Category: At-home workout

I Went To A Class! That I Wasn’t Teaching! (And, a UXF Inspired Workout)

4 Comments

Happy Wednesday! Two posts in one day… how do you feel about that?!

So, last night, I did something I haven’t done in a long, long, LONG time. I went to the gym. For a class. That I wasn’t teaching! Can you believe it? Back before I started teaching, I would go to the Wellington BSC 6 or 7 times a week for classes and for my own workouts. On Tuesday’s, I would go to Mary Beth’s Kickboxing IT class at 6:30. For those of you who have been reading for a while, you know that Tuesdays used to be my go-to rest days since I was teaching Mondays and then Wednesday-Saturday. Now that I don’t teach on Friday’s anymore and am only teaching every other Saturday, it gives me the option to workout on Tuesdays if I want, which is kind of fun… and also why I went to the gym last night. It was SO good to see all of my instructor friends at that gym… boy have I missed it!

006Although Mary Beth’s class is quite different than how I teach, it was really nice being able to workout for ME. I didn’t have to worry about sounding like I was sucking air as I was giving cues and pointers in my mic, I didn’t have to worry about watching everyone and checking form, I didn’t have to worry about remembering the next move. As much as I LOVE teaching, last night was a reminder that I need to get back into the gym to TAKE classes, because I really love that, too.

Post workout, I went home, watered my flowers and made a quick and easy dinner, using leftovers from Sunday’s Cinco de Mayo meal.

008

(from Instagram. Are you following me yet?)

All I did was take the leftover “chili” mixture (it thickened up in the fridge) and put it in a honey wheat tortilla (Fiber One- love them!), added some cheese and grilled it up. Quick, easy, delicious.

Workout

Ok, let’s get to that workout that I promised you, ok? As most of you probably know, I teach a UXF Burn class for the Boston Sports Club once a week. As much as I love the workouts, I get bored quickly and need to change-up the format sometimes. While the basis of the workout is consistent with the “Keep It Moving” format, I changed it up in that we kept the 60 second time intervals for the strength portions throughout the whole workout (instead of dropping them down to 45 seconds, 30 seconds, and then 2 tabata rounds).

In the Keep It Moving, the workout is set up in the following format:

1. Lower body

2. Upper body- pull

3. Core

4. Compound Movement- RIGHT

5. Compound Movement- LEFT

6. Upper- push

7. Compound Movement- both right and left together

8. Core

90 Seconds of Cardio

Although, I kept the moves somewhat consistent with how the format is laid out above, I did change it a bit in that I used moves that were not on “the list”… tisk, tisk, I know!

UXF Inspired workout

I had a really hard time trying to explain moves for #’s 3 and 4, so refer to THIS post for a better description, but it sort of looks like this:

003

If you have any other questions, please let me know! A couple of members told me that they really liked the exercises I chose for this workout, so try it out and let me know what you think!

Questions for you: Instructor friends- think it’s easier or harder to take a class vs. teach it? Do you like leftovers? Ever taken a UXF Burn class?

Also! Check in tomorrow for a special recap of the April Arms Challenge I participated in last month:)

Cardio, Strength & Core Circuits… Wednesday Workout Time!

5 Comments

Happy hump day, Burpees to Bubbly readers! How is your week going so far? Mine started off a bit rocky, and for no real reason, either. Monday just kind of sucked! Traffic, bad drivers, low class numbers, post-weekend depression. Anyone else ever feel like that on a Monday?

Anyway, I thought you might be in the need for a new workout today to spice up your weekely workouts. Yes? No? Maybe you can at least take a couple of moves or the general theme of the workout and put your own moves in to make the workout more fit for your level. Regardless, I’m going to share it with you:)

Cardio, strength & core circuitsI did this workout in a couple of different classes over the past couple of weeks and it was killer! In class, for circuit 2, we used the bench for cardio, so I changed up the moves in the above workout to be doable without a bench.

018

Squat & OH Press

019 021

Dokey Kicks- they love to hate me when I make them do these:)

As the notes say, you can do just circuit 1, just circuit 2, circuit 1 followed by circuit 2, OR do 2 rounds of each. Whatever you do, make sure you don’t forget the “meat” part of the circuit sandwich: burpees and push-ups!! My favorite;)

If you have any other questions on the moves/exercises and how to modify (whether that would be making it more challenging or less challenging), please let me know… I am more than happy to help!

