For easier browsing, here's a list of my blog posts related to fitness. Hopefully this helps you narrow down your searching, though I hope you'll still check out the other sections too! As always, please let me know if there's something else you'd like to know about or see here - click on the 'contact' tab of my blog.
Fitness Tips for the New Year
So, since it's a new year, I know lots of people are planning to lose some weight. In fact, CNN.com is doing a poll today; it simply asked if you are planning to lose weight this year. When I checked, 77% of the responders said yes. That's a big number. And I suspect some folks don't even know where to start or may feel overwhelmed. So I thought I'd try to break down some basics here. Read More...
Tips for New Runners
So I'm on a half marathon training team. And there's TONS of people there every Saturday running our weekly 'long' runs. And I see and hear so many things from folks about aches and pains - that could be easily prevented. Luckily, before I started running, my husband had been running for several years. Throughout that time, I learned all the things he did wrong, through his trial and error and from learning from other runners. This means I didn't have to go through all those things. So I thought I'd share some of them here so that maybe some new runners won't have to go through those things either. Read More...
Do you HIIT? (High Intensity Interval Training)
If not, you should.
It's said to burn 9x more fat than steady state cardio. Yep, that means if you walk at a steady pace for 30 minutes, you'd burn 9 TIMES that if you were doing HIIT instead. More bang for your buck. More fun. And more effective. So why aren't you doing it? Don't know how? Don't know if it's for you? Read More...
No Time to Workout?
If you have a busy schedule, it can be hard to find 30 minutes or an hour every day to workout, I know! If this is you, just try breaking it up instead! Go for a 15 minute walk in the morning. Make it brisk, make it count, don't just stroll. And then in the afternoon or evening, get a 15 minute workout in in your living room. If you have a great workout program, use it, even if you have to just do half of a DVD to make it only 15 minutes. If you just want to kind of wing it for a while, make yourself a circuit that'll last 15 minutes. Try something like this: Read More...
P90X2 - What's the Fuss About?
You've probably heard/read/seen lots of buzz about P90X2 being released soon. It's on preorder from Sep 1-5th through beachbody coaches only. Then it will be available for preorder to the public. Why do a preorder, you may ask? Well, all signs point to a sell-out. P90X is THE most successful, popular, effective workout in the U.S. So the sequel promises to be even better. Graduates of P90X (or Insanity, Turbo Fire, or Chalean Extreme) are very interested in "the next level". And P90X2 IS the next level.
So, you want to know a little more about why all the hubbub? Read More...
Rest Days. To Rest or Not to Rest?
Sometimes we can get so gung-ho about our new routines that it's actually hard to take a rest day. Here's the skinny, as I see it...
Yes, you need rest days. Especially after strength training. To build muscle, you actually do NEED that recover time afterward. No kidding. Read More...
Work It!
So, I keep seeing and hearing things that concern me a little...about viewpoints on fitness and how to lose weight.
Yes, it's true that if you move more, and eat less, you will lose weight. (Calories in versus calories out IS the reason you lose or gain weight, afterall). But what I'm worried about is that this mindset allows us a mentality of 'bare minimum'. And of course, for some, that's fine. But shouldn't we strive for greatness? Not just in health and fitness, but in life? Read More...
The Insanity of Insanity
So, I did it, I tried Insanity a couple of days ago. Here's how it went. First, I was excited. I knew it was hard. A friend lent me his set because he wasn't using them. So I went home after work, quickly changed, got some water and jumped right in. The warm up was good, the first few minutes I was feeling encouraged. Then about 10 minutes in, sweat was pouring off of me. I was beginning to wonder if I'd be able to do all 45 minutes. I will admit, it was HARD, but sort of fun in a sick way. Felt like drills, like football camp or something. And all that jumping and whatnot was certainly more interesting than going for a walk, or doing some random bicep curls.
So about 12 minutes in, I was considering stopping. Then Shaun T. says (while he's out of breath) "Alright guys, we're almost there, almost done with the warm up".
Crap. Read More...
Run Faster
So you're a runner. Or maybe you want to be. But you feel slow, or maybe you've had the same pace for the last 3 months. The thing is, if you keep running at your current pace - you will stay at that pace. In order to run faster - you have to, well, run faster. Sounds like I'm being a smart aleck, I know. But just go with me on this. Imagine you're trying to get better at something else; like speaking in public. The only way to get better at it is to practice it. So in that same vein, the only way to get faster is to practice being faster.
Here's a good way to train to be faster... Read More...
Weights or Cardio?
I sat here thinking long and hard about what my FIRST post should be about. That's a lot of pressure, you know. The inaugural post. It should be something memorable. Something that matters. Something that will make you want to come back again. Then it hit me. One of the most misunderstood parts of working out and getting fit is cardio versus resistance training. SO many women think that hours on the treadmill is all it takes to 'get skinny'. That's so far from the truth - AND I'm passionate about spreading that word.
So there you go. My first post is to help YOU figure out what kind of workout is best for your goals. Read More...
