Oh my! Only five weeks until the cruise! Eek!
Mini goal for the week: more steps! Somehow, I had four days (!) under 10,000 steps last week! I usually only have one - my rest day. This week has to be better! At least it's warmer; that'll help get me outside at work.
Second mini goal for the week: more protein! Mid-week I'll start a protein powder because I just can't get up to Cathe's recommended 100g of protein a day to save my life.
Monday: Cathe's Pyramid Upper Body + walk + YWA
Wow. So, this workout comes from Cathe's old Intensity Series. And it kicked my butt - er, arms. The theme is high reps - you start light, go heavier, and then come back down to lighter....like a pyramid. But this burns your muscles out quickly. I struggled at the end of each pyramid....and I only got through 45 minutes of the workout! At lunch, I walked at the rec center. Yay, steps! After a very long day, this YWA: True practice was just so, so lovely. Adriene has outdone herself with this series.
Tuesday: Cathe's Jabs and Abs + YWA
I love kickboxing days! This was a fairly new live workout and I really enjoyed it! I'm amazed when my heart rate can stay up with punches alone. Wow! Cathe really did a good job with this workout. My 40 minutes ran up before the abs (and then I had to stretch) but maybe I can go back and do that portion this weekend. After work, YWA! It was a good one today - again!
Wednesday: Cathe's Butts and Gutts + walk + YWA
Another new Cathe workout for me! I only got through the "butt" portion of Butts and Gutts but that was my intent. And boy, it was a painful 40 minutes! I sure hope it was effective - all those squats and lunges have to do something! At lunch, I walked at the rec center and then stretched. After work, I did a YWA: True..... These will be out of order for the next few days due to time constraints. This one was short, which was what I needed!
Thursday: YWA + abs
My rest day! And I needed it - my body was tired! This was a great YWA to do today (out of order still). It got my juices flowing at this early hour and stretched me out a bit. I did some additional stretching afterward and added in some ab work to finish off my morning. Nice!
Friday: Cathe's Ripped with HIIT: Low Impact HIIT One + Two + YWA
Cardio....and I wasn't dreading it this morning! I actually really like these two HIIT workouts. They're both about 25 minutes so I did all of One and most of Two to fill up my 40 minutes of time. It gave me a great workout. Interestingly, my heart rate was higher in the second one - that uses a weight for most of the moves. After work, I backtracked in YWA: True. My balance was amazingly good this day - wonders never cease.
Saturday: Cathe's XTrain 06: Cardio Leg Blast + BBW + YWA
I love the concept of this workout. Cardio, strength, cardio, strength. It's a great metabolic workout. And this one worked me hard today - but it felt great. The next four weeks will roughly follow this rotation with the Bonus Butt Workout (BBW). Because I'll miss the last weekend of the month, I had to do a BBW early - this weekend. You'll also notice that Cathe's suggests 300 walking lunges. I did those today, interspersed throughout my workout. Then, I did the BBW after it all. And, man, I could barely move afterward. YWA was awesome today because it stretched the legs really well. It felt great!
Sunday: Cathe's Flex Train + abs + YWA
Amazingly, I could walk today! Yay! This Flex Train was a welcome change after yesterday. But dang, it really worked my arms! And all the leg work was.....excruciating. It lasted for 55 minutes and I did the abs....which I think I also did last week somehow. They're tough. Finally, I stretched and tuned into today's YWA: True. It was very flow-y but also gave me a good leg stretch.
Calorie Counts:
Monday - 1183
Tuesday - 1239
Wednesday - 1200
Thursday - 1160
Friday - 1344
Saturday - 1383
Sunday - 1266
More calories this week...but I'm hoping they were good, lean muscle building calories! I didn't weigh because I just couldn't face the scale this week. Sigh. A few of my pants/skirts were a bit looser so that gives me hope.
Monday, January 29, 2018
Friday, January 26, 2018
Some Favorite Things
The Archies are always fun to do at the end of the year. It reminds me of all that has happened, all that I've explored, and all that I've seen.
This year is already off to a good start. And I've already found some new things to love!
-May Designs. I'm finally using the wonderful notebooks I ordered last year (hence their inclusion on The Archies 2017) and I love them! I'm using them for running gift ideas, workout weight charts, and work to-do lists. They're lovely and I get tons of compliments on them.
-FitnessRX for Women is a great website that I found out about through a Cathe forum. If you're serious about making changes to your body, this is a great resource for you. I've learned a lot, just perusing the articles.
-I don't have firsthand experience with Hedgerow Yarns but I want it! Since I started following them on Instagram, I've fallen in love with their colors and dyeing techniques. I can't wait to try a skein - or four!
-And for something random, I just watched HAPPY DEATH DAY. It's a movie that combines GROUNDHOG DAY and EDGE OF TOMORROW. The heroine is stuck in a time loop where she keeps repeating the same day and she gets killed at the end of it - every time. It's definitely a surprising find.
This year is already off to a good start. And I've already found some new things to love!
