Cheers to 2013!

As 2013 comes to an end, I want to look back on the Fitness aspect of this past year:

• Ran my first half marathon at Disney World in February with good friend Hannah...Disney knows how to do races for sure! So memorable and magical! Fireworks to start off the evening!

• Fit For a Princess blog  started in March!
• Did my 3rd Color Run in April with Caroline, Tori,, Jessie, and Kellie...seriously, best race to do with friends :)

 

• Ran a 10k in May....thumbs down. Rainy, disorganized, blah. But I got a medal out of it!

• Ran my 2nd half marathon in September and got a PR! :)

• Started helping out with Girls on the Run in September and those girls brought some smiles and laughs to my face a few times a week :)

Until next year, cheers everyone! :) Thanks to all you have followed my blog, please keep it up!

Early evening run

Happy last 25 hours of 2013!

I am down at Liberty (again) for another intensive course and am fortunate to be staying with good friend & sorority sister, Meghan :) 

I looked up Liberty gym' hours for this week and was a bit disappointed to see that it was closed until Thursday! Glad I checked while I was packing so I could pack running clothes. 

After class got out at 4:30, I hurried back to Meghan's place and quickly changed into my running gear. I never run in the dark for safety purposes but I was able to get in 2.5 miles before I came in cause it was too dark for my personal preferences . Meghan's neighborhood and streets were very well lit though!

I plan on running tomorrow after class or perhaps just doing one of my home workouts at her place. No NYE plans since I'm here and Ben has to work but champagne and watching the ball drop will be happening! :)

Post Christmas workout

I hope everyone had a wonderful and magical day yesterday surrounded by family and loved ones :)

After all the mimosas and yummy treats I ate yesterday (and do not regret one bit!), my mom and I headed to the gym this am. And it was packed!! A preview to how it'll be after New Years?!

I started out with 15 minutes on the bike before doing a Leg workout. 

Next up, Abs! I hadn't done this 9 minute plank workout in awhile, but I hadn't forgotten how tiring it is!

I finished out the day with some arms (lat pull down, chest press, tricep kickbacks). 

Spent the rest of the day hanging out with my aunt and uncle (who came in as a surprise yesterday!) and went and saw The Secret Life of Walter Mitty! Very good! I reccomend!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Merry Christmas Eve!

 

December, in my opinion, has flown! Can't believe Christmas day is in less than 24 hours! Ah! I am most excited about seeing my family's reactions to their gifts tomorrow, it has been so hard to keep some of them a secret!

 

Today's workout had to be a festive one for sure!

 

I warmed up 30 minutes on the elliptical easy (my thighs were screaming from yesterday's workout) before doing a great workout that definitely works up a sweat!

 

*I switched out power cleans to deadlifts

 

I hope you all have a wonderful evening and a Merry Christmas!



Where have I been??

Merry Christmas Eve Eve!

I have not posted in over a week but Fit for a Princess is ready to repost! I had planned to post last week when I was at Liberty for an intensive class BUT never got a chance to work out!! I only worked out once and that was because I woke up at 5:30 to work out before class. This class had so much outside work, by the time I was done, the gym was closed :( Augh! I felt so out of my loop, and with how stressful that class was, a workout afterwards would've been nice.

When I got home last Friday, I headed straight to the gym! I did about an 1 & 1/2 hour workout of cardio, abs, arms, legs, pretty much everything! It felt great to workout, especially since I had sat on my butt the past week and the only active thing I had done was walk.

Saturday -- Bridesmaid dress shopping for my sorority sister Sara's wedding and catching up with her and another sorority sister Maryanne before Sara's engagement party that evening! Sara's wedding is French/Marie Antoinette theme and our dresses will definitely fit for it!

Sunday -- Ben and I spent the day doing Christmas shopping and movie date to see the Hobbit 2. It was nice, relaxing day spent doing whatever with him :)

Today, after Ben left, I headed to the gym. I started out with 20 minutes on elliptical then did a Butt Set that looked like this:

50 squats on Smith Machine

50 deadlifts per leg

50 donkey kicks with dumbbell

50 fire hydrants with dumbbell 

50 lunges

After, I did Lower Ab Attack. 

