Tag Archive for healthy life

A MUST Read…Chasing That ONE

Happy Thursday! Hope it’s off on the right foot!

I’m working away, but already thinking about the weekend ahead. I’ve got some fun plans for Saturday! A group of friends from the gym are going to Mt. Baldy to do a hike. I’ve never been there, so I’m excited to do it! I haven’t been on an adventure in a while, it seems, so I’m more than ready for a break from L.A. I love this place, but it wears on you sometimes. A day or two somewhere quiet should do my body good. 😉

Chasing the ONE

I took a boxing class Tuesday night at ABA. It’s the boxing gym in the basement of the gym I work at. I have been going once a week for the last 6 weeks or so, and am loving it. I feel like I’m catching onto the combos and getting stronger/faster. I’ve always been able to hit really hard, but when you add in the moving parts and doing it QUICKLY, it can get tough and make your head spin. (fo’ real, they call out combos FAST down there).

Anyways, last night’s class was small…..and small classes mean more work time. The class is set up with 4 stations: mitt-work, bicycling, plyometrics, and heavy bags. Since we didn’t have many people last night, we skipped the heavy bags and just worked through the other 3 stations as many times as we could in an hour.

Hitting the mitts is definitely my favorite because you really feel like a bad-ass-mo-fo-boxer when you do it (or maybe it’s just me?). It’s about 3 minutes of hitting the mitts with a trained instructor that is calling out all types of combos for you to do. An example would be “2,3,2, double hook, catch left, double hook, up 4”. May not seem that hard, but what that means is a right punch, left hook, right punch, double left hook, catch left (they hit you), double left hook, 4 upper cuts, left hook, right punch. These are all being called out WHILE YOU’RE HITTING, so you really have to be on top of your mental game. You don’t exactly get time to think about it! 🙂

It’s such a BLAST, but last night I was hitting a wall physically. Towards the end of each round, I just felt like I had nothing left. I was giving it my all, and punching as hard as I could, but at the same time I was just becoming fatigued and my punches had less and less power as time went on. The instructor that I was hitting with would NOT let me quit. In fact, when I started to break down and hit softer, he made me do MORE and kept me going in order to make me push harder. I truly thought there was NOTHING left in the tank, but he wouldn’t let me quit. He kept yelling “come on Lizzy, HIT HARDER, Let’s go GIVE IT ALL YOU’VE GOT, HIT HARDER!”. This actually happened in two separate rounds and whattayaknow……I was able to give it more. I hit harder, I grunted, and I just pushed through as much as possible. (I secretly also thought I was going to die, but that’s besides the point) 😉

I left class feeling amazing. Feeling like every ounce of energy I had was put into that class. It reminded me that while, yes, I push myself really hard on my own, it doesn’t compete with having someone to help push you even further. You might think you can’t (just like I did), but you CAN. The motivation to do MORE in class was just what I needed. Oddly enough, that motivation spilled into my work day on Wednesday and I had a kick-ass-get-it-done kind of day. 

My point in telling you this story is that I’m CONSTANTLY asked where I get the motivation for my workouts, but RARELY asked where I get the motivation to work as hard as I do at my jobs. While, yes, I’m self-motivated, do you think I just have some kind of motivation machine sitting in my stomach pumping out motivation??????? Hell no!!!!

So then why do I seem to be self-motivated? It’s because I am constantly SEEKING motivation. Whether that be by going to a class where I know the instructor is going to push me, or watching a video online that inspires me to go lift heavy shit and take names while I’m doing it, it’s all encompassing. I’m constantly searching for the kindle to my fire. I know that if I STOP doing that, I’m going to lose the flame. Even on the days that I don’t want to search for motivation and feel the complete opposite, I still know I need to try.

So how exactly does that relate to work-life? It’s the spill-over effect. A cycle, if you will.

  • By getting motivated for fitness, I accomplish and achieve success in the gym.
  • By achieving success and feeling accomplished, I get heightened endorphins and the feeling of knowing I proved I was better than I thought.
  • When I then go to work, those feelings are still there! I end up getting a ton of stuff done and come up with tons of new ideas. (This is one of many reasons that I like to take a break in the middle of the day for a quick workout. It’s idea fuel, get-er-done propane.) Ya feel me?

I’ve alway said working out changed my life, but until you fully experience it yourself, it’s really hard to convey just how life-changing it is. Breaking through mental and physical barriers in the weight room, on the track, in a rock climbing gym, at the yoga studio, or wherever it might be WILL transfer into your everyday life. It takes hard work, consistency, dedication, PATIENCE, and the drive to do better. Lift more than you did last week, run farther than you ever have before. Knowing that not every day is a life-changing, break-through workout, and that some days it’s going to SUCK and you’re going to FAIL. But it’s when you get that ONE…..that ONE workout that makes you just feel like you’re on top of the world and nothing can touch you. It’s that ONE that makes it fucking worth it.

For me, it’s lifting weights and doing high intensity work outs, but whether it’s lifting weights, working on inversions in yoga, or running a marathon, it’s what resonates with YOU. I challenge each of you to go out and find what it is that you like to do. You don’t have to like it every time you do it, you just have to like it enough that you’ll keep trying. And I promise that if you DO keep trying……you’ll get that one….and just like a drug, you’ll continue to keep chasing that one down until you experience it again…..and trust me….you will.

Have you experienced a workout that made you feel on top the world?

What is your favorite way to stay active?

 

Workout Plan + Weekend Pics

Traveling always makes me lose track of the days and times. This weekend, I was in Arizona spending time with my family. I’m here until Tuesday, but I’m feeling like I have no sense of anything! Strange how that is.

Thursday was spent driving, so I took it as a rest day and left it at that. By Friday, I was itching for a workout. I didn’t have much time, so I created my own workout in my dad’s living room.

5 Rounds of: 

-10 Squats

-5 Push Ups

-10 Jump Squats

-15 V-Ups

-10 Jumping Lunges

Afterwards, I did 3 sets of:

-15 Wide Stance Squats (holding my laptop bag filled with cans of beans as a weight!!)

-10 Burpees

This workout took me about 15 or 20 minutes and was the perfect heart rate boost/sweat sesh. You really can get a great workout ANYWHERE!

On Saturday morning, the boyfriend and I headed to the gym for a workout. We did a mixture of Deadlifts, Pull Ups, Glute Kicks on the Reverse Hyper, and DB Military Press. We finished off with a burner using the sled. It was pretty killer and we were both WIPED afterwards.

Workout Plan for the Week: 

Monday: Home Workout (Probably similar to what I did Friday)

Tuesday: Full Body Workout at the gym

Wednesday: CrossFit + Rock Climbing

Thursday: Heavy Lift + Boxing

Friday: 15 min. HIIT + Rock Climbing

Saturday: CrossFit

Sunday: Hike

This is tentative and likely will fluctuate a little bit, but it’s where I’m starting.

And for your viewing pleasure, some photos from the last few days!

AZ Sunrise

AZ Sunrise

 

 

My little bro and I :-)

My little bro and I 🙂

Country Car on a Country Road

Country Car on a Country Road

 

Beautiful Mountain Scenery

Beautiful Mountain Scenery

 

My babe and I in the mountains!

My babe and I in the mountains!

Feeling thankful this weekend for the people in my life. Life is a crazy road and lately it has been testing me, but I’m just taking things one day at a time and making sure I take care of myself. Eating healthy, working out, working hard, and enjoying the moments.

Question of the Day: 

What are you MOST thankful for?

What are some ways you “slow it down” when you’re feeling overwhelmed?