-May Designs. I'm finally using the wonderful notebooks I ordered last year (hence their inclusion on The Archies 2017) and I love them! I'm using them for running gift ideas, workout weight charts, and work to-do lists. They're lovely and I get tons of compliments on them.
-FitnessRX for Women is a great website that I found out about through a Cathe forum. If you're serious about making changes to your body, this is a great resource for you. I've learned a lot, just perusing the articles.
-I don't have firsthand experience with Hedgerow Yarns but I want it! Since I started following them on Instagram, I've fallen in love with their colors and dyeing techniques. I can't wait to try a skein - or four!
-And for something random, I just watched HAPPY DEATH DAY. It's a movie that combines GROUNDHOG DAY and EDGE OF TOMORROW. The heroine is stuck in a time loop where she keeps repeating the same day and she gets killed at the end of it - every time. It's definitely a surprising find.
Monday, January 22, 2018
Butt and Plateau Buster Months: Week 3
I've now lost a pound since New Year's. That's not great....but I'll take it. Beggars can't be choosers and all that. Ha!
The workouts - getting more and more leg intensive - are challenging. Cathe is no joke. But I like it! And I'm loving Yoga with Adriene's True.
So, onward....
Monday: Cathe's Hard Strikes Low Impact Boxing Live + YWA
Yes, Monday was supposed to be my new rest day.... But I had the day off for MLK so I decided to save my rest day for tomorrow. This was my third time doing this live workout and it's fun. It proves that you can raise your heart rate - and keep it up - without jumping around. And there's so much boxing that my arms ached. Wow. Later in the day, I tuned into today's YWA: True. It was very calming.
Tuesday: YWA + abs + YWA
Ah, rest days. So lovely! I woke up this morning and did today's YWA: True. It was really good - and challenging, as usual. It's a bit early but I think True is better than last year's Revolution. After that, I did 15 minutes of abs from an old Cathe video. I honestly can't remember which video. And, after work, I did tomorrow's YWA...since I'll miss one on Thursday. It was 41 minutes long! I must admit that I skipped some of it; my evenings are just too full some days.
Wednesday: Cathe's Great Glutes + walk + YWA
I was ready for a painful morning....and Cathe delivered. This workout is intense, though not quite as intense as some of Cathe's early leg workouts. At least it's not dumbbell-centric. You get some un-weighted moves that really give you a break....and some that really hurt! At lunch, I walked at the rec center, braving the below-freezing temps. And after work, day 17 of YWA: True. It was a good way to end the day!
Thursday: Cathe's HIIT 30/30 + upper body + walk
Cardio time! It had been a while since I did this HIIT and it was a nice - tough - change. I don't think I'll ever like tuck jumps....but I admire Cathe for doing them and making me do them. Ha! After that 25 minutes, I did 15 minutes of upper body work from an old Cathe video...and I have no idea which one it was. It was just alright. At work, I walked the track at the rec center on my lunch hour - always happy to move and then stretch. It was sad not doing yoga today....but I'll continue it tomorrow!
Friday: Cathe's XTrain 04: SuperCuts + YWA
Holy cow! So it's been a while since I've done a metabolic weight training workout. These are supposedly a great way to get rid of fat and, considering how this one wiped me out, I'm about to believe it. Cathe works you hard with compound exercises, tons of reps, and lighter weights. She throws in a few low-impact weightless moves to keep your heart rate up but this workout is non-stop! After work, I tuned into YWA: True, Day18. Nice!
Saturday: Cathe's X10 + abs + YWA
Wowza. I've done several sections of X10 but it continuously surprises me with it's high intensity. Today, I did the Fat-Burning, Hi-Lo, and Step sections. Each one had high impact cardio and high intensity metabolic weight training. My heart was pumping! And it was great! After that 50 minutes, I did about 10 minutes of abs and then stretched. YWA: True for today, Day 19, was really good. It got me into poses I rarely attempt, which is always fun!
Sunday: Cathe's Lean Legs and Abs + YWA
Another leg day - they come so often! This was a new-to-me video and it was good, though not my favorite. It consisted of cardio/strength compound exercises and then standing and lying work with weights and the loop. I took a break in the midst of it to do my 250 lunges for the day. Ouch! That was 40 minutes of work - and then I did 10 minutes of the abs. After a nice stretch, I did today's YWA. It was nice and soft - just what I needed after all that leg work.
Calorie Counts:
Monday - 1187
Tuesday - 1157
Wednesday - 1157
Thursday - 1288
Friday - 1240
Saturday - 1580
Sunday - 1311
There were more social things this week which meant eating out more. I weighed later in the week and was the same - down only a pound from my original weight. Then I weighed after working out and that took off another 0.6 pounds, which made me feel a bit better. Ugh!
The workouts - getting more and more leg intensive - are challenging. Cathe is no joke. But I like it! And I'm loving Yoga with Adriene's True.
So, onward....
Monday: Cathe's Hard Strikes Low Impact Boxing Live + YWA
Yes, Monday was supposed to be my new rest day.... But I had the day off for MLK so I decided to save my rest day for tomorrow. This was my third time doing this live workout and it's fun. It proves that you can raise your heart rate - and keep it up - without jumping around. And there's so much boxing that my arms ached. Wow. Later in the day, I tuned into today's YWA: True. It was very calming.