I hope everyone has a wonderful few days spent with family and loved ones!

Recap of this week's workouts

This week has been a bit busy with lots of assignments to get done, ah the life of a graduate student who works! Here is a recap of the workouts this week:

 

Wednesday

I can not remember what I did on Wednesday! That just shows you how crazy and busy my brain is/was!

 

Thursday

20 minute elliptical before abs and triceps. Tuesdays and Thursdays are my fit in a tight workout day cause I get out of work at 2:30 and coach at 4. The abs were:

40 crunches

5 sit ups

20 scissors

30 oblique crunches

:25 plank

:20 side plank each side

30 Russian twists

20 vertical leg crunches

15 jackknife sit ups

:40 plank

 

The triceps were kick backs and the tricep pull down (I should figure out the actual name) that Ben showed me last week, that one really gets my triceps screaming.

 

Friday

A 3.5 mile run which felt wonderful because I haven't run in awhile!  Afterwards, I came in to do some stretching and a quick ab set.

 

 

 

 

Getting in the Christmas spirit!

I've wanted to try the following workout I found through the awesome Miss Peanut Butter Fingers  and after yesterday when my family decorated the house for Christmas which made getting into the spirit 100% better, I decided to do it today!

 

*For the power cleans, push presses and thrusters, I used dumbbells*

I started out with 20 minutes on the elliptical before doing this in the aerobics room:

I could still feel Saturday's arm workout when I was doing some of the exercises today. Woo!

Push Press

Thrusters

Power Cleans

 

 

 

(_____) of the day:

Item of the day: I wore my black razorback tank with #BEAST on the back today, I love it! Not only is it super comfortable, but gives you a boost of epicness ;)

 

 

 

 

 

Recap of Saturday's workout

Today has consisted of relaxing by the fire, drinking peppermint hot chocolate and putting up Christmas decorations! The ice storm has hit and hopes of school being canceled linger in the air!

Yesterday I hopped on the bike for a 20 minute warm up before doing the following functional workout 3x through:

10 burpees

5 one leg burpees each leg

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kj8VSO9hDfc)

10 squats

10 jumping switch lunges

10 lateral push ups

10 plank to push ups

10 donkey kicks

30 second plank hold

 

Although this doesn't seem like a lot of reps, one leg burpees and jumping switch lunges can start to burn!

 

I then asked Ben to show me some tricep workouts that had my arms feeling like spaghetti afterwards! They were on a cable machine that involved pulling down on bars in different ways to work the triceps and other muscles of the upper arm.

Go onto Youtube and look up tricep call press downs to see what we did! 

Mid week full body workout

Started out today's workout with 20 minutes on the elliptical to get the heart racing before heading to the aerobics room to do the following:

 

75 squats

50 box jumps

50 low rows

25 burpees

50 pushups

50 kettleball swings (*I had to use a dumbbell)

100 crunches

1/2 mile run on treadmill

50 clean and presses.

 

Including some rests, this took me between 20-30 minutes. I recommend going at your own speed and not rushing through. I chose to split up the sets so instead of doing 50 reps straight through, I did 2 sets of 25. Find whatever works for you!

 

(____) of the day:

Song of the day: It isn't Christmas time until I hear this song:

 

 

 

 



Core workout

Greetings!

 

My alarm this morning was not my best friend and it felt like I hadn't been at work for ages. Thank you break for making me too relaxed!

 

When I checked the weather last night, it said that it would be in the 50s (weren't we expecting snow this time last week??) and partially cloudy so I packed running gear. Though it was definitely not the in the 50s and super cloudy so I am glad I packed winter attire!

 

I ran 3 miles before coming inside to do this Core  workout:

 

 

*Side not...It does not take 25-30 minutes. More like 10. But do this real quick and your abs will be screaming!

Strengh Challenge {Happy Birthday Mommy!}

Happy Thanksgiving eve!

 

This morning, Caroline, my mom and I went to a Strengh Challenge class that my mom raves about! It's my mom's birthday so she decided to get festive with wearing a crown!

