Category: Workout

Weekending: Pizza, Patriots, Puppies & Babies

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Good morning! I’m not sure how many of you will be checking in today as it’s a holiday and it seems as though everyone I’ve talked to has today off… except me 😦 I am WFH so I guess it’s not so bad. Did you guys have a good weekend? We did, although we didn’t get to spend much time together because of separate plans/obligations. Let’s recap!

Friday

I WFH on Friday because I had to go in the office on Monday. It was actually so nice to be home on Friday- I hadn’t slept well all week because of my cold so it was great to sleep in a bit and stay in my jammies all morning! It was my rest day so I decided to do some active rest by taking my errands on foot. I had to go to the library to pick up our new book club book- has anyone read this?

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That night, RM and I went to meet up with his family at Charcoal Guido’s for a going away dinner for his sister. She moved down to Atlanta on Saturday to be with her boyfriend. The food and company were both great, but the Nutella pizza at the end kind of stole the show.

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We weren’t ready to go home after the dinner so I suggested swinging by Branch Line for another drink. It was crazy how busy it was there for 9:45pm! I always like seeing that with new restaurants.

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Saturday

On Saturday, I headed out in the rain to go teach. The January crowds are back and I love it! My class worked so hard- it was awesome.

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I was supposed to go visit my friends Christy and Kia since they both had baby girls a few weeks ago, but the weather was apparently bad up there so I ended up postponing it. With a free day ahead of me I decided treat myself to a Starbucks Chai Tea Latte (thanks for the gift card, Dana!!) and headed into the city to start our registry at Macy’s. I’d love to say that went great, but after an hour I walked out with a mere 5 things on it. Oops!

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Once I reached my limit of shopping, I headed to my sister’s apartment to hang with her and some of her friends and to watch the game. Her friend brought the cutest puppy ever and for some reason he loved me so I got lots of puppy snuggles!

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I had a blast hanging out with her and her friends- I hadn’t seen any of them in forever! the food was also great. I made some delicious pizza, there were meatballs, healthy buffalo chicken, veggies, pigs in a blanket, cheese puff pastries… I never do things for the game so I totally loved getting to check out what people do for “game day food”.

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Sunday

We got up and I offered to make us- you guessed it- pancakes! These were probably my best yet, so I wish I would’ve measured things so I could recreate them!

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After breakfast I hit the road to visit Christy and then Kia. I didn’t get any photos because I was busy snuggling the cutest little baby girls! It was nice to hang out with each of them for a bit- very relaxing!

Once I got back home I went food shopping and then we thought about going out to have a drink and catch up since we didn’t get to spend any of the weekend together, but we opted to stay in the house which actually worked out well because we were able to get lots of food prep done: sweet potatoes & brussels sprouts, kale, spicy broccoli and beans. I had taken a meatloaf out of the freezer earlier in the day so dinner was easy to throw together.

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This week is a busy week due to a few social engagements after work, so I’m happy we were able to get ahead of meal prep yesterday!

Questions for you: Did you watch the Patriots game? Do you have a favorite “game day” food to have at parties or bring to parties? What was the best part of your weekend? How is your week looking? Anything fun planned?

Five on Friday {1.15.16}

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Good morning and TGIF! This has been a whirlwind of a week for me. For starters, I had to go in the office on Monday, but on top of that we were going live with a new program so I was in trainings/testing of that for pretty much all of Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday which really threw a wrench in my normal schedule! But, everything went well and the program developers are super cool guys so it could’ve been a lot worse. I also had some good workouts and made some headway with a new fitness adventure, so all is good!

For now, though, let’s focus on the fact that it’s FRIDAY! Anything good planned for the weekend? We have RM’s sister’s going away party tonight (she’s moving to Atlanta) and then I’m teaching tomorrow morning and then hopefully meeting my parents for lunch in Portsmouth before visiting my friends Kia and Christy and their brand new baby girls 🙂 Whatever you have on the agenda, I hope you have a blast, smile and laugh a lot, drink some vino and get some movement in!