Tuesday: YWA + abs + YWA
Ah, rest days. So lovely! I woke up this morning and did today's YWA: True. It was really good - and challenging, as usual. It's a bit early but I think True is better than last year's Revolution. After that, I did 15 minutes of abs from an old Cathe video. I honestly can't remember which video. And, after work, I did tomorrow's YWA...since I'll miss one on Thursday. It was 41 minutes long! I must admit that I skipped some of it; my evenings are just too full some days.
Wednesday: Cathe's Great Glutes + walk + YWA
I was ready for a painful morning....and Cathe delivered. This workout is intense, though not quite as intense as some of Cathe's early leg workouts. At least it's not dumbbell-centric. You get some un-weighted moves that really give you a break....and some that really hurt! At lunch, I walked at the rec center, braving the below-freezing temps. And after work, day 17 of YWA: True. It was a good way to end the day!
Thursday: Cathe's HIIT 30/30 + upper body + walk
Cardio time! It had been a while since I did this HIIT and it was a nice - tough - change. I don't think I'll ever like tuck jumps....but I admire Cathe for doing them and making me do them. Ha! After that 25 minutes, I did 15 minutes of upper body work from an old Cathe video...and I have no idea which one it was. It was just alright. At work, I walked the track at the rec center on my lunch hour - always happy to move and then stretch. It was sad not doing yoga today....but I'll continue it tomorrow!
Friday: Cathe's XTrain 04: SuperCuts + YWA
Holy cow! So it's been a while since I've done a metabolic weight training workout. These are supposedly a great way to get rid of fat and, considering how this one wiped me out, I'm about to believe it. Cathe works you hard with compound exercises, tons of reps, and lighter weights. She throws in a few low-impact weightless moves to keep your heart rate up but this workout is non-stop! After work, I tuned into YWA: True, Day18. Nice!
Saturday: Cathe's X10 + abs + YWA
Wowza. I've done several sections of X10 but it continuously surprises me with it's high intensity. Today, I did the Fat-Burning, Hi-Lo, and Step sections. Each one had high impact cardio and high intensity metabolic weight training. My heart was pumping! And it was great! After that 50 minutes, I did about 10 minutes of abs and then stretched. YWA: True for today, Day 19, was really good. It got me into poses I rarely attempt, which is always fun!
Sunday: Cathe's Lean Legs and Abs + YWA
Another leg day - they come so often! This was a new-to-me video and it was good, though not my favorite. It consisted of cardio/strength compound exercises and then standing and lying work with weights and the loop. I took a break in the midst of it to do my 250 lunges for the day. Ouch! That was 40 minutes of work - and then I did 10 minutes of the abs. After a nice stretch, I did today's YWA. It was nice and soft - just what I needed after all that leg work.
Calorie Counts:
Monday - 1187
Tuesday - 1157
Wednesday - 1157
Thursday - 1288
Friday - 1240
Saturday - 1580
Sunday - 1311
There were more social things this week which meant eating out more. I weighed later in the week and was the same - down only a pound from my original weight. Then I weighed after working out and that took off another 0.6 pounds, which made me feel a bit better. Ugh!
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Good Omens
My book group chose to read Good Omens, by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, for January. It was my second time to read this hilarious novel about Armageddon.
Here's my Goodreads review:
This was my second time through Good Omens. This book definitely makes an impact - hilariously and seriously. The concept is so original but the delivery falls apart halfway through. Pratchett and Gaiman lost my interest with the four horseman and it was downhill to armageddon. And I was angry at them for making four uninteresting characters when there's so much potential there! Those four either needed more development or none whatsoever.
The greatest part of this book is the relationship between Aziraphale and Crowley. I wish the entire thing could have focused on them and Adam. That would be a great read.
Here's my Goodreads review:
This was my second time through Good Omens. This book definitely makes an impact - hilariously and seriously. The concept is so original but the delivery falls apart halfway through. Pratchett and Gaiman lost my interest with the four horseman and it was downhill to armageddon. And I was angry at them for making four uninteresting characters when there's so much potential there! Those four either needed more development or none whatsoever.
The greatest part of this book is the relationship between Aziraphale and Crowley. I wish the entire thing could have focused on them and Adam. That would be a great read.
Monday, January 15, 2018
Butt and Plateau Buster Months: Week 2
To start the week off, I weighed. And I was done 0.6 pounds! I know this doesn't seem like much....but I'm ecstatic! That's 0.6 pounds below the number that hasn't budged in months. Amazing!! And to think that a week ago, on New Year's Day, I was eating horribly.....wow! There's hope...
So now I'm even more motivated than usual!
One minor change.... My rest days are screwed up since I took last Monday off for the holiday. So, for now, rest days will come at the beginning of the week.
