Tuesday, July 15, 2014

PiYo: Define--Lower Body

I JUST finished this workout.  It wasn't as difficult as I had anticipated.  I expected my legs to be shaking like crazy by the end, but that was not the case.  Now, I am more flexible than most people, so maybe that's why this particular workout wasn't as challenging for me.  

So was it worth it?  Absolutely.  Though I wasn't doing hundreds of squats and lunges, Chalene makes sure that the exercises you are doing...you are doing right.  There is no cheating, no taking the easy way out.  The most challenging aspect for me keeping my hips square.  My hips are much more flexible than my hamstrings, so it is easy for me to want to turn my hips out instead of keeping them square and making the hamstring WORK.  I wasn't drenched with sweat, my legs weren't shaking, but my hamstrings were ON FIRE.  

This kind of workout is going to be extremely different than a T25 or P90X3, but no less important.  My flexibility, range of motion, and posture will see huge benefits from PiYo.  I am really excited to to see what the rest of the week brings.  

Monday, July 14, 2014

My Why

A few days ago if someone were to ask me why I am writing this fitness blog, I would have listed reasons like:

  •       I am passionate about health and fitness
  •       I want to help people reach their fitness goals
  •       I love working from home
  •       I needed something for ME to do outside of taking care of my family
  •       I missed having a “job”


These reasons are all true and valid.  But I just started reading the book “Start With Why” by Simon Sinek, and he challenged me to dig deeper.  WHY do I feel so passionately about this?  WHY do I love this job so much?  And then it came to me.  It hit me like a ton of bricks.  It was nearly instantaneous.

  •  I do this for MOMS. 
  •  I do this for moms with little ones who sometimes feel trapped in their own home. 
  •  I do this for moms who are generously giving their babies perfect breast milk while    potentially sacrificing their own sanity.
  •  I do this for moms who often feel overwhelmed by the responsibility of maintaining a household with toddlers on the run. 
  •  I do this for moms whose daily nutrition usually comes from the half-eaten peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and stale goldfish crumbs left by sticky hands.
  •  I do this for moms who don’t recognize that tired face and lumpy, weird post-partum body in the mirror.
  •  I do this for moms who feel like they don’t have anything to look forward to except their baby’s often-unpredictable naptime.
  •  I do this for moms who don’t know how to think outside the box anymore.
  •  I do this for moms who remember being fun, but can’t quite recapture that aspect of their personalities. 
  •  I do this for moms who are losing bits and pieces of themselves, but don’t even realize it. 




Does this sound terribly depressing?  I don’t mean for it to.  This story has a happy ending.  But I have been EVERY SINGLE ONE of those “moms” on different occasions and on different days throughout my motherhood journey.  I remember sitting on my couch, a 2 month old little boy in each arm, watching my wildly delightful 2 year old prance around the room, GUILTILY thinking, “Is this what my life looks like for the next 18 years?!” 

Beachbody has forced me to create a time for “Dara”.  Whether it is doing my own workout while dodging six tiny sets of hands and feet or gleefully answering my challengers’ messages, I have re-discovered parts of me that have been buried for years: Passion and selflessness and competitiveness and creativity to name just a few. 

I do not think size has a number and I do not think “fit” is a particular shape.  I do not think that being healthy is the answer to all of your problems.  But I do believe that being healthy starts a ripple effect of confidence and self-discipline that will infiltrate every other area of your life.  I do believe when you are healthier, you are happier.  I also don’t believe that Beachbody products are the ONLY way to reach your fitness goals.  But their products are the medium I have chosen to use because they are effective and simple and straightforward.  Beachbody takes the guesswork out of getting healthy.  Beachbody makes it easy for very normal, ordinary people to experience extraordinary fitness transformations through their products and radical LIFE transformations through the coaching opportunity.

My mission is to help, encourage, and give hope to moms everywhere that they can feel beautiful in their own skin again, that they can create a time that’s just for them no matter how chaotic life is, and that they can rediscover passions and skills and dreams that have long since been forgotten.  I aim to be real and vulnerable and transparent as I share my fitness journey and my life as a mother of three.

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PiYo: Align - The Fundamentals

Today was Day 1 of PiYo and I was so excited to start, and then a tad disappointed when it appeared the "workout" was really just a "let's make sure we all know what we are doing" kind of preview.  Chalene went over the basic moves and positions that we will be doing throughout the next 2 months.  She told us and showed us how our bodies should look and feel.  

Disappointed as I was, I felt tired and ready for the DVD to be done! : )  Considering this "workout" wore me out, I am pretty excited (and apprehensive) for what's to come when we do the ACTUAL workouts.  In particular, there is one called, "Drench", that has me worried.

Overall, I think it was very wise to begin the program this way.  She took a lot of time going over each move and position, using the modifier and the advanced "model" often, so you could figure it out as quickly and easily as possible.  

Duration: 40 minutes




Saturday, July 12, 2014

T25: Ab Intervals

I really love this ab workout.  I am a big fan of intervals, as they are predictable and more entertaining.  For these ab intervals you start with 2 minutes of planks and some yoga stretches (child's pose and downward dog).  From there you work 2 minutes of core and 1 minute of what Shaun T call "Cardio Recovery".  Cardio?  It is.  Recovery?  I wouldn't quite call it that.  But at least it changes it up from just literally doing ab work the entire 25 minutes.  Personally, I enjoy the so-called cardio recover segments.  

So what kind of core work do you do?  Planks, leg lifts, heel taps, leg lifts, "V" holds, leg lifts, heel taps, and supermans.  Oh...did I repeat leg lifts 3 times?  Yes...yes I did.  Because basically outside of planks...you always have 1 leg lifted in the air, if not both.  Tired of that little pudge layer of fat below your belly button you can't get rid of?  This workout will be good start.

T25: Lower Focus

This workout is named appropriately.  After a 4-5 minute warm-up, for the next 20 minutes you squat, do calf raises, lunge, lunge and squat, squat some more, do high knees and squats, perform single leg deadlifts (not as scary as they sound), and then do a burnout encompassing everything you've already done.  It IS as fun as it sounds.  You DO focus on the lower.  You will NOT ever want to do a squat or lunge again.  I wish I had something exciting and creative to describe or explain about this workout.  But it's pretty straightforward.  You will burn.  Your legs will thank you...one day. 




Thursday, July 10, 2014

T25: Upper Focus

I really liked this workout and I did not expect to!  I don't typically enjoy working out my upper body because I never feel like I get a good calorie burn.  But Shaun T does the upper body justice with this workout.  

You start with a 3-5 minute warm-up, and then head in to the bulk of your workout.  I noticed a pattern of working a particular upper body part for 2 minutes, cardio work for 1 minute, and then moving on to the next upper body part for 2 minutes, so on and so forth.  I loved that he concentrates on one body part (shoulders, biceps, triceps, chest, and back) at a time.  I LOVE the cardio/sprint/plyometric sections that keep your hear rate up even when you are just doing bicep curls.  

This is by far one of my favorite upper body workouts...if you HAVE to work your upper body, this is how it should be done.  

T25: Dynamic Core

This workout is pretty straightforward.  You start with 10 minutes of cardio/speed/plyometric exercises, and finish with 15 minutes of core exercises.  Your feet are in the air A LOT, you plank A LOT, and you are in the "V" position A LOT!  It's definitely one of the easier workouts, but you will still be ready to be done and feel like you have been WORKED by the end of it.  That's it...short and sweet.