School's Back From Summer... Got Goals?

School is now in session...

Most of my Houston teacher friends have been back from summer break for about a week but kids will be returning to the school routine tomorrow. As we begin the new year, I hope to set some personal goals on the campuses I am working with (remember, I am coaching teachers this year) and help teachers meet their goals too.

Goal Setting

Alright, so you may not be a teacher or a student but we all should set goals. I am going to talk about my health and fitness goals for this year but before I put them out there for the world to see... let's talk what goals should look like.

Firstly, it is important to know that goals have to be realistic. For example, I know I will never weigh 110 pounds or be a size zero even if I went on an all-liquids diet... That is unrealistic and unhealthy for my body. Secondly, goals need to be measurable. I can't necessarily measure my happiness although that is probably arguable. A measurable goal will have some sort of data to back it up- like weight, body measurements, or a fit test (like how many push-ups I can do in a minute). Next, goals need to have a time frame. This is important because with no end in mind... your brain doesn't take it as seriously. In addition, meeting lots of short-term goals adds to your success and willpower to continue meeting more goals! We want to avoid discouragement and celebrate small successes.

One side note here about weight goals... I think initially, weight goals are good to have especially if you know you have excess weight. For me, a weight goal is discouraging. I worked really hard to lose weight and now that's most of it is gone, I am seeing my scale settle instead of continuing downwards. Here's why: When you work out, you build muscle. Muscle weighs more than fat BUT it also burns TWENTY-FIVE times more calories than fat. PS. Muscle also gets rid of cellulite.

Got Goals?

My personal fitness goals:

1. In the next thirty days, I will workout 5X a week before work.
2. In thirty days, I will increase my Fit Test results by 10% in each exercise.

My personal health goal:

1. For the next thirty days, I will eat clean while on the job and will track my food. 
2. I will cook dinner at home during the week for the next month. 

I've posted mine... What are yours?
Follow my blog, post yours and keep us updated. Let me help YOU reach your goals!

Think. Work. Achieve. The Choice is Yours.

Some Workout Snapshots

What's Been UP!? 

I began my new job last Friday as a curriculum coach for middle school science. I am thrilled with my new team of coaches (middle and high school) that I have the opportunity to work with this year and I know I am going to learn a TON! The middle school coaches and I completed our first professional development on Thursday this past week with new science teachers in the district which was a BLAST. Like I said, the people I work with are so fun! PLUS, they are open to my crazy ideas and Quantum Learning tendencies which is a HUGE bonus and SO exciting! YAY FOR AWESOME CO-WORKERS! 

Morning Workouts

As I am sure everyone has experienced, whenever one begins a new job, there is a learning curve so I've been a bit busy! BUT I continued to squeeze in workouts and here's how: I knew I would be exhausted after work (especially after a long, restful summer!) so I set up an alarm at 5:15 AM labeled: "Workout, fatty!" that sounds like a tornado warning alert. That probably goes without saying, it jars me awake. :D (*Note: I don't think I am fat but it nags at my mind if I don't work out! LOL!) Recently, I spoke to a friend of mine embarking on the mission of working out in the morning. I suggested an article I read about transitioning workouts to the wee hours of the morning and I will do the same for you if you are interested in it. Here it is: http://www.runningfordummies.net/2012/06/dummies-guide-to-waking-up-early-to.html I know it says running but it's applicable to workouts in any fashion. 

No Equipment Workouts

If you've read my previous posts, you already know that I workout in my living room for FREE. I do own lots of exercise equipment like weights, sandbag, equalizer, ball, mat, pull up bar... BUT you don't need all that stuff to get in a good workout. 

I find all my workouts (or I make them up) from BodyRock.tv, Pinterest, or other social media (Twitter, Facebook...).  ***Follow my workout board: http://pinterest.com/jgricketts/workout/

This first workout I'll share with you is one I did on August 11. I was thinking I would be able to get two rounds completed in about 15 minutes... WRONG! It took me just over 16 minutes to run through one circuit! It was a good one! Now, if you are just starting out, divide the reps in half and try it to run through it two times! Ether way... try it, beat my time and tell me what you got! BRING IT. :D (If you're not sure what something is, let me know and I can help! Also, this one does say exercise ball but substitute regular floor crunches if you don't have one.)

Source: PBfingers.com found on Pinterest

This workout I completed on August 10 and didn't leave myself enough time to complete the 3 rounds as it indicates in the instructions (I had lunch plans and had to shower!) BUT I did run through TWO rounds in almost 16 minutes (3 rounds is estimated to take 30 minutes). It was another great workout and I wished I would have better utilized my time so I could do all three rounds. It's worth repeating though and definitely worth sharing too!

Source: twitter.com/ohStarz found on Pinterest (I know follow on twitter too!) 

I just love the name of this no-equipment workout! FAT BLASTER! What's not to love?! I always aim to workout for a minimum of 12 minutes so I was able to run through one circuit and a little into a second time for this workout. It's a good full body workout that really gets your heart rate going. For jump rope, I just pretend I have one moving my arms like I really am jumping rope. 

Source: http://backonpointe.tumblr.com/tagged/workout-challenge found on Pinterest 

Photo credit: Me- Hawaii! 

BodyRock.TV "Want You Back" Workout

1) Lateral Side Lunge Using a Chair

2) 2 Low Side Lunges 1 Clean and Press

3) Touch Downs

4) Sand bag low squat medium squat full squat 

This particular workout is an interval workout. You will do the exercise for 50 seconds and then rest for 10 seconds. You complete the circuit 3 times through for a total of 12 minutes. Most of BodyRock.TV's workouts are like this however there are rep challenges thrown in there every once in awhile. It is important to vary your workout regimen to promote muscle confusion. 