Monday: YWA + Cathe's Fit Split Core + YWA
Rest day! My legs were still killing me this morning so a rest day sounded lovely! And then Adriene got my blood pumping with TRUE Day 7. Wow. Up and down, up and down... That's one way to get going in the morning! After that 25 minute practice, I tuned into Cathe's new Fit Split program's core routine. OUCH! I couldn't get through this one, it was so painful! I did about 3/4 of it. And, at the end of the day, I did TRUE Day 8, which I'd downloaded - because I'm going to miss yoga on Thursday. So, I'll be ahead of the game until then!
Tuesday: Cathe's Low Impact Cardio HIIT Live + YWA
Oh my gosh! I didn't know what I was getting into this morning! This low impact workout worked me harder than any other Cathe low impact workout. It was crazy intense! And short! I did about 10 minutes of my cardio to fill a full 40 minutes. It felt good but dang! After work, this YWA Day 9 had some lovely stretches. Very nice!
Wednesday: Cathe's Leaner Legs + walk + YWA
Considering my legs were still hurting from Saturday, I was not looking forward to another leg day. Cathe doesn't warm you up quite as much as usual in this older workout so you're thrown into some intense exercises pretty quickly. The good news was that my heart rate skyrocketed and only came down briefly during the deadlifts. So this was a crazy workout! At lunch, I walked at the rec center and after work, YWA! Day 10! Lots of twists in this Detox session - but it was all good.
Thursday: Cathe's Upper Body with Ball Live + walk + YWA
Time for arms this morning! This was a good workout for this week, after more intense arm work last week. It was shorter and then Cathe moved into ab work. I got through one of the ab circuits and then stopped - a bit early today to have a few more minutes to get ready. At lunch, I walked at the rec center again. My evening plans got moved to next week so I could do my yoga! YWA True was really good - soft. I'm all about soft yoga at this time in the week!
Friday: Cathe's To the Max + YWA
I couldn't remember this workout, though I'd done it before. And it was a lot harder than I anticipated! I did these segments: step, tabata, and HIIT. Whew! It was definitely a great workout...just not what I expected. I did about 5 minutes of my own cardio at the end to cool off and take it down a notch. Day 12 of YWA True was really good - and challenging. Adriene always manages to surprise me!
Saturday: Cathe's Strong and Sweaty: Ramped Up Upper Body + XTrain Core 2 + YWA
Back to the upper body today. I was still a tiny bit sore from Thursday but not too bad. This workout definitely tested my strength, though. It's fast moving and high rep. My arms burned out quickly using heavier weights. I generally had to decrease my weight on the second rep. After that 45 minutes, I did 10 minutes of XTrain Core 2 - which was challenging. I had to skip one move altogether. And since I was a day ahead of YWA, I got stuck today when they didn't post the next day's True on the download site. Oy. So, I did this YWA on rabbit pose, hoping it would stretch my arms - and it did!
Sunday: Cathe's X10 + XTrain Legs + YWA
Whew. So I started the morning with X10 - a brutal cardio workout. I did the Cardio Blast and Low Impact sections. This is a killer workout. In between sections, I did walking lunges for a total of 200. All that lasted 35 minutes. I then tuned into XTrain Legs. Ironically, the standing work of this workout is nothing compared to what you do on the floor. I was in agony on the floor. That went on for 30 minutes. I then treated myself to a good stretch - my legs were so tired. Then, YWA was all about strength today, which only further tested my poor legs. Ouch! I was glad to be done. YWA works much better when it stands alone - for me, anyway.
Calorie Counts:
Monday - 1198
Tuesday - 1159
Wednesday - 1123
Thursday - 1123
Friday - 1176
Saturday - 1205
Sunday - 1220
Success! A week of healthy eating!
So now I'm even more motivated than usual!
One minor change.... My rest days are screwed up since I took last Monday off for the holiday. So, for now, rest days will come at the beginning of the week.
Monday: YWA + Cathe's Fit Split Core + YWA
Rest day! My legs were still killing me this morning so a rest day sounded lovely! And then Adriene got my blood pumping with TRUE Day 7. Wow. Up and down, up and down... That's one way to get going in the morning! After that 25 minute practice, I tuned into Cathe's new Fit Split program's core routine. OUCH! I couldn't get through this one, it was so painful! I did about 3/4 of it. And, at the end of the day, I did TRUE Day 8, which I'd downloaded - because I'm going to miss yoga on Thursday. So, I'll be ahead of the game until then!
Tuesday: Cathe's Low Impact Cardio HIIT Live + YWA
Oh my gosh! I didn't know what I was getting into this morning! This low impact workout worked me harder than any other Cathe low impact workout. It was crazy intense! And short! I did about 10 minutes of my cardio to fill a full 40 minutes. It felt good but dang! After work, this YWA Day 9 had some lovely stretches. Very nice!
Wednesday: Cathe's Leaner Legs + walk + YWA
Considering my legs were still hurting from Saturday, I was not looking forward to another leg day. Cathe doesn't warm you up quite as much as usual in this older workout so you're thrown into some intense exercises pretty quickly. The good news was that my heart rate skyrocketed and only came down briefly during the deadlifts. So this was a crazy workout! At lunch, I walked at the rec center and after work, YWA! Day 10! Lots of twists in this Detox session - but it was all good.