*Before class with the awesome instructor, Chris!*

 

This class involved lots of free weights and bars. How Chris does his class is that he is always working more than 1 muscle...so we could do a squat and bicep curls at the same time. He also plays AWESOME music!! He had some recent hits mixed with Michael Jackson and other 80s hits. There was not one song I didn't like!

 

After halfway through some shoulder/upper body workouts is when my arms & shoulders were SCREAMING! It was a good burn, but still a burn. Phew! Afterwards, I was super sore when showering and lifting my arms.

 

Another plus from this class was the new workouts I'll be able to do on my own. One I'll definitely do is a plié squat with weights but also a shoulder workout. You do a plié squat, tap the weight to the ground then lift weights up while standing up. Another one I liked, though I was pretty tired at this point, was down on all fours but doing butt kickbacks and tricep kickbacks at the same time. Woo!!

 

After class, we had a cup of chocolate milk courtesy of the Birthday Queen! :) Also a good snack for post workout ;)

 

 

 

I Be Up At The Gym, Workin On My Fitness

I found this off of my friend's Facebook page and decided to give it a go today since my mom and I were going to be at the gym longer (Caroline's bus was getting in right across the street from the gym) and it was great to have a good routine going!

Some changes I made:

I did 20 minutes on the bike and 10 minutes on the treadmill

N0 5 minute headstand!! I would not finding balancing on my head relaxing! Nor would I be able to do that.

 

I am really stretching tonight because tomorrow, Caroline and I are going with my mom to a favorite class of her's since A) it is her birthday and B) she says it's a FANTASTIC class! The instructor really works you (weights on the back while doing push ups?!) and I want my body ready for this! Post will be happening on this!

 

 

Lower Ab Attack

Greetings from my first day of break due to a wintery mix.....that I am currently still waiting upon. Although I am a fan of missing school (who isn't?!), I do feel like it is a waste when nothing comes :/ But we shall see!

Yesterday's workout really focused on the lower ab section. The lower ab is always a hard spot for girls to tone, but this one is a good way to get it screaming.

A tip for holding a plank longer than you usually can: Get on your phone and check Facebook/Twitter/whatever. You don't see a timer or anything and time goes by faster than you think!

 

Another great thing about this workout is that you can do it at home....like when you are snowed in ;)

 

My little sister comes home today from college, I can't wait! :)  

Girls on the Run 5k

"Girls on the Run is so much fun, Girls on the Run is #1!"

 

Yesterday was the Girls on the Run 5k at Sweet Brier College in Lynchburg. After an early wake up call (5:50 alarm on a Saturday is brutal), we met up with each other at the elementary school and hit the road! We were bundled up because with that wind, it was freezing!

 

Before the race, the girls could get their hair done ...which my girls loved...with hair spray and glitter, get info on Anti Bullying (get one finger painted blue) and other fun festivities for them!

I got my hair sprayed too but couldn't get a picture of it :(

While we were waiting at the start line, they were playing pump up music and they played Katy Perry's Roar and our girls went crazy! We were singing and dancing, a great way to start a run (and keep ourselves warm!).

 

I was going to be a buddy for one of our girls and stuck with her the whole way. I do have to say I was a bit surprised by the difficulty of the course, hilly and gravel. My favorite part of the course, as was my little buddy, was running by the barn and stables where the horses were out!

 

I was extremely proud of my buddy to get pushing herself and loved seeing her happiness when she crossed the finish line and they announced her name (all the girls had their names on their bibs) and got her medal, her smile was pure joy. :) :) Same goes to all the other girls!

The coaches at the race!

 

I'm sad that the season is over and won't be getting to see these energetic, hilarious girls 2x a week anymore! :( Until next year!

 

 

Whatever Friday

TGIF!

 

 

Tomorrow is the Girls On The Run 5k which I am so excited for to see the girls celebrate all that they have been working for this season. Waking up at 6am on a Saturday though....I'm not too excited for.

 

ROAR! (*I'll explain what that means tomorrow ;) )

 

 

Today's workout was a random one that ended up being one of the "beast" workouts I've had in awhile.

