Archive for Workout

Weekend Pictures and Recap

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Here we go again! Another week, another Monday, another chance to do it right! Right?! Right!

Can you tell I’m extra hyped this morning? It’s been a good weekend, and I’m ready to tackle the week.

I had a weird stomach thing going on last week (thought I had an ulcer, turns out I don’t, but not really sure what’s going on!). I tried to take it a bit easy, but oddly enough, my stomach didn’t hurt at all while working out. Maybe 24/7 workouts is what the doctor should have prescribed?! 😉

Friday

I spent the day working per usual. When I finished, I headed to CrossFit High Voltage in Burbank. I love this CF box! It’s not close to where I live, but the people there are AWESOME….so I drive.

We worked on hang cleans and push press/push jerks and then went right into the WOD. This WOD literally DOMINATED my shoulders. Here’s what we did:

15 Min. WOD

-200m run then,

-Dumbbell Push Press to failure

-200m run every time you fail.

So what does that mean exactly? It means that anytime you have to put the weights down, you have to run. And then you come back and do more push clomid-info until you can’t hold the weight up anymore. And again. And again.

I ended up getting 111 reps with 25lb Dumbbells! Holy shoulders!!!! I couldn’t lift my arms over my head after that.

Friday evening, I was in bed by 7:30pm watching I Love Lucy re-runs. I love that show. I still think it’s hilarious and try to follow my mom’s lead in this particular life lesson: When it doubt, ask yourself, what would Lucy and Ethel do?

lucyethel_i_love_lucy-300x225

Trust me, works every time. 😀

Saturday

We woke up early and headed over to see some friends. We hung out for a bit and then went to a Mexican Restaurant in the valley called Casa Vega. The chips and salsa were on point (my favorite mexican dish 😉 ) and the salad I ordered was pretty great too. It had:

-Grilled Chicken

-Black Beans

-Avocado (an entire half of one! love when they give you a REAL serving 🙂 )

-Tomatoes

-Onions

-Lettuce

It was perfect with a little salsa on top in lieu of dressing.

My salad looked a lot like this, minus the cheese:

mexican salad

After the big lunch, Charlie and I let our food digest a bit before heading to my home gym, Iron, for a workout.

We did a modified version of Cindy:

20 minute AMRAP

-3 Chin Ups

-10 Push Ups (i did Lemon Squeezers because my triceps were DEAD from Friday’s WOD)

-15 Squats

I ended up getting through 10 rounds plus 1 more chin up. That’s 31 chin ups! For me, that is a lot of volume. I’m getting so much better at pull ups/chin ups and I’m loving it!!!

We didn’t let our food digest quite enough (he ate a GIANT burrito the size of a baby), so when we went to do treadmill sprints, neither of us could finish due to side cramps. Haha, ya win some, ya lose some. You win, Casa Vega, you win.

Sunday

Let’s call this my day of clutziness.

I parked in a fire zone, dropped my phone and broke my screen, got a parking ticket in Beverly Hills, and had to go back to the phone repair store twice to get it fixed.

Let’s just leave Sunday at that. (Of course I did my Sunday evening work, per usual.)

I’m ready for a great week of workouts this week! I’ll have my workout plan up tomorrow, but for today, I plan on running some sprints at the track and getting some climb time in at Rockreation.

1. What’s on your workout agenda this week?

2. What is the HARDEST form of exercise for you to do? (i.e. running, sprinting, lifting weights, plyometrics, etc.)

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Workout Plan 3/31 – 4/5 + Why I Work on Sundays

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A brand new week and the closing of a month! How has March treated everyone?

Mine was pretty good:

–I worked out a lot

–I visited family in AZ (Twice!)

–The earth in SoCal moved a lot! (got another one on Friday night!)

–I watched a lot of Dexter and did other random things

i-hate-mondays

 

Why I Work on Sundays 

For most people, the weekend is a time to relax and catch up on life outside of work. I agree to a certain extent (although I find myself working whenever I’m not being occupied with something else) but also reserve Sunday afternoons for work.

Most of you probably think I’m crazy. Sunday evenings are a time to relax, watch TV, do something fun, etc. I try to squeeze all of that in on Saturdays and Sunday mornings.

Here is why I like to work on Sunday afternoons: 

– It gives me a chance to get ahead. Why put off to tomorrow what I can do today? My Mondays are usually overloaded with meetings and to-dos, so getting a little bit ahead with things that I can do the day before is helpful.