Click the link below for the video from BodyRock.tv... A lot of the times, BodyRock.TV workouts can be modified to  do without equipment or pieces of furniture in your living room. If you need help, post on their facebook's or message me and I can help! 

http://www.bodyrock.tv/2012/07/31/want-you-back-workout/

So here's four of the workouts I've done recently that does NOT require equipment. Don't think about it. Just do it. 

Think. Work. Achieve. The Choice is Yours. 

True or False: ALL carbs are bad.

True or False: ALL carbs are bad. 

If you answered true... you're WRONG. (Sorry for yelling.) Now, read why. ;)

With a surge of people following the Atkins diet several years ago, we've all heard that cutting carbs out of your diet is a quick way to lose weight. Now, this is true... however, cutting any one food group out of your diet will help you lose weight. Initially. The truth is that there are different types of carbs: simple and complex. Take the next few minutes here to digest (haha!) the following chart... 

Ok, got it? Simple= bad; Complex= good. 

I don't think I can sum it up better than that but I can say that after eating more complex carbs over simple ones, I FEEL better. I don't crave sweets as much as I used to- which was A LOT and it's easier to turn down sweets when offered. 

Two Week Challenge

Your mission should you choose to accept it... 

1. Create a Meal Plan for the next two weeks incorporating proper portions (see earlier post).
2. Eat 5-6 smaller meals throughout each day.
3. Drink a minimum of 8 glasses (16 ounces) of water a day. NO COKES. 
4. Follow this for two weeks. No "cheats". 

I promise you that you will FEEL the difference in your body. Try it. Post back. 

Think. Work. Achieve. The Choice is Yours. 

HIIT Workouts and Tracking

Time in the Gym 

I used to believe that in order to have an effective workout, you needed to go to the gym, work out one or two muscle groups at a time and then spend additional time with the cardio equipment. My husband despises cardio and seeing as that's who I typically frequented the gym with, we nearly never did our 20 minutes of cardiovascular workout... We'd spend a couple of hours lifting and doing abs so when you're going after work, you're ready to get home, eat dinner and go to bed. In addition, between the two of us, we were spending around $70 a month to go to the gym maybe more.

I am not saying that this type of exercise regimen won't get you or keep you in shape but I am saying that you don't HAVE to workout for hours at the gym in order to be in good shape! I'll tell you how in just a second...

I was finding it difficult to get to the gym on a regular basis with my work schedule and being tight on money, Brandon and I decided to cancel our gym memberships and workout at home- P90X style. As I have mentioned in a previous post, I have never made it through an entire 90 days with P90X- I inevitably would get sick and lose progress which would make me start from the beginning again. In addition, I did not eat healthy- Remember, I always thought, "If I workout, I can eat whatever!"

Brandon and I took pre-P90X pictures and for whatever reason, we never really got very far with it together so I preceded on my own on a different path. A friend of mine had referred me to Jillian Michaels and I started her 30 Day Shred DVD. (See my previous post on her DVD.) After I cycled through this twice, I purchased her Ripped in 30 DVD which I actually like a bit more- there's four workouts/levels (whereas the first one I bought is only 3). It felt amazing to get through this DVD and I could definitely tell I was making progress. About that time, I started seeing some pins on Pinterest about BodyRock.tv and looked into the program and HIIT workouts.

HIIT

Do you currently spend hours at the gym or wish that you had time to workout? Staying fit is an important part of life. Think about it like this: we fuel up our cars to get from place to place; we must fuel up our bodies to do the same. If we never ran the car, the fuel gets bad, the engine gets rusty, etc. If you're fueling up and never working out, essentially it's kinda the same. Muscles are like engines. If they aren't used, they deteriorate. If you don't want to spend hours in the gym, I've got fabulous news for you- YOU DON'T HAVE TO!
HIIT workouts are High Intensity Interval Training. It is exactly as it sounds. You workout in a higher intensity through a determined number of intervals. As Jillian Michaels says, if you want to workout in 30 minutes, there's no resting. Typically a HIIT workout might be intervals of 50 seconds of work and 10 seconds of rest. They contain cardio as well as strength components- so you're building muscle while toning- a perfect combination.
If you've never attempted a HIIT workout, don't be intimidated. Everyone starts somewhere and that's the other great thing about these type of workouts- you do as much as YOU can in that time frame. Let me give you an example of a HIIT workout using the 50/10 interval (50 seconds work, 10 seconds rest). We'll do three rounds of 4 different exercises. This workout would be 12 minutes long.

1.  Jumping Jacks
2.  Tricep Dips 
3. Squat Jumps
4. Push-Ups

Let's say you want to modify tricep dips, you can change your leg placement to make it as difficult as you want (legs further out, hard; legs elevated, advanced) and do as many as you can in that 50 seconds. If  you only get ten, great, because you'll see improvements if you continue these HIIT workouts! You can modify for any of the exercises making it as easy or difficult as you can manage. I like to repeat the same workouts every once in awhile using my old scores so I can track my progress which brings me to another important point...

Track Your Progress

As you embark on your journey of HIIT workouts, keep a notebook with your workouts. (I use a one-subject spiral.) I document the date of the workout, the interval, the exercises and the number of reps I accomplish in that workout in a chart format. It really is a cool feeling to go back and do an "old" workout and blow your scores out of the water! Try doing a HIIT workout routine for 2 weeks and then repeat the first one you did. I dare you.

Think. Work. Achieve. The Choice is Yours.