Because of the warm temps we had to today, I decided to go for a run and ran about 3 miles. I came back into the gym to do 115 reps of my Plie Squats Challenge....

.............then decided to do the Better Booty workout. My glutes are gonna be feeling it after today and the run tomorrow (which I've heard is hilly!).

Next up? Abs!

40 crunches

5 weighted sit ups

30 scissors

30 oblique crunches

:25 plank

:20 side plank each

30 Russian Twists (with dumbbell)

20 Vertical Leg Crunches

15 Jacknife Sit Ups

:40 plank

 

Biceps for a Song: Pretty self explanatory. Put on a good upbeat song for about 3-4 minutes and do bicep curls. I closed my eyes to this one and just got lost in the song. Nice way to knock out some biceps.

 

I ended with an easy 20 minutes on the elliptical.

 

 

 

 

 



Core Crunch

Woo, Tuesdays are going to be exhausting with coaching now on the schedule, I could pass out right now! I actually might after I get this one homework assignment done with, but wanted to post about  the awesome ab workout I did today!

I had a short time for a workout today between work and coaching so decided to open up my Nike Training Club app up to see what they had for quick workouts. I picked a 15 minute Core Crunch one that looked like this:

1 minute V Ups

1 minute Full Extensions

1 minute suitcases

1 minute side plank crunches (I changed to side plank dips)

1 minute frogger with swivel

1 minute V Ups

1 minute Full Extensions

 minute Suitcases

1 minute side plank *plank dips*

1 minute Frogger with Swivel

1 minute plank

2 minutes side planks

1 minute opposite arm/leg supermans

1 minute kickdowns

 

 

I completed another day of the Plie Squat Challenge - 110! 90 more to go. 

Abs crossfit = 800 jump ropes.

Before another busy week comes upon us, I want to let you all know of an new ab workout I did yesterday!

 

I've started to get bored with some of my usual ab routines and while looking through Pinterest, I found this workout that I had pinned months ago but never had given it a try. 800 jump ropes? Bring it on!

 

Results - sweaty, burning abs, and sick of jump robes for awhile ;)

 

Burning Body

After my run yesterday and the workout today, my lower body is screaming for sure!

 

I was on a time limit on my workout today and wanted something written out for me so I didn't have to waste any time having to think about what to do next.

 

Con to this workout--although it says Burning Body, it was more of a leg burner! Hello!!

 

Pro to this though: Can be done outside of a gym. I know I have had people mention they are looking for workouts that they can do at home, and this is for you!

 

Keep Calm...it's almost FRIDAY! :D

Chilly running

Happy chilly Wednesday!

 

I hope everyone stayed bundled up today, it was a cold one!

Today was a run & arms day.

 

I was excited to try out a new top I got last week. Old Navy Popover Collar Running Top. I saw it on another fitness blog I follow and it looked liked a top that I could run in but also wear for comfort! After finding it during Old Navy's 30% sale, I couldn't wait to go for a run!

All bundled up and ready to go! Gloves were worn of course ;)

 

Shirt = fitted but not tight where you feel like you can't breath. Love the collar and how it has thumb holes in the sleeves :) Below is the link if you're interested!

http://oldnavy.gap.com/browse/product.do?vid=1&pid=919503012

 

After a 4 mile run, I came in and switched out to a short sleeves shirt to do a quick round of biceps and triceps.

 

 

 

Stretching

Good morning!

Yesterday's workout was sort of a "going through the motions" type of workout but what I really got out of it was my stretching I did at the end!

 

I have really taken to doing foam roller stretching and they can do wonders to your legs! I didn't realize how tight I was in some areas until I started using one.

 

http://www.prevention.com/fitness/strength-training/fitness-foam-roller-workout-stretch-and-strengthen-muscles

 

Tonight starts my first night of coaching, which I am excited for! Gonna make for a long day but I'll get used to it!

Recap of the week

Hello!

Sorry for being MIA the past few days, I have been busy getting re-organized after a relaxing 4 day weekend! Only a 3 day work week but I am exhausted!