-My phone and e-mail aren’t blowing up. Guys, I carry two cell phones and have about 5 different e-mail addresses. I’m your typical LA girl who’s talking on one cell phone while texting/e-mailing on another. It’s sad and I’m not proud of it, but for now, it’s what I’ve got to do. I love my work and jobs (although sometimes overwhelming and stressful) so for now, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Sunday evenings, my phone is SILENT. No e-mails (not even junk e-mails), no phone calls, and very few text messages. I can work on something and not get sidetracked, pulled away by something more important, or be completely unfocused. There is a zen about being able to work when everything is quiet.

-I feel accomplished and ready for the week ahead. Getting into “work-mode” the night before helps make my Mondays less stressful. It gets my head back in the “hustle” state of mind and allows for Monday morning to be that much less of an “oh my gosh i have 5 million things to do RIGHT NOW” kind of morning.

So there you have it. Working on Sunday afternoons doesn’t make sense for some people that don’t have jobs that require almost 24/7 attention, and it just isn’t for everybody. Some people would rather just start back up on Monday, and that’s totally fine. My brain just can’t handle it and I feel much more sane getting some things done early.

With that said…..

Workout Plan for the Week

Monday: Full Body Workout + Climb

Tuesday: Boxing

Wednesday: HIIT + Climb

Thursday: CrossFit + Full Body Functional

Friday: Climb

Saturday: Full Body Workout OR Hike

Sunday: Rest

What is your fitness plan for the week?

Do you work on the weekends? 

Do you like what you do?

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Workout Recap and Weekend Getaway HELP!!

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This week has been full of some awesome workouts, so let’s get right to it!

Workout Recap

Monday: I did a 15 minute HIIT on the treadmill. It’s amazing how much 15 minutes can make you sweat and curse. I think they go hand in hand. I also did some bouldering at the rock climbing gym.

I alternated between 6.5 and 9.0 mph on the treadmill and shared my MFT upon completion.

Tuesday: I walked on the treadmill while waiting for Charlie, and then I put us both through some hell

Here’s what we did: 

3 sets of: Squat/Sled/KB Swing combo (this video is old, but this is what it is:)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTuCIGFL1qE

3 sets of: 5 Burpee Pull Ups (with full push up and on a very high bar that required a lot of pulling up!!!) super set with 10 Medicine Ball Thrusters (18 lbs)

3 sets of: 10 Push Press (45 lbs) superset with 5 Ninja Jumps

This workout looked easier on paper than it was. I tend to do that a lot…..

Wednesday: Bouldering. Instead of what I normally do, which is climb hard and take good long breaks, I set out to be there for an hour with minimal breaks. None of my friends could go, so I decided it would be the best use of my time. Damn it was hard! Climbing gives you a pump like nothing else.

Thursday: Boxing. I’m so glad I got back into this. I almost didn’t go because I’ve got a big work project going on, but knew I would feel much better if I did. I was right and left a sweaty, soaking, hot mess. It was glorious.

My plan for today? Crossfit 14.5! I missed 14.4 because I was out of town, so I figure i’ll try this one out. I may have to scale down the thrusters, but we’ll see what happens.

This weekend: 

Even though I was out of town last weekend, I feel like going out of town again! I love to travel and do little weekend trips, but haven’t been taking them lately. I made it a goal to change that. I’m leaving tonight and still don’t know where I’m going.

Should I go to: 

1. Santa Barbara

2. Solvang

3. Dana Point

Help me decide! Leave me your choice in the comments, por  favor. 🙂

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Leg Workout + Kettlebells

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Hey friends! Hope your Tuesday is off to a great start!

Monday morning, me and several million of my friends woke up to a good shake here in Southern California. It was definitely the biggest earthquake I’ve ever felt, but by no means was it bad compared to the devastations that have happened around the world. I woke up from the jolt and in trying to wake up my boyfriend, accidentally punched him in the face. Luckily that was the only injury that took place. (Sorry babe! ;-))

The best part of the earthquake was definitely this…..

Makes me laugh every time! Thank you Captain Obvious! We all felt it!

Anyways, moving on!

Yesterday, I did a doozy of a workout. It was a mixture of legs and back with a hint of some kettle bell action. I LOVE kettle bells. They are so versatile. They take some time to get used to, and it is helpful to have someone who knows what they’re doing show you the ropes (errr…bells). Once you DO learn how to use them, they can be used for just about anything.

Here’s what I did Monday:

The Workout

The Workout

For the squats, I did sets of 15, 12, 10, 8, and 6, increasing the weight each set. I worked my way up to 115 pounds.

