Quit smoking now!

If you are a smoker, the statistics below should convince you to quit. This is what happens when you quit:

*In 20 minutes, your blood pressure and pulse rate will drop back down to normal.

*In 8 hours the carbon monoxide (a toxic gas) levels in your blood stream will drop by half, and oxygen levels will return to normal.

*In 48 hours your chance of having a heart attack will have deceased. All nicotine will have left your body. Your sense of taste and smell will return to a normal level.

*In 72 hours your bronchial tubes will relax, and your energy levels will increase.

*In 2 weeks your circulation will increase, and it will continue to improve for the next 10 weeks.

*In three to nine months coughs, wheezing and breathing problems will dissipate as your lung capacity improves by 10%.

*In 1 year your risk of having a heart attack will have dropped by half.

*In 5 years your risk of having a stroke returns to that of a non-smoker.

*In 10 years your risk of lung cancer will have returned to that of a non-smoker.

*In 15 years your risk of heart attack will have returned to that of a non-smoker.

So you have more immediate things to look forward to if you quit now besides just freaking out about not being able to smoke. Quit now!

Training Partner

“Your training partners are key to your success, and friendships based on your runs together are strong.”

Bill Rodgers quotes (American marathon Runner, b.1947)

Working out with a partner is great. Partners can help motivate each other by pushing each other to work even harder with each exercise performed. Having a partner at your workout can also allow you to lift heavier weights, as you have someone to spot you (Remember, safety first!)  Just hearing an encouraging voice when you train gives you that little extra push. 

 

Unfortunately, my experience with working out with a partner was not so ideal. I partnered up in my strength and conditioning class today with an individual who was so unmotivated, didn't take the training seriously, and wanted to keep talking throughout the entire exercises. I couldn't believe it! I take my training very seriously and did not appreciate the lack of effort on his end. So I kept myself composed and continued to work out even through all his chatter, and completed the class much slower than usual, and was less effective in the number of sets that I completed. 

 

This really taught me a valuable lesson to not just partner up with anyone! Keep an eye out during warm ups and pay attention to the focused people in your class who want to push themselves beyond their limits to have a great and effective work out.  Alternatively, you can also look for these types of people to be your training buddy when you go to the gym. Because in all honesty, if you are going to train with a slacker, you might as well train alone or not at all, that way the only person who could slow you down is you.

 

Work smarter not harder. Be picky when choosing a training partner!

Group Fitness

Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it. 
-Lou Holtz

I finished last week's training off with a satisfied feeling of accomplishment. I had targeted each body part/muscle group twice in 1 week (5 days trained). I had trained abs and cardio 3 times as well. I took Saturday off to rest my body and recharge for the rest of this week week. Sometimes it is great to do nothing all day and watch movies, but it always makes me feel so tired and lethargic afterwards.

 

 It was like I had ran a marathon! I woke up Sunday feeling sluggish and drained, but I couldn't let this feeling dictate my weekend so I decided to exercise first thing in the morning and get it out of the way. I decided to change things up and joined a total body conditioning class. The class was great! Working out with a group offered motivation andaccountability. The people around me were doing the exercises, so I knew that I could do it too. I felt that little extra pushfrom the music, energy in the room and the people around me to work harder. Another benefit was that the exercise routine moved on pace. There was little time to complain or to have a defeating attitude. I left the class feeling so enthused and good about myself from what I had just achieved. It had uplifted my spirits and set a positive tone for the rest of my day. I walked with a pep in my step and felt so alive!  If you ever feel like you need that extra boost or that extra push, joining a Group Fitness class is a great way to stay motivated, and to keep it EXCITING!

Listen to your body..

"The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy...It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed."-Jacqueline Gareau, 1980 Boston Marathon champ

Even though I did some body weight exercises and cardio throughout my vacation, it has been tough to lift weights at the gym this past week!  I know it will take time until I get back to the same level I was 3 weeks ago but my body hates me right now! The aches and pains on my body keeps complaining like a child!  As I am a dedicated fitness enthusiast, I am motivated by this challenge to get back to the same fitness level as before.  But I tend to be stubborn!  I have a tendency to ignore my body when it talks to me.  This leaves me sustainable to injury.  Take a break that day or do an exercise that doesn't put a lot of strain on your muscles; like yoga.  Yoga is a great system  of exercises practiced as part of this discipline to promote control of the body and mind.  If your muscles are not too sore but you still feel like you should take a break from weight lifting, do some cardio.  That is what I did today.  I did 5 sets of hill sprints (ran up the hill, walked down), 5 sets of stair climbers (ran up stairs, walked down), ran 5 laps around the park, performed 3 sets of pull ups on the monkey bars, and 3 sets of dips on the park bench.  I made sure that I did a really good stretch before and after the work out to stay loose and injury free.  I felt great from the work out and my body and I are on good terms now! ;p

5 Tips For Working Out On Vacation

“The older you get, the tougher it is to lose weight, because by then your body and your fat are really good friends.  ~Author Unknown”

Happy New Year! I just got back from the beautiful island of Kauai, Hawaii. This was the first vacation that I had ever taken where I exercised throughout the entire trip. I am telling you the honest truth, it made it even better. As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, fitness contributes to your "feel good" endorphins. You feel great on your vacation and when you return, you don't feel all sluggish because all you did was lie around all day, eat like a pig, and drank like a rat pack member! You come back feeling healthy, energized and ready to get back to your daily life with a positive approach. I used to have the toughest time getting back to the gym after a vacation. I had no energy and was not motivated for weeks. I used to think that all that working out before I left for the trip was such a waste of time since I was a slob through out my trip. Not this time! I did simple, yet effective exercises.

Here are 5 tips for working out on vacation:

1. Daily work out routines: First thing I did when I woke up, was drop to the ground and do pushups. You can add 1-2 more exercises to the that. For example, after you do a set of pushups, do sit ups or ab crunches. Set a goal and stick to it each time. My goal was  100 reps. I would do 50 reps of push ups, then 50 reps of ab crunches, back to another 50 reps of pushups, and finish off with another 50 reps of ab crunches. Sometimes I added 100 reps of dips against the bed. Some days I would do this routine in the morning, then do some more sets of exercising casually on beach. Or I would do all my exercises on the beach. For example, 3 sets of 20 reps for pushups, squats, and lunges, then jog for about 20 minutes, finish off with another 3 reps of 20 reps for burpees.

2. Hiking: Hiking is my favorite activity to do while on vacation as I love that exhilarating feeling from being on an adventure. Anytime you add elevation to your walks, you'll burn more calories. If you carry a backpack, you'll challenge yourself even more, all while enjoying nature.

3. Surfing, swimming, and snorkeling: These activities can be a lot of fun and a total body workout, especially surfing. Snorkeling can be a bit more leisurely, but you can increase the intensity by swimming a bit harder.

4. Jogging or walking on the beach: I love jogging in the soft sand! It is tougher than jogging on a flat surface because it adds more resistance with each step you take. The muscles are forced to work harder and tighten up the core muscles. Same thing for walking on the beach, you can burn twice as many calories than walking on a flat surface. You can do this while getting a tan and admiring the beauty of the beach!

5. Playing sports: Playing any type of sport burns calories and is a great way to meet other people. For example, beach volleyball.