Here's a recap on some exciting news this week!

 

Tuesday

I registered for the Nike Women's Half Marathon DC in April 2014! I first heard of this race via Pinterest when it was just located in San Francisco (DC and San Fran are the only locations for this race) and what really caught my eye was that instead of finisher medals, runners get a race themed Tiffany necklace!

Since I have had bad luck with my past 2 DC area races, mainly getting there due to traffic, I am hoping 3rd times the charm for this race, especially since it is in the city!

(pictures from last year's race)

 

Wednesday

Yesterday I agreed to be a swim coach for a local year round swim program, CYAC. I will be coaching 2x a week starting next week! I loved coaching summer league a few summers ago and am excited to get back into it.

What will be nice too is that I will have an hour & half between getting off of work before practices so I will have time to get a workout in prior :)

 

Today!

Today at Girls On The Run was the girls practice 5k! The 5k race is in 22 days and the girls ran AMAZING today! It was great to see how happy and excited they were for themselves when they finished and I know they will be the same on race day!

I especially loved seeing the parents and other teachers come out and cheer on the girls, even the school's afterschool program made signs and came out!!

My mom came too and ran with a few of the girls, she said it was great :)

Before running, we got all pumped up by singing and dancing to Katy Perry's "Roar".

 

Today's workout!

I am not sure if it is the time change or what, but I was feeling pretty sluggish when I got to the gym after GOTR and almost turned around and went home. It could've also been my mind was going in a 100 different directions with all what I needed to do tonight but I knew if I didn't work out today, I'd regret later!

I did 25 minutes on the elliptical before doing 80 squats for the Plié Squat Challenge. I did it with a 25 pound bar over my shoulders.

After that I did a Sculpting Abs workout I found on Workouts Daily instagram:

45 crunches

30 Russian twists (with barbell)

25 bicycles

15 leg lifts

20 single leg lifts

30 V-crunches

25 bicycles

1 minute side plank (per side)

50 high knees

10 scissors

 

Now I am crawling into bed, TGIF tomorrow then on my way to Ben's! Wish I could teleport that drive though!

 

 

 

Butt Blaster & Ab Burner

Happy Chilly Monday!

 

I don't know about anyone else but today really felt like fall! I am glad that I didn't have work today because it was in the lower 30s the time I'd be heading to school! At least it won't be dark out when I leave!

 

Workout

Today's work was Cardio, butt, and abs.

Cardio: 20 minutes on the stairmaster

Butt: a 5 min butt blaster:

Abs: The 15 minute Ab Burner workout on the Nike Fitness Club app. If you haven't downloaded this app, I recommend you do so!

 

Plie Squat Challenge update: 75 squats!

 



Enter if you dare--Halloween post

Happy Halloween!

 

I wanted to find a festive workout to do for today and I found these treats!

 

The 'Don't Scream' Glute Burner had both my glutes and thighs SCREAMING at the end of this, those wall sits can be killers!

Finishing with these Spooktacular Abs:

 

(____) of the Day:

Song of the Day: It just isn't Halloween without this song being play at least once.

Monster Mash



Rockin the 50s!

Today the Kindergarteners did their Halloween performance and carved pumpkins with their family. They got to change into their costumes after lunch; but all the teachers wore their costumes all day. I decided to be a 50s girl, though none of the kids understood :(

 

 

In honor of being a 50s girl today, I thought the following workout would be perfect!

 

I of course, also did 55 plié squats for Day 2 of the challenge!

 

Plie' Squat Challenge

Today I started the 30 Day Plie' Squat Challenge! I'd love some company on this! :)

Biceps, triceps, shoulders, and abs!

Happy Football Sunday!

Currently writing this while watching the Redskins-Broncos game with Ben and his family. I have a 3 day weekend so I get the joy with staying an extra day rather than leaving at this time! Happy happy :)

 

Onto yesterday's workout....

 

The ball of my foot was still bothering me, though not as much. I went out and bought some insoles to put in my shoes to help until I get new ones. I tried them out when we got to the gym by hopping on the treadmill to do a 1 mile run. Well the ball of my foot was fine, but the arch of my foot was then hurting! I think I had the insoles in wrong, so I'll do some re-adjusting and hope that helps!