Questions for you: What is the move you love to hate the most?! (burpees, for me… but I really don’t hate them at all!) What is your all time favorite exercise? All time LEAST favorite exercise?

Hope you have a wonderful day!

Jump Rope & Strength Circuit Workout

7 Comments

Hey everyone! Remember that workout that I mentioned a few times? I did it last Tuesday morning before my parents came for more birthday celebrations and it left me pleasantly sweaty and even a little shaky- I call that a win-win (side note, when I went to type “win” I accidentally typed “wine”. Not really a surprise, but glad I caught it!) in my book.

Anyway! What I loved about this workout was that it can be done pretty much anywhere and with or without weights. I used weights because I had them and wanted to intensify the workout, but it’s not necessary! Also, if you don’t have a jump rope, don’t feel comfortable using one, or don’t want to jump, you can swap out the 5 minute jump rope intervals for cardio intervals of your choice.

Jump Rope and Strength CircuitThe workout sandwiches strength training in between bursts of cardio, so it’s similar to a HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) workout since your heart rate goes up when you’re doing the cardio and then comes down a bit (but really, not that much. I was still working hard during the strength portions!) during the strength. As always, make sure you do a proper warm up and cool down before and after you attempt this workout!

Ideas for the cardio intervals:

  • Tabata style- 20 seconds on, 10 seconds rest
  • Interval style- 30 or 45 seconds on, 10-15 seconds rest. Or, maybe 60 seconds on, 10 seconds rest.
  • Switch up the direction- for one interval you could do jump roping in the forward direction and for the next you could do it in the backwards direction (this was so hard for me!)
  • Change up your tempo or speed
  • Try doing it hopping only on one foot and then the other

Ways to modify the strength moves if you don’t have weights:

  • Lower body strength moves: Don’t use weights. Simple as that:)
  • Upper body strength moves: Replace the triceps OH extensions and kickbacks with triceps dips and/or triceps push-ups and/or triceps plank hold. For the wide grip rows, simply clench your fists tight and go through the same motions as if you had weights. You’ll be surprised at how well this still works the muscles!
  • Core- Perform the side dips without weights.
  • Jump Rope- as I stated earlier, you can do this without the jump rope, you can march in place, you can jump on a cardio machine, do jumping jacks, etc. Pick something that is challenging for YOU, but is also something that will not hurt you.

I think that about covers it! Let me know if you try it- I’d love to hear about what types of intervals you chose for the cardio sections.

Questions for you:What’s your favorite cardio workout these days? I’m currently obsessed with jump roping!

Last day of being 27

8 Comments

Hey Burpees to Bubbly readers! Happy, happy Saturday to you! Have anything fun planned? I’ve got a busy day, but before I get to that, let’s catch up on yesterday! As most of you probably know, Friday’s are my “work from home” (WFH) days and after a full, busy week, it’s the best feeling to get home on Thursday after teaching a double and know I don’t have to pack a lunch or get up early to make the commute into the office. WFH on a Friday before my birthday is even better… treats and flowers and cards galore!

009 007

When I finished my work day, I had plans of going to the gym near me since I am no longer teaching my Friday night UXF in Allston (so sad. I miss you guys!), but the weather was so gross that I decided to stay in and do an “at home” workout.  I was gchatting with Athena (but, let’s be honest, when are we NOT gchatting?!) and she said she was going to use the jump rope today. Ding, ding, ding! The light bulb went off and I decided that I could get a great workout done in the comforts of my own home. I can’t tell you how nice it was to have the option to go to the gym or to workout at home or to not do anything at all!

012

So, I set up shop in the kitchen with my weights, jump rope and “Friday Five” Arms/cardio workout and got busy. I ended up doing about 60 minutes including warm up and cool down/foam rolling and time flew by!