Five on Friday:

1. Chin-ups- I may not have reached my goal of 10 unassisted pull-ups/chin ups, but at this point I am just focusing on what I CAN do. The other day, I went to the gym and ran and then decided to try and do some chin-ups. I hadn’t done any in a while and was surprised to find myself able to do 4 with relative ease (last one was a little tough!). I’ll take it!

 

2. Meal Prep– Although this is a time consuming activity, I’ve learned over the years how worthwhile it is for me to spend time doing it. Whether it’s prepping a bunch of root veggies, chicken and kale or actually making a meal (casserole, soup, meatloaf, etc.), knowing I have the ability to go in the fridge and grab healthy food quickly and easily is a really good thing. I’m often busy during the week between social engagements or teaching so it’s hard for me to spend time making fresh dinners each night. Meal prep leftovers for the win!

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3. I can’t get rid of my cold! I know I am not alone in this because RM has had a cold for going on two weeks and I know of a bunch of other people who have also been sick, but it doesn’t make thigns any better! I haven’t been sleeping well and I’m tired of blowing my nose. Womp 😦

4. Dry weather doesn’t bode well with my hands- Throughout the warmer months, I always forget how DRY my skin can get during the winter, in particular, my right hand. I mean, look at this! Does anyone have any good lotion/moisturizer suggestions? I’m so bad at using hand creams, mostly because I hate the feeling of lotion on the palms of my hands (weird, right?), but this is so not sexy so I need to do something!

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5. Getting back into a consistent training routine– Although I’ve worked out consistently even throughout the holidays, my training schedule hasn’t really been consistent. My workouts over the past month or so have kind of been all over the place and while that is absolutely better than not working out at all, I am excited to get back to a normal and planned routine and schedule. I was finally able to make it to the gym during my lunch break yesterday and was so happy when I stumbled across Stephanie’s Burpee Bookend Full Body Circuit earlier in the morning. Some days I’m really focused and know exactly what I want to do, but there are others (like yesterday… and lots of days over the past month) where I really have no direction with regards to what I want to do. Her workout not only made me excited to get to the gym to try it out, but it also left me with shaky legs as I walked down the stairs after the workout was finished. The 50 burpees to start and finish the workout were killer… and I loved it!

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Have a great weekend, friends!
Questions for you: Tell me something making you smile this week? How have your workouts been lately? Does the cold, dry weather make your skin look like leather, too? What’s going on this weekend? 

Wednesday Workout: 4 Exercise Core & Upper Body Quickie Circuit

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Good morning! Each week I always hope that I do a workout that is shareable with you guys. This doesn’t always happen, and to be honest, up until Monday night at the gym I wasn’t really sure I would even have a workout for you this week! Fear not, though, I not only have a workout for you, but it’s a super quickie circuit focusing on upper body and core- something I haven’t specifically focused on in any recent workouts.

As I’ve mentioned I am still fighting a cold so I’m taking my workouts down a notch. I wasn’t planning on working out on Monday, but I ended up being in meetings/trainings from 9:30-4:15 so saying I was going a little stir crazy is an understatement! I just felt like I needed some type of movement- nothing crazy or too strenuous, but something to get my blood flowing. I knew it was the right choice to go walk on the treadmill when the time and miles flew by. After I finished, I came up with this little circuit I am going to share with you today- it’s a perfect finisher or if you’re short on time, you can add a few more rounds and call it a day!

4 exercise core & upper body quickie circuit

Here are some explanations for the exercises:

  • Russian Twist & Press- Starting in a standard Russian Twist position (in a seated position, engage your core and lean back a little while keeping your chest open. You can either lift your feet up to bent knees, straight leg or keep them on the ground), twist your weight over to the right and when you bring it back through center, press it up at a 45* angle. Repeat to the other side so it goes: twist, press, twist.
  • Supine Extension- Grab a weight and lie on your back with your arms extended up over your chest and your legs straight up over your hips with your feet flexed. Next, inhale and make sure you engage your core as you lower both your arms and legs down as low as you can while keeping your lower back glued to the ground. Once you reach your lowest point, start your exhale and lift back up to the starting position. To make this easier, you can bend your knees instead of doing straight leg lowers, drop one leg at a time or ditch the weight for the arm lowers (lat pull).
  • Straight Leg Weight Presses– in the same position as the exercise above, you’re going to engage your core and lift your shoulder blades off the ground and reach the weight towards your feet.
  • Pull-ups- I was able to do 3 reps each round, but if you can do more- rock that! or, if you’re still working on your pull-ups, you can feel free to use a band or maybe to TRX pull-ups.