 

After the run, I went to the mat area and grabbed some free weights to do the following. For the arms, I did 3 sets of 12 in each superset.

I am really feeling my triceps today!

 

(____) of the day:

Motivation of the day: Those who ran the Marine Corps Marathon in DC! My mom ran it in the 1990s and although I have said I wouldn't run a marathon, I was a bit obsessive over the MCM this morning by checking tweets and watching videos. Maybe some day......

 

Good Vibrations!

After rocking out to this song at the gym, this post is brought to you by Glee's version of "Good Vibrations".

 

I started off with a quick leg set of leg press, leg extensions, curls, etc. The ball of my right foot was bothering me all day and the pressure of this exercises wasn't helping :( Hope I didn't do more damage!

 

I finished out with the following arm & ab set:

The middle section with the front to side to mac raises really had my shoulders screaming!

 

(_____) of the day:

Food of the day: Zucchini bread! :) See previous post for recipe!

 

Zucchini bread success

I am so glad the recipe made 2 loaves because after I brought them out of the oven last night, my parents and I practically ate 1 loaves all by ourselves!

  3 eggs

 1 cup oil

 2 cups sugar

  2 cups shredded zucchini

 3 tsp vanilla

 3 cups flour

  1 tsp salt

 1 tsp baking soda

  1/4 tsp baking powder

  3 tsp cinnamon

  1/2 cup nuts (optional)

    Directions Grease or flour two bread loaf pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and bake for one hour. This recipe does make two loaves

Zucchini Bread in the oven

I am writing this post quickly because the Halloween special of Pretty Little Liars is about to come on. Yes, I am a PLL, no judge ;)

Also, while I am typing and watching, my first ever making of zucchini bread is in the oven! I can't wait to try it in less than an hour! If successful....which, with my cooking sometimes, you never know...I'll post the recipe!

Today's workout was a 5 mile loop to Crozet and back. I haven't done a long run in awhile and really want to get back on a good running schedule, especially with this crisp fall weather. I started from a park less than a minute from my house (Mint Springs), and ran 2.5 miles out which took me through a Crozet neighborhood then I turned back. I felt a bit sluggish but when I finished, my body and legs felt really good :)

It's starting! Just wanted to pipe in for a daily update! :)

(______) of the day:
Quote of the Day: "My mom put this sticky stuff in my hair and now it won't move" --kindergarten boy standing in line to get his school picture

Recap of weekend and today's workout

Happy Manic Monday everyone!

I was up at Ben's this past weekend where we had a fun time Saturday night hanging out with his sister and her husband, whom introduced me to Pho! If you haven't tried this yummy Vietnamese noodle soup, I suggest you do! It was the perfect dinner to a cool, dreary Saturday night.

Earlier that day, Ben and I headed to his gym for a quick workout. After doing a 20 minute warm up on the elliptical (my body was tired and that was a good way to wake it up!), I did the follow workout with free weights:
Arms:
40 dumbbell bicep curls
10 push ups
10 triangle pushups
1.5 minute chest press pulse
10 tricep dips

Butt:
50 squats
2 minute wall sit
50 donkey kicks (each side)
50 donkey leg raises ( each side)
50 single leg half bridge pulses (each side)
50 single leg bridge circles (each side)
100 swim kicks

Outer Thighs:
60 dumbbell side lunges
30 dumbbell standing outer thigh lifts
50 lying outer thigh lifts
50 walking lunges

Abs:
30 Russian Twists
10 sit ups
:30 plank
20 vertical leg crunches
:20 plank
10 jackknife sit ups
:15 side plank (each side)
30 crunches
:40 plank

Today's workout
When I got to the gym this afternoon, I was in a great mood after a wonderful Girls On The Run practice. So proud of my girls who are working so hard and most of the girls reached their daily goal today, yay!
Today's workout consisted of a Total Body Circuit Workout 3 times through:

 

(_____) of the Day:

Song of the Day: Go the Distance from Hercules!

