too complex in choreography - ideal for 5:30 am. I ended up doing my weights at lunch. I had planned on running some errands then doing weights after work, but changed my mind. Today is the last day of Week 7 from the 8-week rotation. It was 3 sets of 12: Biceps - Zottoman curls Triceps - Weighted dips Quads - Squats Inner thighs - Plie squats Chest - Flat bench dumbbell press Back - Underhand rows Legs - Alternating lunges with pulse Calves - Calf raises (theses I did 3 sets of 20) Shoulders - Upright row Shoulders - Rear delt raise Also added Deadlifts for hamstrings. Next week I get to do it all again, only as a superset! Wednesday Rewind Today happens to be my nephew's birthday (my sister's son). He turns four. It's ...

Weights The sun is coming up earlier, and I am finding myself mostly awake right at 6 am these past few days. If this trend keeps up, I'm thinking early morning runs will be on the books soon, especially with summer temps. I did my weight workout at lunch today. It was 2 sets of 12 reps. Shoulders - Upright rows (with dumbbells) Biceps Alternating bicep curls Quads - Squats Inner thigh - Alternating plie squats Chest - Incline dumbbell chest press Back - Underhand row (dumbbells) Legs - Static lunges Triceps - Overhead triceps extension I also added 2/12 for calves and a set of 21's for biceps just because I'm nuts. I must say that I love how quickly I build strength with this rotation. I was able to maintain heavier weights for these higher reps. Either that or I was just having a nice, strong day ;-) After work I did end up doing Low Impact Circuit - Cardio Premix (1st 3 combos) plus abs. I also stretched for a while and tried rolling out my hams on a tennis ball.  ...

TGIF Workouts This morning Jason got up at 5 am to go swim. I was awake, not chance of going back to sleep really, so I got up and did just the first 3 combos from Low Impact Circuit Cardio Only Premix plus abs. It was a good workout that got me moving and energized for the day. Jason and I had planned a lunchtime run again. They've sort of become addicting to be honest. It's just so nice to get outside for 30 minutes, especially after being stuck inside with no windows and the AC on sub-zero. Just a refreshing change and great way to spend some time with the hubs. No Pizza Friday If you read my post yesterday, you read that there will not be a Pizza Friday. What??? Of course, I made up for that by making the the Grilled Thai Tofu Pizza for Thai Thursday. I must have my weekly pizza fix of course. I'm not really sure what I'll be doing for dinner as we're going to a baseball game - The Arkansas Travelers - with another couple. I obviously won't be ord...

2 on Tuesday  This morning I was wide awake at 4:30 am. In my mind that was simply too early to workout, so I waited until a little after 5 before getting out of bed and getting ready. Today I knew I'd be doing Day 3 of my Total-Body Training workout but was not wanting to lift in the morning. So, I opted for a lower intensity cardio: Cathe's Low Impact Circuit . I did the first 3 step combos from the cardio only premix and stretched. During lunch I went home to do weights. The set up was 2 sets of 15 reps: Triceps - Weighted triceps dips Biceps - DB curls Legs - Rear leg elevated lunges Shoulders - Lateral raises Chest - Flat bench flyes Back - Underhand rows Legs - Squats Inner Thighs - Plie squats I felt like it was a pretty good workout. I am definitely much stronger feeling mid-afternoon rather than first thing in the morning. Quinoa Re-mix It was another sunny, gorgeous day here, but very windy. The pollen is insane and just blowing in clouds. It's supposed to ra...