  • 5 mins warm up (jogging in place, jumping jacks, squats, hamstring curls, knee lifts, etc)
  • 5 mins jumping rope (this is SO much harder when you use a real jump rope vs imaginary jump rope)- this round was tabata style with 20 seconds jumping, 10 seconds rest.
  • 15 minute Arm/Cardio/Core from April Arms Challenge (up the ladder)
  • 5 mins jumping rope (30 seconds jumping, 5 seconds rest)
  • 15 minutes down the ladder
  • 5 mins jumping rope (alternating leads and speed and direction)
  • 10 mins (abs, stretching, foam rolling)

60 minutes later, I was sweaty and tired and rope burned. Wait, what? You read that right, I clearly need work on my jump roping because I got whipped by the rope more time than I’d like to admit and boy did it hurt!

013After I showered, I headed out to the grocery store. On a cold, rainy, Friday night. REALLY not that fun, but it was dead and fully stocked, so I couldn’t really complain too much. As I was shopping, I thought about how great it would be if I could have a glass of wine. Wouldn’t that make grocery shopping so much better?

wine and groceriesI was so ready for wine by the time I got home that I poured myself a glass before I even took my jacket off! J.Lohr is one of my favorite wines- red and white. It’s delicious!

015I sipped as I put away all my groceries. It really made the process a lot more enjoyable, but then again, when doesn’t wine make things more enjoyable?

I was so in the mood for sushi last night, so I picked some up in my travels. It totally hit the spot! There is something about Chardonnay and Sushi. They go hand in hand in my book. Anyone else with me on this?

018Although I had somewhat wanted to go meet up with friends for dinner or drinks, the weather and knowing that I have lots of things on the agenda for today made me decide that staying in was more desirable than going out!

……

Today’s agenda:

  • getting my BSC paycheck and going to the bank
  • tanning (yes, I tan occasionally…sorry if that offends anyone, but I want a nice glow for my birthday!)
  • teaching kickboxing
  • going to Jess’s first tasting
  • getting my hair highlighted and cut (!!!)
  • getting all done up in my birthday dress for birthday celebrations!!

A little serious talk…

So, today is my last day as a 27-year-old. It’s a little crazy to think about, but I am ready for 28. First off, I am a fan of even numbers, so right away 28 is better than 27, haha. Secondly, I am in a much better spot personally at this point than I was last year, so I am excited for what 28 will bring. I have a few things lined up (expanding and growing the blog, moving into my own place, etc- more on that later) for the next year and I hope you will all stick around with me as I share my journey. I have only been blogging for a few months, but I have had so much fun thus far and appreciate everyone who reads and follows me. You have no idea how much that means to me!

Questions for you: What’s a special meal that you’ll splurge on every once in a while? Birthdays- love them or hate them? What’s been your favorite year thus far?

Up the Ladder Workout

2 Comments

Hey everyone!  I wanted to share this “Up the Ladder” workout that I taught in one of my classes last week.  I have seen a bunch of different “ladder” workouts floating around the blog world lately, so I decided to take that idea and run with it, of course adding in my own flair.

Up the ladder workoutThe toe taps really get your heart rate up and then the step-up and row move is there to build strength, but also lower your heart rate.

Notes about counting:

-Each toe tap counts as one, so count 1-2-3-4 for the right foot tap, left foot tap, right foot then left foot… and so on

-Step up and row- step up with the right and then the left counts as 1 rep, so you’ll actually end up doing double rows (you can’t count each lead step up separately for the odd-numbered reps)

-Alternating lunges- right and left lunge= 1 rep, so only count on one leg (just like the step up and rows). Again, you’ll end up doing double the number of biceps curls in each rep set.

Feel free to modify up or down as you see fit! Also, if you’re just starting out, you can do reps in the following sequence: 2-4-6-8-10 which will help decrease the intensity of the workout.

Questions for you: Ladder workouts- love ’em or hate ’em? If you love them, do you have a favorite one you want to share?

Lovage Babyblends

I wanted to share a quick note about a company that my friend Jess just started in case there are any new moms reading my blog or anyone who knows any new moms.  Jess has just started her own organic baby food company, which is really, really exciting! She has worked incredibly hard over the past 6 months or so and everything is finally up and running, so I encourage you to head over to her site and check it out. She does home deliveries and has a few locations that she is selling her products at, so there are many options for you to be able to get some of the goods! Also, we have partnered up for her monthly news letter for a “Mommy’s Moves” workout which is SO fun. More to come on that later, though:)