 

 



I don't sweat, I sparkle!

Title courtesy of what my tank said today :)

 

After driving to and from Richmond this afternoon to take a test, I was more than ready to get out of the car and work out! I started out on the elliptical to wake myself up before doing a butt and ab routine. I was really feeling my workout from yesterday while on the elliptical, but it was a good burn!

The butt routine is one that I have done before and posted quite often,  but it's my favorite because it's a good mix up of butt exercises (plus, you could do outside of the gym if you needed!)

 

My ab workout consisted of following:

30 Russian twists with weight

10 sit ups

:30 plank

20 vertical leg crunches

:20 plank

10 jackknifes

40 oblique crunches

:15 side plank each

30 crunches

:40 plank

 

I do this one straight through without resting!

 

Question: What exercise(s) would you guys like to see more of?

I try to switch up my workouts but realize I do more of some workouts than others. Everyone's body is different of course so something I want to work on, you may not want to! BUT if there is something you'd like to see/try, let me know! :)



It's Hump Day!

This morning during calendar, when asked what day it was, all the kids shouted out Hump Day! ha! 

Workout

I had hoped to go on a run after work, but it was overcast and looked like rain when I left school, so I headed straight to the gym (course it was sunny when I left). 

I jumped on the treadmill to do my favorite treadmill workout, while getting to enjoy Boy Meets World (kudos to ABCfamily for re-airing it!):

I then did 1 round of the following functional workout. 1 minute of burpees isn't a walk in a park I tell ya! 

2 more days till the weekend folks, we can do it!! 

Post wedding workout

Yesterday was my best friend's wedding and I could not be more THRILLED for her!!

 

Ben and I passed out hard when we got home last night, but when we woke up this morning, we were ready for the gym (though on a rainy Saturday, my warm bed felt hard to leave from).

I warmed up with 30 minutes on the elliptical before doing the Saturday Morning Circuit Workout! I didn't realize how tired my legs were (dancing last night in heels plus lots of moving around the day before) until  I was doing this. It's a great full body workout that you can take at your own speed!

Fall running

Nothing like a cool, fall day to make you want to run and run!

I decided to not route out a run before hand and just let my feet go where I felt like going. I ended up just about 5 miles (my watch died early on so I have no record) but I was able to guestimate based on the amount of time I was out running. Since I am not getting out around 2-2:30, I am looking forward to being able to get runs in during the afternoon rather than evening before it gets dark :) Though I could tell at the end of my run, I am in need of new running shoes! Next paycheck!

Afterwards, I came in for a Sexy Arm Workout. I've done it before, but here it is again:

Mondays' Burnin Legs & Abs!

 

This past weekend, I got to experience the love and fun of Ben's older sister, Cary, at her wedding! Congrats to the new Mr. & Mrs. Trencher!

I was able to go for a run around Ben's neighborhood Friday morning before we left for DC and it felt great, especially since it was still cool out! And of course, Saturday evening, I tore up the dance floor in heels...my poor feet were screaming the next day.

Today's workout:

Seriously, rainy Mondays are the worst.



After GOTR, I went to ACAC Downtown to do a workout. I was starting to get hungry since I had lunch almost 5 hours earlier so I didn't want to push myself too much. I did 20 minutes on the stairmaster before doing the following:

10 push ups

50 sumo squats

50 bridges

10 push ups

50 squats

50 lunges

10 push ups

50 side plank hip lifts (25 each side)

50 side crunches (25 each side)

10 push ups

50 squat jumps

50 crunches on exercise ball

50 jumping jacks

50 bicycles

10 push ups

50 seconds planks

 



BodyPump!

Today's workout was BodyPump!! BodyPump is a weight-based class that works eight separate muscle group areas at a fast moving pace.

The music my instructor selected was great! I sometimes caught myself moving to the beat and wanting to dance and not doing the workout haha. The warm up was a quick whole body workout and then we were off working butt...chest...legs....arms...and shoulders which were SCREAMING by the end of the class! We ended with abs which were a nice break from not using weights.