Thursday: Cathe's Upper Body with Ball Live + walk + YWA
Time for arms this morning! This was a good workout for this week, after more intense arm work last week. It was shorter and then Cathe moved into ab work. I got through one of the ab circuits and then stopped - a bit early today to have a few more minutes to get ready. At lunch, I walked at the rec center again. My evening plans got moved to next week so I could do my yoga! YWA True was really good - soft. I'm all about soft yoga at this time in the week!
Friday: Cathe's To the Max + YWA
I couldn't remember this workout, though I'd done it before. And it was a lot harder than I anticipated! I did these segments: step, tabata, and HIIT. Whew! It was definitely a great workout...just not what I expected. I did about 5 minutes of my own cardio at the end to cool off and take it down a notch. Day 12 of YWA True was really good - and challenging. Adriene always manages to surprise me!
Saturday: Cathe's Strong and Sweaty: Ramped Up Upper Body + XTrain Core 2 + YWA
Back to the upper body today. I was still a tiny bit sore from Thursday but not too bad. This workout definitely tested my strength, though. It's fast moving and high rep. My arms burned out quickly using heavier weights. I generally had to decrease my weight on the second rep. After that 45 minutes, I did 10 minutes of XTrain Core 2 - which was challenging. I had to skip one move altogether. And since I was a day ahead of YWA, I got stuck today when they didn't post the next day's True on the download site. Oy. So, I did this YWA on rabbit pose, hoping it would stretch my arms - and it did!
Sunday: Cathe's X10 + XTrain Legs + YWA
Whew. So I started the morning with X10 - a brutal cardio workout. I did the Cardio Blast and Low Impact sections. This is a killer workout. In between sections, I did walking lunges for a total of 200. All that lasted 35 minutes. I then tuned into XTrain Legs. Ironically, the standing work of this workout is nothing compared to what you do on the floor. I was in agony on the floor. That went on for 30 minutes. I then treated myself to a good stretch - my legs were so tired. Then, YWA was all about strength today, which only further tested my poor legs. Ouch! I was glad to be done. YWA works much better when it stands alone - for me, anyway.
Calorie Counts:
Monday - 1198
Tuesday - 1159
Wednesday - 1123
Thursday - 1123
Friday - 1176
Saturday - 1205
Sunday - 1220
Success! A week of healthy eating!
Friday, January 12, 2018
Winter Weathering
In the fall, the Farmer's Almanac came out with our winter weather prediction: a colder, wetter winter. Then, the "news authorities" conjured up their own forecasts: a warmer, drier La Nina-induced winter. Those authorities laughed at the Farmer's Almanac.
What has our winter been like, thus far? Colder - much colder - and wetter. We've had ice or snow three times already, though with no great amounts. The entire week between Christmas and New Year's was cold, grey, and drizzly. Our gas bill quadrupled in the span of a week.
The prediction for the coming week is still cold. Oh, and there's another chance for freezing rain. I love it! I just want to stay home and knit, so can we have some honest-to-goodness snow days, already?! What's the point of all this cold if we can't have some snow days?!
What has our winter been like, thus far? Colder - much colder - and wetter. We've had ice or snow three times already, though with no great amounts. The entire week between Christmas and New Year's was cold, grey, and drizzly. Our gas bill quadrupled in the span of a week.
The prediction for the coming week is still cold. Oh, and there's another chance for freezing rain. I love it! I just want to stay home and knit, so can we have some honest-to-goodness snow days, already?! What's the point of all this cold if we can't have some snow days?!
Monday, January 8, 2018
Butt and Plateau Buster Months: Week 1
Yay! Happy 2018!
Though I'm sad to see the holidays go, I'm happy to be able to get back on track with my diet. I need to eat healthy and try to get my weight down. Once it's down, my endocrinologist thinks it will stay down, now that my thyroid levels are good. I hope she's right.
The trick, however, will be losing the weight. I found two rotations from Cathe that I'm going to do in the next two months before our cruise. The first four weeks focuses on busting through plateaus. The second month will be her Rock Bottoms rotation. It sounds so painful! But I'm anxious to get started...
Also on the docket for January is Yoga with Adriene's 30 Day Yoga Challenge, TRUE. I'm so excited for this! I need to get more strict about my yoga and this will do it!!!
Monday: New Year's Day - REST
Even Adriene gives you the day to contemplate the month and year ahead....
Tuesday: Cathe's Old School Cardio Plus Kickboxing + YWA
This was my third time doing Old School Cardio and it's so much fun! Cathe gets you going and it's non-stop cardio. Fun! I really needed cardio this morning and as I was jumping, I couldn't help but notice my stomach pouch had it's own rhythm. UGH! I must get this gut thing gone, stat! After work, I started YWA's TRUE. Yay! The first day's practice was nice and slow but surprisingly tough. That's why I love Adriene's yoga!