See? That’s it! Granted, the moves are challenging, but you can always modify up or down depending on your current fitness level. Form always trumps difficulty or reps. One other thing to note is that if you don’t have weights or a pull-up bar handy, you can do this with just your bodyweight (for a move to mimic pull-ups, I would suggest a superman pull).

I’d love to know if you try this 🙂

Questions for you: Do you like to do quickie finisher circuits at the end of a cardio or heavy weight focused workout? What type of workouts would you like to see more of/less of this year? Do you like the short ones like this or do you prefer the longer, full body ones?

Weekending: Holiday Party, Registry Fun & Visits with Friends/Family

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Good morning! Did you guys have a good weekend? We did! Even with weird, unseasonable weather and the constant feeling of fighting off a cold, we had a pretty great one.

Friday

My company’s party was on Friday night, which was actually a nice change from squeezing it in during the typical holiday season. It was at the Hyatt in Cambridge- a great location for us now living in Newton Corner! We were able to leave work early so I took advantage of some extra “free” hours and ran errands. I skipped the gym because my back was bothering me and I felt the onset of a cold, so I opted to walk my errands which was a nice way to still get some movement in. Nails were a must!

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I didn’t take many photos at the event, but I’ll say the cocktails were flowing, the food was good and dancing definitely happened 😉 It’s so fun getting to hang out with coworkers/friends outside of the office! these girls! ❤

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Saturday

We didn’t get home and in bed until nearly 2am, so needless to say, we definitely took our time getting up on Sunday morning! Lucky for me, RM opted to make us his “specialty” breakfast: all the veggies, his special beans, homemade turkey sausage & an egg. It was so delicious!

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After breakfast, I cleaned the house and then we headed into the city. We had late lunch plans with another couple but decided to head in early to start on our wedding registry. We went to Crate & Barrel and had a blast scanning all sorts of things that we wanted! We have a long way to go to complete our registry, but it felt good to start on it!

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It was my first time meeting Roberto’s friends, so I opted to not take photos but we had sushi at Douzo which was good- we love that sushi restaurant.

The rest of the night was very quiet and I was in bed by 9:30 🙂

Sunday

We got up early and I made some French toast- I took pictures so I’ll post the recipe this week!

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I still wasn’t feeling 100%, but after 2 consecutive rest days, I was REALLY itching to move so I headed to the gym for a workout. I’d love to say that it felt so good to workout, but I’d be lying if I said that. The whole thing was just a mental battle, but I made it through the workout and did feel better after I was done so it wasn’t a totally wasted trip.

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I whipped up a quesadilla for lunch since I had leftover ‘dilla veggies & chicken already cut up from making them on Thursday night. It hit the spot!

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Later in the afternoon, we headed over to Brookline to visit with my cousin who was in town for work. It’s always nice to see family when they come to Boston!

I dropped RM off at home and then went to Whole Foods, even though between not feeling great and the ridiculous rain it was the LAST thing I wanted to do. I always feel better once I just do it and I bought myself flowers and a cookie to reward myself for getting it done 😉

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For dinner, I decided that it was the perfect weather for a roast chicken meal. Is this anyone else’s favorite winter meal?! I can’t get enough of it. I chopped up sweet potatoes, Japanese sweet potatoes, onions & carrots and then also cooked some kale. I’m going to make a great wife 😉

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And that about does it! This is a pretty quiet week which is nice- I am ready for a week with no after-work plans (and yes, I know I sound like i’m 60 when I say that!).