 

I really enjoyed the class, though did struggle with finding my right weight at the beginning. The first was too light so I added a weight when then made it really heavy on my shoulders and upper back so took that weight off. I settled with my first weight and throughout the class, I am glad I did. I have a feeling my arms won't want to move tomorrow!

 

There most likely won't be a post until next Monday because tomorrow I am going to Caroline's field hockey game and then Thursday through the weekend, I will be in DC for Ben's sister, Cary, wedding! Though as you may recall from my post from May re. my cousin's wedding, there will  be plenty of dancing going on this weekend ;)

Swim workout!

It's almost the weekend!!

This time tomorrow I will be arriving in Virginia Beach for Tori's bachelorette party and I am STOKED!!

Since I am now a member of all 3 ACAC Charlottesville locations, I decided to dust off the swim suit, cap and goggles and go for a swim after GOTR today; especially since the downtown location is less than 5 minutes from where we meet for GOTR. I was pretty excited to get back in the pool after a year of not swimming!

 

I found the following workout on Pinterest to do:

For those who don't know what 'pull' is in swimming, it is when you get a block and put it between your legs and swim with just using your arms. My shoulders were screaming!

 

It felt pretty good to get back in the water again :) Although I did end up ramming my left foot/big toe into the wall when I was swimming breaststroke because the woman I was sharing the lane with was also doing breaststroke and was more on my side than hers. Ouch!! What a way to end a workout :(

 

Now off to pack! Here's an early 'cheers' to everyone, hope you all have a great weekend!

 

 

Gym update

Semi-exciting news (depends if you are a gym rat or not)...due to my new TA job with the county, one of the benefits is a huge discount with my gym, ACAC. There are 3 ACAC locations in the Charlottesville area. I currently belong to the small, express one in Crozet, which doesn't offer half the amount that the other 2 locations do (including a pool). So today, I took advantage of that discount and signed up for a 3 for 1 deal...all 3 gyms for $60! Hello! I am super excited to try a bunch of classes and perhaps get back into swimming!

In the terms of working out....

I was hoping to have a great, feel good workout today cause my day had been awesome so far. Well halfway through being on the elliptical (where I was stuck either watching Wife Swap, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, or the local news...all less popular choices), my stomach started grumbling. I had had a granola bar around 2ish, since I had eaten lunch around 11:15, and had hoped that would tie me over till dinner. I was trying to ignore it but I could tell I was losing fuel while doing arms and then abs was almost torture cause every crunch was a growl from my tummy monster! Needless to say, make sure you never workout on an empty stomach!!

Arm workout:

3 x15 bicep curls

3x15 upper back machine

3 x 12 tricep back extension

3x15 shoulder press

3 x 15 chest press

 

 



Bikini season isn't over yet....

Happy 1st day of fall!

 

Even though today is the first day of fall, bikini season isn't over quite just yet! This weekend is my best friend Tori's bachelorette party and we are heading to VA Beach for what should be a fun weekend! The weather is suppose to be perfect this weekend, highs in the upper 70s and sunny. Perfect for sitting out on the beach talking with the girls. Though I'm not sure if I plan on getting in the water, I still plan on packing a suit!

(Tori, in white, with the bridal party at her shower!)

 

 

I started out with 20 minutes on the stairmaster, then did a mile incline walk on the treadmill (this only happened cause I wanted to watch the end of the Redskins game) before moving onto the smith machine for 50 squats (5 reps of 10).

 

Afterwards, I moved to the aerobic room and did the following Butt workout:

I then did the following ab wokout to complete my day:

30 Russian Twists

10 sit ups

:30 second plank

20 vertical leg crunches

:20 second plank

10 jack-knife sit ups

40 oblique crunches

:15 second side plank (each side)

30 crunches

:40 second plank

 

 

 

Strong and quick circuit workout

It's hump day (for the next 2 hours at least)!

 

Today's workout was a quick one but I felt it hit all the body parts!

After a 30 minute warm up on the elliptical, I did the following workout. It ended taking me about 20 minutes instead of 30 but that could depend on each person!

 

 

What is  great about this workout is that you could do it at home if you aren't able to make it to a gym!