Wednesday: Cathe's XTrain 02: Bi's and Tri's + walk + YWA
Weights today! Cathe sure knows how to work your biceps and triceps from every angle! My arms were getting really shaky near the end, especially with the tricep work. Ouch! At lunch, I braved the cold weather to go to the rec and walk - where, inside, it was annoyingly warm. I did some planks and crunches and stretched really well. And after work, it was time for TRUE, day two, with YWA. This was a really good practice - mindful and powerful....and still a bit painful.
Thursday: Cathe's Rockout Knockout + walk + YWA
Kickboxing today and I love kickboxing! This workout seemed so familiar...and then I realized that I did it two weeks ago. Ha! It's fun and effective - my heart rate stayed up the entire time. Whew! At lunch, I walked at the rec center, which was still overheated, despite the above-freezing temps outside. Ugh. I did some sit-ups and leg raises to finish off. Then, after work, YWA - TRUE Day 3! It was lovely!
Friday: Cathe's Crossfire + YWA
After an absolutely horrible night of restlessness, I readily admit that I did not give this workout my all. I couldn't; I was exhausted. Sleep has been very elusive this week. I gave 75% for this workout and still kept my heart rate up. It's not my favorite workout so I was happy to see it come to an end. Oy. Oh and my arms - especially my triceps - are still aching from Wednesday. Dang!! After work, I tuned into a floor-centric YWA - TRUE practice. Perfect for a Friday!
Saturday: Cathe's XTrain 06: Cardio Leg Blast + 150 lunges + YWA
Legs today. And boy, did this workout get the legs. It alternates a cardio move - leg-centric - and a strength move. So your legs never get a break. It was a bit painful at times - especially the cardio moves. After that 50 minutes, I took 5 minutes to do 150 walking lunges. I didn't think I could do these, my legs were so tired from the workout. But I managed. Yay! Then, finally, a stretch, followed by YWA - TRUE. A good day!
Sunday: Cathe's XTrain 03A Burn Sets: Chest, Back, and Shoulders + XTrain Bonus Core 1 + YWA
Back to upper body today. This was a really good workout. You did three sets of each exercise, trying to go to failure. It sure tested my muscles! Some of the moves were a bit different, which was a nice change. After that, I did the XTrain Core 1 - ouch! This was intense and really hurt....in a somewhat good way. I barely made it through. Then, YWA today was all about core. Ack! Talk about hurt!
Calorie Counts:
Monday - New Year's - BAD
Tuesday - 1173
Wednesday - 1124
Thursday - 1179
Friday - 1344
Saturday - 1279
Sunday - 1255
It felt so good to get back on the diet. Amazing!
Though I'm sad to see the holidays go, I'm happy to be able to get back on track with my diet. I need to eat healthy and try to get my weight down. Once it's down, my endocrinologist thinks it will stay down, now that my thyroid levels are good. I hope she's right.
The trick, however, will be losing the weight. I found two rotations from Cathe that I'm going to do in the next two months before our cruise. The first four weeks focuses on busting through plateaus. The second month will be her Rock Bottoms rotation. It sounds so painful! But I'm anxious to get started...
Also on the docket for January is Yoga with Adriene's 30 Day Yoga Challenge, TRUE. I'm so excited for this! I need to get more strict about my yoga and this will do it!!!
Monday: New Year's Day - REST
Even Adriene gives you the day to contemplate the month and year ahead....
Tuesday: Cathe's Old School Cardio Plus Kickboxing + YWA
This was my third time doing Old School Cardio and it's so much fun! Cathe gets you going and it's non-stop cardio. Fun! I really needed cardio this morning and as I was jumping, I couldn't help but notice my stomach pouch had it's own rhythm. UGH! I must get this gut thing gone, stat! After work, I started YWA's TRUE. Yay! The first day's practice was nice and slow but surprisingly tough. That's why I love Adriene's yoga!
Wednesday: Cathe's XTrain 02: Bi's and Tri's + walk + YWA
Weights today! Cathe sure knows how to work your biceps and triceps from every angle! My arms were getting really shaky near the end, especially with the tricep work. Ouch! At lunch, I braved the cold weather to go to the rec and walk - where, inside, it was annoyingly warm. I did some planks and crunches and stretched really well. And after work, it was time for TRUE, day two, with YWA. This was a really good practice - mindful and powerful....and still a bit painful.
Thursday: Cathe's Rockout Knockout + walk + YWA
Kickboxing today and I love kickboxing! This workout seemed so familiar...and then I realized that I did it two weeks ago. Ha! It's fun and effective - my heart rate stayed up the entire time. Whew! At lunch, I walked at the rec center, which was still overheated, despite the above-freezing temps outside. Ugh. I did some sit-ups and leg raises to finish off. Then, after work, YWA - TRUE Day 3! It was lovely!
Friday: Cathe's Crossfire + YWA
After an absolutely horrible night of restlessness, I readily admit that I did not give this workout my all. I couldn't; I was exhausted. Sleep has been very elusive this week. I gave 75% for this workout and still kept my heart rate up. It's not my favorite workout so I was happy to see it come to an end. Oy. Oh and my arms - especially my triceps - are still aching from Wednesday. Dang!! After work, I tuned into a floor-centric YWA - TRUE practice. Perfect for a Friday!