For the pull ups, I did sets of 5, 5, 3, and then switched to chin ups and did 3 and 3.

For the rest of the exercises, I did sets of 10-12 reps of each. 

I used 12kg for the one arm KB Snatches and 16kg for the KB Swings

This workout definitely kicked my butt! Loved that I went from a slower paced heavy lift, to a faster pace burnout. Had  a good sweat going by the end!

Here’s my plan for the rest of the week: 

Tuesday: Boxing and Bouldering

Wednesday: HIIT and Bouldering

Thursday: CrossFit and a Functional Workout

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Hike

Sunday: Rest

I’m traveling to Phoenix once again this weekend, so my workouts Friday – Sunday will be whatever I can get in. I will, of course, have to make a visit to my old stomping grounds (aka the Mecca of Scottsdale). I’m planning on resting on Friday and Sunday, but if I decide to drive back Monday, I’ll probably move my rest day to Monday.

Do you use Kettle Bells?

If you have, what are your favorite Kettle Bell exercises?

If you haven’t, would you like some videos to help you learn?

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Vacation Help and Random AZ Photos

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It’s that time of the year where the hype of New Year’s is over, spring is upon us (although here in L.A. I’m pretty sure spring is still sprung from last year) and everyone is starting to think about vacations. Is it just me?!

Dana Point circa....2007?

Dana Point circa….2007?

My birthday is on Monday. My birthday was always around Spring Break when I was in school, so maybe that’s why I think of vacations. Who knows! Regardless, I was thinking about where I want to go on my next vacation. I do light traveling throughout the year, but sometime this year, I want to take a REAL vacation. Like, longer than a weekend and not to my hometown. I feel like there are SO many places that I want to go, so it’s been hard to narrow it down. Thoughts so far: Seattle, Cabo San Lucas (been there but want to go back), Alaska, Washington D.C/New York, or Chicago (I have family there). HELP ME PICK  A VACATION SPOT!

Okay, moving on...this week has been a whirlwind. I drove back to L.A. from Phoenix on Tuesday. I was actually making AMAZING time until I hit this

Lovely Los Angeles Traffic

Lovely Los Angeles Traffic

I definitely knew I was home…

Tuesday’s workout at my old stomping grounds was awessssooommmmmeee. I did some heavy squats, push-ups with dumbbells and a rotation, chin-ups, walking lunges with a barbell, kettlebell swings, and snatches. My glutes are definitely feeling the soreness from it! I always like to kick my ass (literally) right before a long car ride. It makes it easier to sit in a car for 6 hours.

Other random pictures from my trip back to AZ

Lux Cafe Central

Lux Cafe Central

Tuesday morning we stopped by Lux Cafe in Phoenix. My dad is always going on about it, so I finally tried it. The verdict? In the words of Chris Farley…It.. was… AWESOME! The coffee was realllly good and the egg white sandwich I got was even better! I devoured it in .9384 seconds as seen below.

Twas an egg sandwich from heaven

Twas an egg sandwich from heaven

It had fire roasted tomatoes, egg whites, and cheese on an english muffin. Best egg sandwich of my life right there. Worst looking photo of my life right there. Balance, people.

We also made a pit stop at See’s candy. My dad’s girlfriend introduced me to their Butterscotch lollipops this weekend. Let’s just say it’s a new addiction. The bright side is that they are only 80 calories and take about 30 minutes to eat just one. Therefore, I deem them the PERFECT treat.

Samples? Yes, please!

Samples? Yes, please!

I’ve been working like crazy since I got back and haven’t had a ton of time to blog, but I AM planning on shooting some videos for the blog in the next week….so I ask you this…

What would you like to see in my fitness videos?

Specific Exercises? Full Workouts? Certain body part focused workouts? How To’s on form?

Let me know in the comments please!!

 

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Gotta Tabata

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The title of this post highlights the thoughts in my head yesterday morning. I woke up and decided to get my workout done right away so I could get started on some work and not worry about it. I had a lot of things to do, and knew I needed to get my workout out of the way early. At some point in this conversation in my head (don’t act like you don’t do this!!) I said, “Well, I guess I gotta tabata!” And then I laughed to myself like a dork.

Since I was up in the mountains yesterday, I knew my workout would be done indoors. Totally fine by me! Sometimes my bodyweight-only workouts get me sweating more than the ones at the gym! Not belonging to a gym is NO excuse.