Questions for you: Did your company have a holiday party this year? Married friends- what’s the one think you would suggest we register for (maybe that you didn’t originally think you needed) and what’s the one thing you would suggest NOT registering for? What’s your favorite winter meal? Do you have a busy week?

Looking Ahead: Workouts for 2016

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Good morning! I don’t have a workout for you today, but I still want to talk workouts with you. Sound ok? Good! As we approach and start a new year, it’s natural for us to think ahead to things we want to change and accomplish over that next year, right? I’ve never been one for resolutions- mostly because as soon as I put a rule or label around something, it makes me want it more- and this year I’m not even really focusing on specific goals, but, with that said, I have been thinking about what types of workouts I want to focus on this year and how I want to learn and grow.

Last year was a big growth year for me in terms of exploring new areas of fitness (kettlebells, barbell heavier lifting, more indoor cycling, etc.), learning to take and appreciate the importance of rest days and cutting myself a freaking break when it came to backing off of workouts and taking it easy. Was any of this easy to do? Hell no! But does it get easier as I go? Sure does! I’m getting more comfortable with kettlebells (still have a long way to go here, though) and venturing to the weight lifting section of the gym, I’m loving my rest days and I’m getting better at taking my workouts day by day, listening to my body and knowing that a few extra rest days or lighter workouts are not going to ruin all of the hard work and hours I’ve put in at the gym. It’s a really good feeling and something that’s fun to work towards!

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With that said, even though I don’t have any goal-specific plans with regards to my fitness journey this year, I do have some thoughts on things I would like to do/learn/get better at. Right now, I’m having a blast learning new lifts and just getting more comfortable under the barbell. I still have a long way to go here, but every time I learn something new or get a new PR I feel more and more comfortable, which is exactly the type of motivation I need to keep going! Although I’ll always love cardio, I think it’s time for it to take a bit of a backseat for a good part of the first part of the year. With wedding planning, time will be limited so my workouts will likely have to be shortened, but that’s ok because you can get a great strength/HIIT/metabolic resistance type of workout done in less than 30 minutes and feel totally spent 🙂

Once the wedding is over, I’d like to attend more trainings and certifications and spinning is first on the list! I have gotten so much better at spinning, but I would love to really start mastering it so that I can add it to my teaching repertoire. I’d also love to take a kettlebell training course so that I can learn how to properly execute the basic moves. These are things I really enjoy, so I figure it’s wroth investing the time and money to make sure I know what I’m doing!

As far as physical goals & strength goals with regards to numbers, I don’t really have any. Last year I had a few goals: 10 unassisted pull-ups/chin-ups and 10 chest to floor push-ups. Did I get there? Well, not entirely. Most days I can do 4-5 chin-ups, but I’ve never gotten further than that. Do I think I could? Sure, with more practice, but I just kind of lost interest in that goal after a bit. When it comes to chest to floor push-ups, this is a give or take, depending on the day. Some days I feel strong and can do 10 of these in a row, other days I struggle to get 3-4 good ones, but the thing about fitness is that’s just how it goes. It’s not a linear process; there are days where you max out, PR, etc. but then the next day you may struggle to do half as much as you did the day before. That’s just the way it works, so realizing and accepting that has made life so much easier 🙂

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I’d love to hear from you, though- do you have any fitness related goals this year? New PR for squats, chest press, deadlift, 5K, triathalon, etc.? Did you reach any goals you made last year? What are you most proud of with regards to your health/fitness over the past year?

I hope wherever you are in your health/fitness journey. and wherever you plan on going with it, you do it with love and compassion. You are so much more than the number on a scale, the number on the weight rack or the number on the treadmill! Health and fitness is (or at least should be) a lifelong journey- there will be high points and there will be low points- but at the end of the day, if you are consistent and keep at it, you’ll gain so much more than a new PR or a toned physique. You’ll gain confidence and a sense of empowerment that will carry on with you through all your other life adventures (good and bad) outside of the weight room. Appreciate where you are right now, and keep an open mind to all the places you can go if you put your mind to it!

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