Saturday: Cathe's XTrain 06: Cardio Leg Blast + 150 lunges + YWA
Legs today. And boy, did this workout get the legs. It alternates a cardio move - leg-centric - and a strength move. So your legs never get a break. It was a bit painful at times - especially the cardio moves. After that 50 minutes, I took 5 minutes to do 150 walking lunges. I didn't think I could do these, my legs were so tired from the workout. But I managed. Yay! Then, finally, a stretch, followed by YWA - TRUE. A good day!
Sunday: Cathe's XTrain 03A Burn Sets: Chest, Back, and Shoulders + XTrain Bonus Core 1 + YWA
Back to upper body today. This was a really good workout. You did three sets of each exercise, trying to go to failure. It sure tested my muscles! Some of the moves were a bit different, which was a nice change. After that, I did the XTrain Core 1 - ouch! This was intense and really hurt....in a somewhat good way. I barely made it through. Then, YWA today was all about core. Ack! Talk about hurt!
Calorie Counts:
Monday - New Year's - BAD
Tuesday - 1173
Wednesday - 1124
Thursday - 1179
Friday - 1344
Saturday - 1279
Sunday - 1255
It felt so good to get back on the diet. Amazing!
Friday, January 5, 2018
The Archies: 2017
The Archies 2017
With a new year comes the wrapping up of the old one. It's that time again: time to reflect upon a year gone by and what we did during that year. It's time again for The Archies! This idea came from Donna and it's something I've really enjoyed doing. It's basically a list of my 50 favorite things from the year. Every year you compile a list, you add an additional item, so I'm now up to 58! See also 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, and 2011. Okay, here we go....
1. A new surrogate niece, Jillian Claire.
2. WONDER WOMAN.
3. Texas Hill Country.
4. Netflix’s “The Crown.”
5. Life in the Long Grass yarn.
6. Hike to Dream Lake (RMNP) in the snow.
7. Dessicated thyroid hormone.
8. Texas Sheet Cake.
10. Knitting my second pair of
adult socks!
11. Yoga with Adriene.
12. Conferencing in Anaheim.
13. My first ever surprise party
(for me?!)!
14. Auburn’s football season,
culminating in the Iron Bowl.
16. Lily Lake,Colorado.
17. Cathe Friedrich.
19. May Designs.
20. Pecan Pie Bars.
21. “Game of Thrones,” season 7.
23. Must Stash yarn.
24. Sprinkle Cookies.
25. Hunt’s Gardens, Barbados.
26. Blue-light reducing computer
glasses.
27. Heim BBQ.
28. Cheez-It’s new flavors.
29. Russian Winter.
30. Cathe’s STS program.
31. The Tinsmith’s Wife.
32. Denver Biscuit Company.
33. Hash Brown Egg Bake.
34. Tampa, FL.
35. Maya Chan, Mexico.
36. Rebel Queen.
37. Shoal Bay, Anguilla.
38. Netflix’s “The Punisher.”
39. THE DARKEST HOUR.
40. The Decc, Distillery 291.
41. My reserved parking space at
work.
42. Overnight trip to Chicago
for work.
43. Netfix’s “The Defenders.”
44. My iPhone 7.
45. Blessings in disguise.
46. STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI.
47. Hot chocolate + whiskey.
48. Netflix’s “Luke Cage.”
49. All the Wonder Woman
merchandise.
50. Being made VP of my local
professional org.
51. Football Saturdays with
family – and food.
52. Taco Bueno’s Whollotta Box.
53. GameDay at TCU.
54. R Taco.
55. Wildseed Farms,
Fredericksburg, TX.
56. Blue Bell’s Peppermint Bark
ice cream.
57. Mr. Higgins’ No Shave
November.
58. Marble Falls, TX.
Wednesday, January 3, 2018
TRUE
Last year, I did Yoga with Adriene's Yoga Revolution during the month of January. It changed the way I thought of yoga; it changed the way I perceived my body. It was a truly transformational experience.
This year, I was so thrilled to see that Adriene has put together another yoga challenge for the month of January: TRUE.
I invite you to join her - and me - for this journey. If you haven't tried any of Adriene's videos, you must. She's so genuine and light-hearted.....this is no stuffy yoga. This is fun yoga. She invites you, in every practice, to find what feels good. If it hurts, stop. Duh! That's her message to you and she's surprisingly funny while pushing you to be your best self.
Yay, January! Yay, yoga!
This year, I was so thrilled to see that Adriene has put together another yoga challenge for the month of January: TRUE.
I invite you to join her - and me - for this journey. If you haven't tried any of Adriene's videos, you must. She's so genuine and light-hearted.....this is no stuffy yoga. This is fun yoga. She invites you, in every practice, to find what feels good. If it hurts, stop. Duh! That's her message to you and she's surprisingly funny while pushing you to be your best self.
Yay, January! Yay, yoga!