So what is Tabata? Well, it’s debatable. HOWEVER, the widely known version of Tabata in the fitness world goes like this:

1. Pick any exercises you want!

2. Find a Tabata timer like the one here.

3. Typical settings should give you 20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest, and 8 cycles. (Of course you can do more of less cycles if you’d like and you can add and subtract time as well, but this is the standard).

4. GET IT!

Here’s what I did. Since each cycle takes exactly 4 minutes, this workout took me just 20 minutes to do. And it kicked my bootayyy! I encourage you to try this! Use these exercises, or any exercises of your choosing!

gottatabata

 

**Always check with a doctor before starting a new fitness program

Questions of the Day:

Have you ever Tabata’d? What do you think of it?

 

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Weekend Workouts and Fun

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This weekend was such a perfect blend of relaxation, fun, and workouts. Let’s get right to it!!

Saturday

We woke up Saturday and grabbed a coffee before heading to the studio for a session. My good friend runs an AMAZING  co-ed camp where she takes young girls and boys to do tons of fun activities. She teaches them about empowerment, self-confidence, gratitude, and so much more. You can read all about it here. For this particular weekend, Tedi got her girls together to record their version of “Roar” by Katy Perry. The girls had a BLAST and I did too! Tedi and I may have even made a cameo in the bridge of the song……

Sand Sister's Girls Having a Blast in the Studio

Sand Sister’s Girls Having a Blast in the Studio

After the recording session, we headed over to Temescal Canyon for a hike. It’s such a BEAUTIFUL hike and a good workout too! I didn’t snap any photos, but this should give you an idea of the view…:-D

Temescal Ridge Trail

Source

The hike definitely worked up an appetite, so we headed to Burger Lounge for some grub. I rave about this place ALL the time. It’s not only DELICIOUS, but the food is so fresh and comes from sustainable farms. You can taste the difference in the quality of food and you don’t leave feeling like you ate a greasy burger. I usually get the Little Lounge Turkey Burger (and fries of course!), but the grass-fed beef is also a great choice! If you make it out to LA, you MUST try this place!!!

Sunday

Sunday morning, I got up to do a good old heavy lifting workout + some metabolic conditioning. I hit not one, but TWO Personal Records (PR’s)!!!!! Stoked is an understatement.

The first PR I hit, was 6 reps of 216lb hip thrusts. My record before that was 211, so just a small increase, but an increase nonetheless!!! I had someone shoot a little video of the madness….

The next PR I hit was on pull-ups. I posted on Facebook last week that I was going to try to get 5 strict pull ups this week……and I did!!!! I was STOKED and immediately started running around the gym like a freak. (Guess I can’t deny who I am! ;-)) I was surprised at how easy reps 1-4 were. 5 was definitely a challenge, but I’m hoping 6 isn’t too far off…..:-)

I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning a bit and meeting a friend for an afternoon Americano. Because who doesn’t need a huge spike of caffeine at 4:30pm?! LOL

Hope everyone is having a GREAT Monday. I’ll be sharing the rest of my Sunday workout Tuesday morning. It was only 10 minutes long and a BURNER. You’ll love it. Stay tuned…;-)

Question of the Day:

Have you hit any new PR’s lately? 

Are you working towards any new PR’s?! (If not, set some goals!!!)

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Workouts & Listening To My Body

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Good morning! I hope you’re all having a wonderful week! We’re more than half way through, and the weekend is coming shortly!

Animals-Eating-Pizza-11

This week has been a whirlwind! I took yesterday pretty easy because my body was exhausted and a bit sore.

Here’s a recap of my workouts so far this week:

On Monday, I did a 15 minute HIIT workout in the early part of the day. It was nice to get that out of the way. It may only be 15 minutes, but it gets you SWEATIN’!!! In the afternoon, I did a heavy lifting session.

For my heavy lifting sessions, I typically like to do a set of: 15, 12, 10, 8, 6. Basically, I combine my warm-up (15 and 12 rep sets) and my heavy sets (10, 8, 6 rep sets). This helps me get into the lift and get my muscles ready for the heavier weights. I did:

Deadlifts

Squats

Chin Ups

DB Military Press

Pull Ups

For the chin ups and pull ups, I just do sets of 2-3. That’s about where I’m at strength-wise right now, so I just work on trying to get just 1 more rep in the beginning of the workout. (Hoping to get 5 reps by the end of the week!!!)

After my lift, I headed to the rock climbing gym for some climbing. They are doing construction on the bouldering area  right now, so I actually harnessed in and climbed the walls with the rope. I forgot how long you’re on the wall! Holy endurance!!! My forearms are a bit sore from that.

