Don't Know Where to Start?

Are you looking for something to commit to for the next month? If you are like me and want stronger arms or just to tone up a bit then please consider giving the 100 pushups challenge or the Bodyrock 30 day challenge a try. 

I've  been looking around the internet these past couple of weeks for some sort of exercise program to use for toning up a bit and these two look very doable. I'm already doing a good amount of cardio in the form of running and spinning and I think that adding these two challenges into my routine will help me be better at them. I've already tried the 100 pushups challenge once and I got up to doing 53 consecutive pushups. This is impressive for me because prior to the challenge, I had very little upper body strength. I struggled really hard to do 10 proper pushups during the test phase and I couldn't do anymore after that. So you see, you don't have to be super fit to do it. You just need to be consistent.

I'm bringing this up because I may be talking about my progress with these two challenges over the next month. Plus I wanted to share the pain health. ;)

Workout Trainer by Skimble

I was suppose to get a run in today but when I got to the gym, I was just not in the running mood. I never force myself to do something that my body isn't on board with. Never. I guess that is the secret to my continued passion for fitness.

I did get in one warm-up mile but I hopped off the treadmill after that and hopped on the Spinner bike to do an interval workout. I found this neat little free App on my iPhone last night called Workout Trainer by Skimble which is a program with a listing of tabata workouts that you can do with little to no equipment. What's neat about the App is that everything is timed for you and the audio profile will verbally guide you through the workout. It will tell you when to work hard, when to rest and it will countdown the seconds for you. I'm used to being the one that tells people what to do on the Spinner bike so it was nice not to have to think too much and just go!

I was drenched by the end of the 32 minute interval Spinner bike workout so I'm going to give it two thumbs up. It is simple too. It is best done on a Spinner or stationary bike but you could also do this outside on a bike on a level, smooth and uninterrupted terrain. I think doing this inside is probably safer and more controlled.

So you do 4 rounds of the following with a 2 minute recovery in between sets.

10 secs - Intense Effort
45 secs - Recovery
10 secs - Intense Effort
45 secs - Recovery
15 secs - Intense Effort
45 secs - Recovery
20 secs - Intense Effort
45 secs - Recovery
15 secs - Intense Effort
45 secs - Recovery
10 secs - Intense Effort
45 secs - Recovery
10 secs - Intense Effort

The 32 minutes just flew by. I did some HIIT and some Abs after this and called it a day.

Holiday Fitness Challenges

I am participating in the following challenges over the holiday period in order to help me stick to my goals. I don't have a motivation problem but this just makes it more interesting.

If you are into running (walking and wheel chair mileages count too), then head over to RunEatRepeat and sign up for the annual Pile On The Miles Challenge. It started today 11/1 and will run until 11/23.

Then on 11/19, RunToFinish is once again hosting the annual Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge where anything active and healthy will score you some points.

I am doing a similar thing with my Spin class in which I will be teaching a class everyday from 11/1-11/23, except for weekends and 2 Fridays when I will be out of town. We are working on maintaining our fitness level up til Thanksgiving and then we plan to get right back into it come December so that we are ready for any holiday parties that come our way. Basically our ultimate goal is to workout consistently throughout the holiday season so that come January 1, we will have one less thing to resolve.

Finally, I decided to give the 100 push up Challenge another go! Only because I need to work on my upper body strength. My last attempt yielded 56/100 push ups. No sign up is required and you go at your own pace.

POTM and HBBC will be handing out prizes to participates based either on participation or total points scored. But no matter which one of these you decide to participate in, the ultimate prize will be your health and fitness!

Rock Your Body!

Do any of you recognize this lady? Yes? No? You may have seen her workout videos on youtube? Her name is Zuzana and as you can see, she is fit! Zuzana and her husband Freddy operates the site Bodyrock.tv. Zuzana offers tons of workouts and videos on her site without the need to go to a gym. She does use a couple of pieces of equipment but they are pretty easy to find or construct at home. Seriously, you can use 2 chairs and a broomstick to make a horizontal pull-up bar. I believe she started doing this because she moves around/travels often and wanted to keep in shape without relying on a gym. 

I am posting about her today because I love her workouts! I do her workouts in between days when I am not running. Her workouts are brutal, especially if you have not been keeping up. I stopped doing them over the holidays and started up recently and almost died in the middle of a workout. She has some beginner stuff to build you up to the regular workouts. I've been working out for many years and her interval-training style of workouts always kick my butt. I am usually sweating like a beast after doing just 20 minutes of this stuff. It is all about how much you put into it. Let's face it, I've done her workouts but I am not as fit as her. Why? Two things. Genetics and I am not as disciplined with my eating (portions and clean food) as she is. Plus I run, which causes me to eat more to fuel said runs. But I enjoy running so I don't mind that so much. Even if it was possible for me to do everything identical to her, I will still never look like that because we are not twins. I will only be the best version of me.  

Her workouts are not for the faint of heart. She makes it look that way but don't be fooled. You should always do them at your own pace. I've wanted to write this post for a long time now because I've been doing these workouts for about a year and have really grown to like them and love incorporating them into my training. I do them on-and-off depending on my running schedule but they work! On my Training tab, on days where I state that I do BW (Body Weight) Exercises, I am really doing one of these routines. These workouts are hard so they are more challenging on days following a longer run. These workouts have helped me strengthen my legs and increase my endurance without running everyday. It is actually a total body workout but I am emphasizing legs and endurance so other runners can relate. Often, I find that I would rather run than do these workouts because running seems easier in comparison. I can at least let my mind wander while I run on the treadmill but there is none of that doing these. You pretty much need total mental focus to get through the workouts. They are short but intense.

I really like these workouts because it has helped me become mentally stronger with regards to my running. The workouts really challenge me to push pass my point of comfort. Which has helped me get pass physical as well as mental struggles I have on long runs or those last pesky miles of the marathon. So there you have it. It's free, it works and you don't need to go to the gym! How about that?