Monday, January 1, 2018
December Workouts: Week 4
The week between Christmas and New Years, otherwise known as a free-for-all before the house must be clear of bad food, come January 2. It's also the one time of year we see some of our friends, which means eating out. But I don't care - it's the holiday and a time to relax.
At least I worked out - most days! This week, I picked apart Cathe's Pure Strength to do a muscle group or two each day. Cathe spends about 10 minutes on each body part.
Monday: Christmas Day - rest
Tuesday: travel day - rest
Wednesday: Cathe's Mixed Impact HIIT with Bonus Abs + Pure Strength: Back & Biceps
I thought HIIT was a great way to start the week. And this was a great workout - Cathe alternates high and low impact and even some weighted moves to keep your body guessing. It was a great combination and kept my heart rate elevated. The cardio lasted almost 35 minutes. I skipped the abs and did Pure Strength instead. These are older Cathe workouts - but they're still super effective. I did my own abs and stretch to finish off my day.
Thursday: Cathe's Kick, Punch, and Crunch + Pure Strength: Chest
Another older Cathe workout - but a great kickboxing workout! This one really got my heart pounding, which I loved. Cathe really gets you moving in this workout before you settle into the punch/kick combos. The combinations are a lot of fun themselves! I did about 45 minutes of this cardio and then did the chest segment. Ouch! So many presses! It was nice to stretch after all this!
Friday: Cathe's Great Glutes+ Pure Strength: Triceps
Legs today! I worried about working my legs enough....but I shouldn't have. This workout really gets them good. Hovering in a lunge, with your knee an inch about the ground - that's guaranteed to get your legs shaking. I did all of this workout except for the last 10 minutes of floor work. Instead, I tuned into the Pure Strength Triceps segments. So, an hour of work....and finally, a nice stretch.
Saturday: Cathe's Intensity + Pure Strength: Shoulders & Abs
So, I'm on a cardio kick this week to work off some of these extra calories. I went back to an old friend today with Intensity - my first Cathe workout. I did about 35 minutes of this workout - the step segment and then the HIIT - high and low. And it still got to me, after all the Cathe workouts I've done, she still makes me work and work hard. After that, I did shoulder and ab work. Ow!!!
Sunday: Cathe's Warrior Boot Camp
I don't do many boot camps but I was all into shocking my body this week....so a boot camp it was. This live Cathe workout aired just a few weeks ago. It contains six segments, each of which includes a cardio move, a lower body move, an upper body move, and an ab move. Repeat that 6 times. I didn't do all the ab work - jogging sometimes instead. But it was a great workout. After that 45 minutes, I did 5 minutes of abs and then stretched.
No calories this week. They did not exist. Ha!
At least I worked out - most days! This week, I picked apart Cathe's Pure Strength to do a muscle group or two each day. Cathe spends about 10 minutes on each body part.
Monday: Christmas Day - rest
Tuesday: travel day - rest
Wednesday: Cathe's Mixed Impact HIIT with Bonus Abs + Pure Strength: Back & Biceps
I thought HIIT was a great way to start the week. And this was a great workout - Cathe alternates high and low impact and even some weighted moves to keep your body guessing. It was a great combination and kept my heart rate elevated. The cardio lasted almost 35 minutes. I skipped the abs and did Pure Strength instead. These are older Cathe workouts - but they're still super effective. I did my own abs and stretch to finish off my day.
Thursday: Cathe's Kick, Punch, and Crunch + Pure Strength: Chest
Another older Cathe workout - but a great kickboxing workout! This one really got my heart pounding, which I loved. Cathe really gets you moving in this workout before you settle into the punch/kick combos. The combinations are a lot of fun themselves! I did about 45 minutes of this cardio and then did the chest segment. Ouch! So many presses! It was nice to stretch after all this!
Friday: Cathe's Great Glutes+ Pure Strength: Triceps
Legs today! I worried about working my legs enough....but I shouldn't have. This workout really gets them good. Hovering in a lunge, with your knee an inch about the ground - that's guaranteed to get your legs shaking. I did all of this workout except for the last 10 minutes of floor work. Instead, I tuned into the Pure Strength Triceps segments. So, an hour of work....and finally, a nice stretch.
Saturday: Cathe's Intensity + Pure Strength: Shoulders & Abs
So, I'm on a cardio kick this week to work off some of these extra calories. I went back to an old friend today with Intensity - my first Cathe workout. I did about 35 minutes of this workout - the step segment and then the HIIT - high and low. And it still got to me, after all the Cathe workouts I've done, she still makes me work and work hard. After that, I did shoulder and ab work. Ow!!!
Sunday: Cathe's Warrior Boot Camp
I don't do many boot camps but I was all into shocking my body this week....so a boot camp it was. This live Cathe workout aired just a few weeks ago. It contains six segments, each of which includes a cardio move, a lower body move, an upper body move, and an ab move. Repeat that 6 times. I didn't do all the ab work - jogging sometimes instead. But it was a great workout. After that 45 minutes, I did 5 minutes of abs and then stretched.
No calories this week. They did not exist. Ha!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)