Tuesday evening, Charlie and I headed to the gym for a full body workout. I was pretty sore from Monday, but when Charlie wants to work out, I take advantage! I snuck in a 15 min. HIIT before the workout as well. We did the following supersets:

Super Set #1

DB Bench Press + Chest Fly

KB Swings

Super Set #2

Front Foot Elevated Reverse Lunges

Hanging Leg Raises

Super Set #3

DB Windmills

Swiss Ball Dead Bugs

Needless to say, my body is a bit exhausted. I took yesterday to relax, walk a bit to stretch my legs, catch up on some writing, and worked. I like to stay moving when I’m sore to try to get the blood flowing, hence the short walks throughout the day. Stretching, walking, light moving in general, tend to help with DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness).

I think it is very important to listen to your body. While I had a CrossFit workout on my agenda for Wednesday, I knew that my body needed a little break. I pushed the workout until today at lunch and hopefully resting yesterday will give me some energy and muscle recovery for it today.

Question of the day:

What do you do when you have a tough workout planned and your body just ain’t havin’ it?!

I just started watching Dexter. OMG Where have I been?! Any other awesome shows I’m TOTALLY missing out on?!

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Workout Weekend!

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What a wonderful weekend it has been! As always, I’m excited to start the week and get things done, but I have no complaints about the weekend I had!

Valentine’s Day

My lovely boyfriend surprised me with flowers and a sweet little date night. We went to the beach and watched the sunset and then got some chinese takeout and watched a movie. I got through about 10 minutes of said movie before passing out and sleeping for the next 12 hours. I can’t tell you the last time I slept that much! Clearly, I was exhausted.

Saturday

I got up on Saturday and headed to CrossFit High Voltage in Burbank for the World’s Best Boot Camp Platoon 002’s graduation. I LOVE being a part of this company! The energy was amazing and there was once again, a 100% success rate for everyone in Platoon 002. So inspiring!!

Before their graduation, I got to spend some time in front of the camera demonstrating proper form for push ups and squats. I’m not going to lie, I LOVE being in front of the camera teaching about something I’m so passionate about.

wbbc002_graduation_squat

wbbc002_graduation_squat3

Afterwards, Charlie and I headed to the gym to do this workout:

workout 2.15.14

(We used 18 lb medicine balls, a 24 inch box, and a 16kg kettlebell.)

Hello back!

Hello back!

Charlie!

Charlie!

Sunday

I spent Sunday being pretty lazy, yet also being productive. I grabbed a coffee and got some work done at the gym, and then headed to my boss’s house to get some work done there. I spent the rest of the afternoon just hanging out, getting rid of some old clothes, cleaning, and planning for the week.

I don’t have President’s Day off like everyone else (I don’t really ever get days off it seems!!), so I’ll be out and about working away tomorrow.

Do you have President’s Day off? 

If so, what are you doing? Make me jealous! 😉

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Valentine’s Day Partner Workout

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Happy Valentine’s Day!! Whether you’re celebrating big or hating on the holiday, just enjoy some time with your partner, friend, relative, or pet!

Hearts-in-Unity-Logo-LG

In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, I put together a partner workout that you can do with any of the above people (although your dog might just make you do all the work!).

Sweat it out with someone you love today!

Valentine’s Day Partner Workout

(This is best done at a park or somewhere that you will have a little bit of room)

Warm Up: Between the two of you, complete 100 squats. You can break it up however you’d like, but you can’t both squat at the same time!

#1. Fast Jacks

Partner 1: 50 Jumping Jacks

Partner 2: Push Ups until Partner 1 finishes

Switch roles and then repeat!

#2. Burpee Challenge!!

Partner 1 does 1 burpee, Partner 2 does 1 burpee, Partner 1 does 2 burpees, Partner 2 does 2 burpees….

Keep going up the ladder until someone can’t finish a set!

Pro Tip: I highly suggest making a bet for this one…massage for the winner?! 😀

#3. Run it Out!

Find about a 15-20 yard space and mark it.

Partner 1: Sprint to the marker and do: 5 push ups, 10 squats, 10 sit ups, sprint back and tag Partner 2 to do the same thing.

Complete 5 rounds of this!!!

Happy Sweaty Valentine’s Day!!!

sweaty workout

Question of the day:

Are you a lover or hater of the holiday?

I’m indifferent. I like spending time with my man, but hanging out at home with a movie is fine by me.

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